Episode 16 How To Build A Steady Stream Of Referrals
Jodi and Darryl Beuckert join Gary to discuss how to cultivate referrals in your business. As business owners we all want more referrals but for many businesses, they can’t be relied upon. Jodi and Darryl discuss how to implement systems to help cultivate new referrals without any awkward or sleazy tactics.
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Transcript
00:00:48 Gary Ruplinger
Hello and welcome everybody to another episode of Pipelineology. I am your host Gary Ruplinger, and today. I am pleased to be joined by Darryl and Jodi Bueckert from the Trust Method, Jodi and Darryl, Welcome to the show.
00:01:03 Darryl Bueckert
Thanks for having us.
00:01:04 Jodi Bueckert
Thanks for having us let’s be here.
00:01:06 Gary Ruplinger
Oh, it is my pleasure to have you. I’m very excited for our discussion today in our topic. But before we jump into that for anybody who’s not familiar with you could you just give a little bit of background your story and how you got here?
00:01:21 Darryl Bueckert
Sure, yeah, we’ve been in the customer service space for well, 25 years each and in various different things.
00:01:35 Darryl Bueckert
Yeah, so you know, Jody has a has a past as an interior designer. I’ve worked for years as a commercial photographer. My previous career that was like of all things was actually in foothills, so like making orthotics and braces for people so with this very varied background that has brought us to working in the customer experience base.
00:01:56 Gary Ruplinger
Well, excellent.
00:01:59 Darryl Bueckert
Most recently, the thing that’s kind of led probably answering the question you’re going to ask but is what led to us, sparking this idea is actually working in the charity space. We spent about 4 years living between our home in Canada and in Mexico, working with charities build up. You’re working in child sponsorship like building up a system to help deal with the logistics of the spouse child sponsorship.
00:02:24 Jodi Bueckert
Yeah, so in in 2014, we, we packed up, our kids, we rented our house. Plus, we paused our businesses at the time ’cause. We were full blown entrepreneurs at the time, and we move down to Mexico and we were actually weren’t even sure why we moved down there. We just felt like it was something that we needed to do. We felt like there has to be more to life than just what we had going at the time even though business was good, but we wanted to have a different experience, I guess, and we wanted to show that to our kids and when we got down there. We started to meet all these amazing nonprofits that were feeding kids and helping them with their education, giving them shoes, giving them school supplies and what we found was that they have these relationships with their, the donors that come down to visit them because we were in the city of Massillon, which is very tropical there’s a lot of Volunteers that come down to come and help but we saw that they were this amazing organization, but , but we felt like if their relationship was stronger. What kind of impact would that make on what they wanted to do for these kids?
00:03:41 Darryl Bueckert
Yeah, like when they came back home. You know you are down. So, you’re a snowboard and you’re down there for 2 months and you have these amazing experiences. ’cause you can actually go make an impact in someone’s life and then you go home if there’s nothing to bring home with you, you just bring stories. And so that yeah that and then there’s this fall off where if there was more that they could bring home to excite other people. Everyone could potentially win more people coming. You know actually spending their vacation time, helping people in addition to in addition to relaxing and enjoying the warm climate. Like they’re being fulfilled as people and obviously the people who are receiving the help are being fulfilled ’cause. They’re having a need met so this scenario where everybody could win if they if these ministries could share themselves more these charities. Just be able to help them connect the dots.
00:04:34 Jodi Bueckert
Yeah, and so we saw this amazing opportunity for these nonprofits to invite their donors into the process of working with them. ’cause if we can extract it. We can strengthen that relationship then. Like they’re in it together and when we can do things together, we can be stronger, and we can make more impact so that left us very curious and it wasn’t till this past year that we realized our work. There brought us to what we have developed for entrepreneurs. Today, the process of inviting our best clients into our work and partnering with them, which makes what we know to be a stronger referral to grow their business.
00:05:20 Jodi Bueckert
So that’s a bit of a background.
