Need Better Referrals?
May 15, 2025
Phil Krone
Get your team ready for 2018 now with “Referrals: The Workshop” on Wednesday, December 13, from 8 a.m. to noon, at the offices of Productive Strategies in Northfield, Illinois. In a business-to-business environment, referrals can lead to 80% of all new business. But building solid referrals does take time–and a proven process. Don’t be left out.
Participants tell us they learn to:
“Know how and when to ask.”
“Be seen as an expert.”
“Tell the right stories.”
“Focus on process, not outcome.”
“Network more effectively.”
Be ready for your sales to take off in the new year. Contact us at 847-446-0008 or pkrone@productivestrategies.
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The answer is just about anywhere. But here are several sources we’ve seen work wonders.
Asking the questions that give you the confidence you need to win in sales.
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Last year after a talk I gave at the Small Business Expo on Business to Business Selling (B2B) , a woman asked for my card because she wanted to meet to tell me about her business and learn more about mine. When we eventually got together she shared that her start-up company’s goal was to console consumers who had suffered the loss of a loved one directly, as she had. But my talk had inspired a new idea: assist funeral homes to improve their services by showing more empathy to their customers who were struggling as she was. I sensed that my talk gave her confidence that, despite the challenges, her business could succeed. What I didn’t realize was that this small assignment for a start-up would eventually have such a big impact on her business as well as an industry.
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As a reminder, the Five Levels of Marketing are (1) Sales, (2) Information/Data/Analytics, (3) Tactical or Campaign, (4) Marketing or Program, and (5) Vision/Strategic. We’ve explored each of the first three levels in separate columns in August, September, and October. They are available on our website's Productive Insights collection.
Using intelligence from prior levels leads to revenue-building sales campaigns on the ground in real time.
Tracking key types of data each month provides insights that can build a highly productive marketing plan.
The Five Levels -
Sales: Prospecting, qualifying, discovery, presentation, demonstration, proposal writing and closing; Information/Data/Analytics; Tactical or Campaign; Marketing or Program; Vision/Strategic