Here are five mistakes you should avoid if you're looking to receive referrals.

1. Lack of credibility. No one is going to refer you if they don’t think you’re good at what you do. One of the best ways of being really good at what you do is by specialising. If I ask you what type of businesses you work with, would you reply with “I work for any type or size of business, in any industry”? You need to select a specific service to provide to a select market in order to get good at it.

2. Short-term thinking. How many times have you done a bit of work for a client and stopped keeping in touch, because you don’t think they’ll give you any more work? To generate referrals you need to think about the long-term potential of all your business relationships. These days it’s not about who you know – it’s about who knows you, so you need to keep in touch.

3. Not being interested in what people think. When did you last ask your clients what they think about you, your business and the service you provide for them? Asking clients how you are doing and listening to the answers is an extremely powerful way of helping them to think and say good things about you. Putting suggested improvements into place can help turn your clients into raving fans who tell even more people how good you are. If you’d like to tell me exactly what you think of Scribbles and whether or not it meets your needs, click here.

4. Ignoring your true values. Why are you in business? What do you want to achieve from your business and your life? Whatever it is, you need to make sure that your personal and business values are aligned. If you’re not true to yourself, people will see through you. When you are, more people will trust your integrity and tell others about it and about you.

5. Not getting proof. Don’t just rely on your clients telling other people about your great service. Collect testimonials, quotes and case studies so that when someone asks you for proof of happy clients, you can show them. Put quotes – with names and links to client’s websites – on your website. These days you can even get 30 second video clips of happy clients actually speaking your praises for as little as £60. (Click here if you want to find out more about using this service.)

Do you want to find more great clients without using up masses of money and energy? Make sure you avoid these mistakes and you’re half way there. Read on to find out what else you need to do.

Words at Work - Giving in Order to Get

Reaping what you sow applies to many things, including the generation of referrals. One of the best ways to encourage other people to give you referrals and recommendations is to give away plenty yourself.

Here are some ideas you can put into practice:

Networking. When you go to a networking meeting, don’t see a room full of potential clients and scare them off by trying to sell to them all. To open communication channels with new prospects and get their attention, ask them what sort of help they need. Who are they looking for? What issues do they have in the business? Then try to put them in touch with someone who can help.

Newsletters. As well as being a great vehicle for sharing your advice and expertise, a newsletter is an excellent way of giving referrals. You can include details of your favourite suppliers or clients and tell your readers who they are looking for. You can provide links to other great services.

Website. People used to phone me for a recommendation to a good graphic designer, a printer, or a photographer, so I decided to add all my favourite ones to my website. Click here to see who is there and how you can do the same thing.

By giving referrals and putting other people in touch, you will be remembered as the person who knows people. They will come back to you when they need a recommendation for another service. They will get to know what you do. When they need what you do, they will come back to you. And when someone else asks them for someone who does what you do, they will point them in your direction! Thus you reap what you sow.