00:05:22 Gary Ruplinger
Well, thank you for sharing that that’s a really cool story. So, I think that does lead in really naturally, then kind of to this next to the topic of today’s episode, which is getting referrals, which I know this is every business owners’ favorite type of client right is the person, who’s presold they already know like and trust you somebody said nice things about you and say we’re gonna talk about how to actually get those people. So, I guess my first question is that where do I start?
00:05:58 Darryl Bueckert
Well, it’s the first thing to start is like you. You you’ve already kind of you set it in your in your intro is that you have these people who have this experience and it’s just so natural for them to be like, Oh my goodness. If you’re going to sell your house, you have to go with this person like they’re going to give you the best they’re going to get you into the house if it’s not the one that gives him the Best Commission. If you’re going to get your Car fixed your gramma needs her car fixed this is a mechanic, you can trust he’s going to do the right thing. We have these experiences that we bank right, and we naturally want to share them. But we when you look at how people share well. There’s a difference right there’s a there’s some people share really emphatic Lee, and some people were like, well, you could go here, or you know, I don’t really know they’re less willing to put their name on the line, with it right? So, the very fact that things can vary that much means there has to be variables. Under the surface. That changed like why one person in, is Phatic about a business in some another person isn’t what’s going on underneath the surface of that because, like one referral is not the same as the next right so that would be the first thing that I would get someone to understand is it is not a static commodity.
00:07:14 Darryl Bueckert
Right, even with even with one client whose referred you that client will actually go that that relationship isn’t static either. It’s dynamic. It will change and evolve as the relationship with the business changes right and it can change to the positive, but it can also change the negative. And so, recognizing like hey. This is an ongoing dynamic relationship between not just 2 people. It’s actually between 3 people right so you say you’re my client. We’ve got this great relationship. I’ve worked you know you’re happy with how you serve your happy with the results. We’ve got that relationship. You have a relationship with a friend who’s like. Hey, I think that you need these guys. Right. ‘Cause they helped me through a tough spot. Well, now that’s 2 independent relationships and there’s this now, it’s becoming this triangle. Hey, I’m going to bring you into this conversation, literally nowadays we do it in Group messages right.
00:08:07 Darryl Bueckert
OK, I’m gonna bring this person in I’m gonna connect you guys. I think that you know you need with this person does and I think I trusted you know, whatever it literally doing it in this 3 person Messenger thing. But relation that’s an interesting dynamic because I’m still going to have a relationship with you. Right, you’re so my client you’re going to have a relationship with your friend or whatever that that level is but now there’s this new dynamic between me and this other person and if you study human nature. Well, we aren’t static or dynamic or complex. We you know, we have good days and bad days, we have experiences that set us off we have baggage. Right, we’ve been burned by the other person in you know 10 people in a row in this space or whatever like between mechanics and used car salesman that’s why we’re over? Yeah.
00:08:57 Darryl Bueckert
So, the first part is just understanding. Hey there’s a lot going on here this referral isn’t a thing. Right and when we recognize this isn’t a thing that can be acquired this is actually people. It means that that relationship is what actually matters so logically for relationship matters to you then how you connect and how you show up, is the way to influence it.
00:09:23 Garry Ruplinger
OK, so it’s not so it’s more about relationships than you know, not actually a commodity referral thing. It’s how, OK, so how do we build those relationships to kind of move us towards this end goal of being the person that gets referred.
00:09:45 Jodi Bueckert
Yeah, and I think what I was gonna say prior to that was that I think a lot of times we see referrals as a one and done so we get the referral and then we, we might think we might have gratitude or it might just forget and will move on which stops that relationship right there from growing any further, but then we have an expectancy that referral should grow overtime.
00:10:08 Jodi Bueckert
Well, we haven’t done anything to nurture that relationship or provide it fertilizer for it to grow and evolve and change as these relationships change. So yeah, I guess, yeah to answer your question on how we develop these relationships it starts from understanding, what do our clients need from us? Um it, which is the biggest step right?
