One of the most effective and efficient ways to increase your sales is with referrals. 

Why?  Because when someone comes to you via referral they have the majority of their buying decision made – making your sales conversations more helpful to your potential client and profitable for you.

When you are looking for ways to increase your referrals, you may overlook the important detail of when you are asking for referrals.

“When you ask” includes the timing within your sales cycle and the timing within your sales conversations. Be sure to include these critical elements when you are looking to increase the number of referrals you are getting.

Timing is important because if you ask for referrals too soon or too late, you reduce your chances of getting referrals (worst case scenario) or you make it harder for you to get referrals (best case scenario).

Have you asked for a referral too soon? 

There are signs for you to read from your clients...

Have you ever noticed that many entrepreneurs talk passionately about growing their businesses, yet, in the same breath, they say they hate selling?

This is like saying you want to win the New York City Marathon but you hate running. Counterintuitive, isn’t it?  

Sales is the life blood of your business. Learning to appreciate it and hopefully love it is crucial to your business’ growth. 

Part of the reason sales has such a bad rap is because people often use stereotypical models as their measure.

Recently I was introduced to Amir. We engaged in a pleasant conversation when Amir asked what I did. I told him I was a sales author.

His response revealed his perception of sales.

He said, “Really? But you seem so nice.” And at the same time, he took a step back.

This is like others who lean back when they find out I’m a sales author.   You may think this kind of response is out of the norm, but it’s not.

This begs the...