Many businesses spend thousands of pounds each year on marketing, which is of course a necessary aspect for growth and development. However, there is a free way to market your business, using a method that is often overlooked: it exemplifies a candid, direct representation of your business. We’re talking about referrals.

Customer referrals are the most valuable sales leads your business will come across. Referrals, recommendations, feedback, testimonials: they provide an honest account of a customer’s experience with you, so can give the green light to other potential consumers. This is particularly vital for small and medium sized businesses, whose name may not be known extensively to new customers. We are naturally creatures of habit, so approaching a new or unknown business can be done so with caution and doubt. There is little we can do to trust a new business except to look for validation from other customers. This is such a routine situation that it has generated the huge success of review sites such as TripAdvisor and Reevoo. A referral or recommendation can be the confirmation needed for new customers to trust in your products or services.

The power of a real person or company, that has experience of your services, sharing their positive experience is invaluable. If a customer is adequately happy with your product or service to refer a new client to you, then they have accomplished a good proportion of selling for you in advance. Inheriting trust from your existing customer, clients who approach you on personal recommendation will already have a certain level of trust in you.

To boost your customer referrals, you need to ensure that your business is providing maximum quality customer service. The better the service, the happier the customer. The happier the customer, the more likely they are to share their pleasant experience with others. This word-of-mouth approach is particularly effective in local areas, so get enhancing your customer services.

Another strategy that is crucial for building your number of referrals is to increase your contact base. How do you do this quickly and effectively? Join Nexus Networking. If you are a credible and reliable trades-person or professional hungry to do more business, our networking groups can benefit you. A membership with Nexus can rapidly increase your client base: our members, on average, benefit from £27,000 of business a year. We boast of individuals who want a friendly and pleasant networking experience, whilst also passing genuine business between members.

Because Nexus Networking members are business-focused and value their time, each meeting follows a structure agenda designed to ensure the greatest return on investment. This incorporates a weekly opportunity to educate fellow members about the type of business you are looking for, as well as giving and receiving those all-important referrals.

Interested in joining? Click here to apply.