00:10:35 Darryl Bueckert
Yeah, so, so if you think about relationships that matter in your life. The ones that matter you make space for it right? Hey, I gotta remember from my mom because it’s been a while right and it’s the acquaintances that you drop off or you know like that, the childhood best friend that you don’t really have a connection with as an adult anymore. It’s like oh. Hey, 2 years have gone by since we’ve connected right those sorts of things just happen. There’s this sense of drift, but the relationships that matter you make time for you. Priority for right you, you recognize hey. It’s a 2-way St., I need to call you to get together for coffee just like you need to do the same. And so, so the way to start leveraging this is, is putting yourself in a position of intentionality. So, what do I need to do so that I actually pay attention to? What matters in this relationship as the business owner? That responsibility that burden falls on you right OK, someone has referred me, I need to acknowledge it. I need to take it seriously, because if I wait a week. What that actually can communicate is like Oh, I guess I don’t really need the girls that badly. Right, I wanted my friends to, literally did this with someone wanted their hedges trimmed like in a couple days. ’cause they had you know like they’re having an event or something and I’m like oh. Hey, I know someone who does this. I know that they need this side work. Try to connect the dots in like 4 days ago with by and He didn’t reach out to her and meanwhile, she’s moved on, and he’s like Oh yeah. That’s great. I’m like doing that ship sailed like 2 days ago right and so there’s like this, this and in his mind, he wasn’t being malicious he wasn’t being whatever it was just it was like it didn’t because there wasn’t anything key binding him to it, it slipped his mind. And he didn’t recognize the urgency, but the downside of that is like it communicated to me is like. Hey, I know that you need this. But you have to take it seriously, ’cause If I’m gonna put my turn align with this person like I look like a fool now right so I’m gonna be reticent to put myself in that position again. And that person has moved on, so we’ve lost that opportunity. And so, so literally. I mean, we, we, we actually sell a tracking system because we actually need a system to keep ourselves accountable and to get ourselves to connect so seems like counter intuitive to say. I need a system to be spontaneous if that’s exactly navigate for. The system gives you a structure to be like OK go make an intentional connection with this person ’cause I put that thing on my calendar.
00:13:07 Jodi Bueckert
Yeah, and on the other side of that when we speak of relationship building. We see not only is that huge, missed opportunity. ’cause we feel like if you are someone who serves people well loves people wants the best for your clients. You should be shared and so that’s where that opportunity comes in and that’s for relationship has the biggest impact. One of our clients, his name is Anthony and he’s coming to our system and he has started looking at his referrals, and he’s having small conversations and It’s a very consistent process. But he’s turning to like realized these relationships that he can build with his clients already serving amazingly and he was already having connections.
00:13:55 Darryl Bueckert
He’s already getting referrals.
00:13:56 Jodi Bueckert
He was already getting referrals like a lot of you may be listening today. But now he can see that all the opportunities that can open up overtime because of what we’ve laid out for him to be able to tap into I guess is the best way to see it and now he you know since last time I talked to him just a couple days ago. You know, he’s got referrals, coming in here and there and he’s just so excited to have these conversations with these clients, yeah.
00:14:24 Darryl Bueckert
There’s yeah in a lot of cases, he’s like. Oh, I just did. This kind of follow up that you taught us to do. And 2 days later, there’s another referral and it was a better fit than the last one right and what’s happening there when we’re actually having these connections were inviting this person in. And they are seeing their value as the connector, right? So OK. I remember what that was like I remember the frustration of you know, whatever the industry problem is and Oh yeah, he really helped me through that well. I want that for my friend and his I’m empowered now as the referrer to be like, Oh my goodness. I know who is going to help you through that that you know that’s that challenge that you’re in with your life, he helped me right and some of that is just is that ingratitude definitely takes people there, but also like there’s a subtle promise of “hey remember when you were here?” Like Oh yes, I remember, and you know it. It’ll be like, Hey. That person that you referred 2 weeks ago. They just hit this milestone. They just had this ah ha moment in our in our program. And they’re like Oh yeah, I remember that and then it’s like. Oh, I know someone else who’s like that. In that spot right now and I get to help save them. Right? So, they are now empowered and this, so this is where like circling back to the to the donor charity space. What we realized was this is the exact same mechanics right if there is an amazing charity that makes a difference for people pulling people off the street, ending trafficking. Whatever it is why on earth would we not get ourselves behind that why would we not advocate for that, right?
00:15:58 Jodi Bueckert
Especially if we feel invited into that process.
00:16:00 Darryl Bueckert
Right, the more I’m invited into being part of and seeing what’s happening. And you know. Hey, like a like charity water is like? Here’s literally the well. Here’s pictures of this going up here is the impact. Here’s the story is coming from these families who are using it and you’ll never likely never go to that city in Africa to see it. But you can actually be a part of it. Well, there’s an addicting nature to be like, I want to be part of that change more, but I want to bring people into that change ’cause I can actually see it were part of it right so if that works for charity. It should work for businesses that change. People’s lives have impact on people’s lives because the same human qualities are going on there. We want to help each other. We want to help someone out of a tough spot. This is why you would pull someone out of a car wreck. This is why you would run into a house you know to. To rescue a kid if it was on fire right. We all have that in us, it’s just been tamped down by you know the used car salesman and those really sleazy right. But we have it. It just needs to be nurtured and brought out and celebrate it.
00:16:59 Jodi Bueckert
I think sometimes we need almost the permission to show up human the way that you know, we feel is right to show up. And I think that’s the one of the greatest things about hearing. Some of Anthony’s Stories is he’s getting all these referrals, even more so than he was before and he didn’t have to ask he didn’t have to feel awkward about it, he’s he gets to show up. With whom he is. And he gets to communicate through his unique values versus maybe what you know the world tells us to do or your specific industry. So, I think that’s the impact here.
00:17:40 Darryl Bueckert
The challenging part for entrepreneurs to swallow with this and this is this is I think the conflict is in that moment it actually isn’t about you or your program or your business at all? Right, it is about the person who’s gonna refer the hero of the story in the charity space. That’s how like that’s how you would coach a donor. The donors the hero. The owner is the one who’s making the difference. You’re the vehicle for the for it right So what we saw in our time in Mexico was the that charities, they where they were struggling was there, so busy doing the thing. So, they forgot to invite people in this server, so busy with the first sale and the fulfillment that they forgot to invite people in, or they assume that people would just invite their way into it versus like intentionally making that like we’re gonna make it easier going to pave the way for you to come have this experience. And so, if you think about. That business ways. What we really need to do is pave this way, so that advocacy is the natural byproduct. Right that because we like I said, we have that in the thing that we do want to help and save people when we see them in trouble.
00:18:50 Garry Ruplinger
Now I love. I love that what you’re saying there. I mean, I know like that, really resonates with me as well is that if I’m gonna refer somebody to a business. I’m doing that because I want to look good II want. I want them to say come back to me and say hey. Thanks for referring me to help me out they did that. I want to feel like you know that’s why it did not to not really because I wanted to help the business out so much rather than I think selfishly I wanted to look good and do that.
00:19:19 Jodi Bueckert
Yeah, it’s not wrong.
00:19:23 Darryl Bueckert
So, in inside of our program, one of the things that we teach him why, why we use a system and tracking as part of connecting is that? Is that there’s actual dimensions to why we do? What we do? What was our motive? What are we looking for like in this relation you just identified sometimes we refer because we like hey? I want to be known as the people who know all the good people. Right? So, like it’s an It’s a reputation thing. It’s not wrong. It just it is what it is right, some people refer because they I really want to help your business right? I really want to care about. I just referred my parents to something that was like on the topic at health. I don’t want an affiliate like if they if that business came to me with and affiliate thing. It would feel wrong. That’s not why I did it right. I want my I want my kids to have more years with their Grandfather. Right? So, you would actually make it dirty if you offered me money. Right, what I want is I want to hear the transformation story. I want to like. But that’s not the case with every single you know, there are cases where that affiliate thing. Yeah, that I’m motivated by in in business. We do lots of affiliate stuff. I’m motivated by that. Secondary to like them getting help. Right so even when it comes to that the bride part. You can incentivize or for us and you can do it in a way that still aligns with your ethics. And it’s so it’s not that you, you shouldn’t or whatever it’s just that it has to fit who is this person and recognizing that for some people you might actually lose a referral source because of how you did that. You might gain some gain some others, but now you’re potentially gaining people depending on how you structured it that are looking for? They’re looking for the money from you and they’re not necessarily as invested in why you do what you do.
00:21:16 Jodi Bueckert
Yeah, and I don’t know about you Gary, but I usually refer for a few reasons. So, I resonate with what you said. You said II refer because, like II want to feel good that to hook them up to this great person right and so I understand that ’cause I am a huge connector. I love to refer things that I believe in and that I trust, but also, I have a secondary motive and it just depends on what it is so do you find like you have secondary motives for why you refer? Is it sometimes like affiliate or you just want to help?
00:21:51 Gary Ruplinger
You know it’s interesting how that has evolved for me over the years is that I you know the in the affiliate space. We if we go back to that for like for me personally early 00s by up till 2010. I was really big in that space but these days I don’t do a lot of affiliate incentivized things I it’s just kind of I think it’s the appeal of it is kind of lost and I’ve often times, I will feel like kind of like what you were saying, Darryl is that if it was incentivized, I don’t know that I would feel as good about doing it. And I would kind of feel like is this a little dirty and I am I recommending these people ’cause they’re going to pay me versus this other one so there’s that turmoil in my head.
00:22:37 Darryl Bueckert
This one’s better, but this one pays actually the Commission and your left as a person making a choice who do I recommend right and so it. It says something about you. It says something about that relationship well. Hey. If this was my friend. I would say this one. But if it’s just the public. I would use this one like you’re making these choices yourself. I don’t. I don’t think depending on how you structure things. You have to make a choice, you can actually, you know, I affiliate is affiliate is a microcosm of this, it. It’s a set of dimensions inside of what we’ve laid out in this system, but it’s one that in the business space is huge. You can do it like a simple mechanism like you can only you can only be an affiliate? If your client, which means you actually experienced what I did. Right? So, that’s 11 way to flip that switch is like it’s not just some stranger who’s pushing your product, even though they have no idea if it’s a good fit or not like you know, people who’ve been through it are going to know generally if it’s a good fit. There’s a bunch of ways to do it or not. It doesn’t really like the great thing is a business you can do whatever you want.
00:23:42 Jodi Bueckert
Yeah, and I think one of the saddest parts is sad part, is that I think we expect that, if we do incentify, it will guarantee these referrals, I know there’s someone that just went through our workshop. Just a couple days ago and he says he said, we incentive by a lot, but we’re not seeing the referrals on the back end, so it just it. Then it leaves the entrepreneur or the small business in a place of they feel like they’ve served well. But they’re not in control of the process to get these amazing referrals that they should be specially if they’re serving well if they love people. They do a good job. They have these amazing outcomes. You should be referred and so it’s kind of left him scratching his head wondering well. I’m incentive buying why, why is this not happening so I think yeah, one of the reasons why I think he bought our workshop because he wants to understand what can I do? To you know put a system in place that can allow me to I think being a little bit more in control.
00:24:49 Darryl Bueckert
Yeah, so that’s sort of you knows talking about the dimensional part. There’s more than just money. There’re more reasons that we do things, and we understand that the money component in affiliate is just one piece of a bigger piece. When we figure out oh, hey, I can do this, and it still fits, and my people are going to be OK with it. There’s your answer or your business might be like you know what I have to take this out. This is not going to do what we want I’m going to find a way to reward people in other way, right? Once you once you understand the makeup of why people do what they do you can actually make a choice that fits your business and versus kind of? What’s out there is you know the one size fits all like oh, hey. Here’s how to do an affiliate program. But I would look at that and say, Well, it totally depends. What are you? What are you trying to achieve? What do you want? What’s the relationship with your clients? The answer could be yes do it this way, it could be. Maybe it could be no like this is gonna be a good fit. It totally does depend on all of those factors. But the great part is like again your business. You can once you know how to do it, you can structure it so that serves you insert your clients.
00:25:54 Gary Ruplinger
No, I like that, so if somebody does let’s say, somebody sends you a referral and that person becomes a client. Do you have like a recommendation of how do you appropriately thank the person who did the referring? Does it as simple as just actually sending them a message saying thank you? Is it sending the notes, sending a little gift do you have some recommendations for someone there to? I guess well. I mean the goal is if they referred as one thank them and then How do I get him to refer again?
00:26:27 Darryl Bueckert
Yeah, yeah that’s I mean that is the crux of how our workshop and are tracking a connection tool work together is. We actually built it to be as adaptable as possible. ’cause I didn’t want to tell somebody how to connect and went to connect because it totally depends on the business, right, but yeah, there isn’t there actually is a connection sequence that we advocate for Jody was telling a story about Anthony he, his business. He’ll probably have. The average client ’cause of the length of it’s almost like a year that of his program. He probably going to connect with him at least 12 times. About the progress of that referral. But it’s structured in a way that it’s just natural. It’s just as natural thing that jumps into a conversation and that’s because of how his program is structured that set up that he has isn’t going to work for every business. Right, but so starting at the start I mean. Contacting that referral, we advocate measuring that time in hours, not in.
00:27:31 Jodi Bueckert
Days hours or 24 hours max. Yeah.
00:27:33 Darryl Bueckert
‘Cause you need to communicate you’re setting the tone with that that potentially new client from the start like. Hey, how I communicate is how I communicate like I take this seriously. You know versus like you know, people will post a vanity post. I’ll be blunt with it. Oh, you know Super slamming busy November, right? What that communicates if you’re not careful is Oh well. I have a friend who really needs help. If you’re super busy you’re probably going to be. Tracking United observed. Right, you create like a plant, the seed of doubt whether or not. This is a good time or should I even bother right were with communication. Hey, you know what they’re slow. They’re busy they communicate the same way every single time I can count on them to respond within whatever frequency they make normal so, so if you follow up with the referral within 24 hours then you just do that every single time that’s just the way it is and people get used to like oh, hey, you know what I know they’re busy but they’re still there, system there on it. I can trust them right, so we advocate for like a quick connection with. Whoever has been referred and then connecting with the person who did the referral to say. Hey, I met with them or we’ve chatted we’ve got a meeting in the books like whatever. Whatever your sales process looks like you’re communicating like I’m already. I’ve already contacted them like I’m taking this seriously. I’m so thankful this is huge. That’s just that should just be happening with everybody. It’s shocking how often that doesn’t happen. Right?
00:29:01 Garry Ruplinger
I’m jotting notes down myself ’cause I can. I’m hearing you say things I think Oh, I have? I have made some of those mistakes of not will have of not being in the hour’s category.
00:29:13 Jodi Bueckert
Because we’re human
00:29:15 Darryl Bueckert
That’s the biggest thing that it’s yeah, the biggest thing that we have actually even just struggled to put the right messaging out. On a sales page or invest in whenever we’re doing is this isn’t it like this isn’t condemnation. We have all done this. These are mistakes that literally every single person is neat because we are not consistent no human is consistent, we’re not robots. Right, this is why we believe so much in systems help normalize right on your best day you don’t need a system. You remember everything you’re firing whatever how many best days do we have left?
00:29:52 Jodi Bueckert
As we’re slurping our coffee so.
00:29:54 Darryl Bueckert
The system the, System is made for like no let’s make every day your best day. That’s what you normalize and some days you that system. You heavily rely on to get you to do the right thing and other days are like Oh I barely even need the prompt I’ve already done for the prompt told me to do it. Right?
00:30:08 Jodi Bueckert
But like we said with like Anthony situation if he’s going to have like 12 connections in a year? How even our best day? How could we possibly remember where Gary is at with my connection with you or like those dimensionalities that we, we chatted about? We can’t possibly remember that which is why we need systems and systems allow us to show up as the best human you know, we possibly can, to give people a consistent, yeah experience.
00:30:45 Darryl Bueckert
So yeah, I mean, those are just connections that just shouldn’t be happening. Again, like, I said it’s shocking. How many times are not happening, but that’s OK, you do that. You’re already well ahead. If you find a way to do those 2 things consistently and well and authentically? You’re already like in that 80th percentile, right?
00:31:03 Jodi Bueckert
But then if we stop at gratitude. That’s great. We have those few steps, and we have gratitude, which a lot of us, honestly do. But the thing we see is past gratitude. There is a relationship to 2 develop that that not many people are taking advantage in. Oh, so that’s where from our nonprofits time and our time in the customer space. We see these opportunities to connect deeper with people, um and it takes time. This is this is a process that can happen quick an end consistently overtime.
00:31:39 Darryl Bueckert
Yeah, I’m thinking about charity water right now, so, so you could leverage the front end really well and get someone to donate ’cause they may have one of the best, most frictionless donation mechanisms possible. And you can organize a birthday in my birthday money goes to that and they’re like they’re brilliant. What and you could leave it there and it would be great, but then what they do is like. Hey, you, who donated in this batch. This is the village that got the well and these are the stories of the people who are who are no longer walking 5 miles to get water. This is the change in health because they’re drinking clean water right, so they go that much further to connect you to what the outcome was. Right? Now, you’re part of it right so at the in the business space. What you’re trying to connect and ideally this is really aimed at a client who’s experienced it themselves. But even if they’re not a client. Hey, I’ve heard Gary’s really good with this. I don’t know for sure, but everyone that I know says that he’s good. So, I mean, I’m inclined to trust these other 10 business owners who know what they’re talking about. You would get to share with that person who referred here. So, here’s why we do what we do. Here’s how and this is the epiphany that they had along the way right, so you actually get to educate you refer if they don’t know what you do. By sharing the story of the person coming through it. Right and so, so there knowing they’re learning more about how you do what you do why you do what you do and also, it’s like. Oh, I’m seeing this transformation in this person right. They’re not at the office as much there with like they’re actually coming to the kid’s soccer games because they’re not so stressed out about getting leads. Because Gary helped him smooth that out, right so it’s like. Oh, wow, though it’s not just leads for Leeds take. It’s like oh that is totally changed how he does business. Is home or home for dinner you know? Whatever that is like? That’s the thing that we connect with his people, which is like oh. I know, people that need to, not be stressed if it leads or not. You know like you know be at the soccer games or whatever like I’m gonna hook them up. With that person now. I’m the one who’s like I’m going to change your family life. By doing this one. Simple thing ’cause because of being invited into this, I can connect the dot you couldn’t see. Right? that kind of advocate advocacy like in it isn’t hard it takes into. Reality but isn’t hard because we all have it.
00:34:02 Jodi Bueckert
Yeah, I was just gonna say, but does not have to be complicated? We do not have to tell amazing elaborate stories because you know we are all busy, but it takes just a few minutes, but and this could be underestimating the power of 30 seconds. Or a couple minutes of relationship building within our business of seeing it as from a customer lifetime value.
00:34:28 Darryl Bueckert
Yeah, then the power of story, so I so I had someone go through this and I and they’re like well this is you know like we’ve sketched out OK, you’re going. You’re going to make about 4 Contacts with this person over 6 months just telling them where the progress is. And so, it’s going to take a couple minutes to think about OK. This is where here’s the story. I want to tell, and they get record. The video and you know, we heavily advocate for putting videos into DMS are the easiest way to share something right. ’cause then you can pick up inflection. Just like we’re talking on video right picking up body language inflection and right. Not that emails are bad, it’s just that it, it means that you read words through your own filter versus like someone is telling you and showing me their filter. But you know like Oh well that that’s a lot. I’m like, Yeah, but what is a referral work to you? So, if I want to tell you that you’re going to spend 15 minutes over a few months. Doing these little connections, but it means a 2000-dollar sale.
00:35:28 Jodi Bueckert
Or 20,000.
00:35:30 Darryl Bueckert
Yeah, like that’s gonna be the best 15 minutes. You ever spent right, and this is somebody who doesn’t need the long elaborate sales call because they’re already warmed up because, like and they’re warm to that point where it’s just like. Hey, I want you to help me like where do I pay? Right because all of that heavy lifting has been done by an impassioned referral. And that refrain was like, Yeah, of course, I’m like if you make if you make that connection like yeah. I’ll connect with this. Many this person as many times as possible to tell them stories. If that’s what’s going to happen. Right?
00:36:00 Gary Ruplinger
Now, that’s brilliant. I think one of the really neat things I’m kinda hearing here is that you guys have a system, but I think when people think of systems. I think that you know it kind of takes the personalization and human touch out of it where you actually what you’re doing is exactly the opposite you’re actually making a system to introduce the human touch and it’s kind of bring that into play more so than not having it where it was spontaneous.
00:36:30 Darryl Bueckert
Yeah, that’s yeah that’s exactly it. That’s why it’s why you know like a system to connect that there. It’s almost this counter intuitive or it’s a paradoxal kind of phrase because you’re right. IT systems feel like a dehumanizing thing.
00:36:44 Jodi Bueckert
They feel very boring, yeah, as a non-system person system 50 or not assistant person not a tech person. It can be really boring. So yeah, we want to make sure like I said, for someone who I love connecting with people. It allows me to be the better human because I know that I have something to follow and we kinda call it are paid by number almost because we’ve laid it all out. We’ve done all the heavy lifting in a sense of like. What are the next steps that I need to do and then? It shows you what to do and then you get to act accordingly to what you feel like is authentic to the way you would respond or of a story that you would tell, or you know based off of your relationships and I think that’s the key that we don’t want to be telling people what to do or how to act. We just want them to have the ability to show up as like the best valued business owner because I think sometimes, we want everyone to see our value, but we can go about it in a way that really puts the intention on ourselves not the others who help us get there and like we said. We’re all guilty of this, I used to do it in my past businesses, and I was.
00:38:03 Darryl Bueckert
Going to say it like that, the home renovation spaces to like this will be hard, there’s a lot of ego in that right versus there’s a power of saying like look at what this family has been able to do it totally changed how they interact. That’s the story that’s the connection story. But so much is like oh look how perfect our millwork words and look? How perfect this design was or,
00:38:27 Jodi Bueckert
And I did it, I did it, I knocked it out of the park?
00:38:34 Darryl Bueckert
Right and that’s you know that’s often-what industries are tell us to do. And then we just skate over where the actual power was the power was like this family couldn’t all sit at the table and now, we knocked the swallow did this thing this thing and like there together and like their life has changed and their interactions have changed. Because we did what we did to give him a design that serve their family. Right and it’s literally this one shift in focus make it about the change, not about how you did, the change. Yeah, right and people will connect the dots. So, like you know they’ll connect the dots are like oh only you guys could have done that ’cause no one else would have thought of that solution. Right but you’re rather than hitting you over the head with the fact that oh look how smart we are that we came up with that solution. So, just it’s just a slight shift and it comes from humanizing right so again coming back to that to the system. The system actually this system. We designed humanizes the experience and so, so literally if you’re listening to this and you’re writing down notes and what it is, you can start this. You don’t even like you could come up with your own system to start with and you’re going to be treating people better. Right and then the great part is it scalable and, yes, yes that does sound like I’m not even endorsing my own thing. But the great part scalable ’cause you could do that and try. It like don’t go try. It literally goes look at someone who is referred in the last couple of months and tell him how thankful you are and tell them a story about what that person is now doing or an epiphany that they had midway or whatever. And watch what happens. I guarantee they’ll surprise me because that person is never been thanked like that forever. They will light up that that is like social proof. Wise that’s the messages. We always get. It’s they’re like this is so much fun. I just talk about the change that this person has and they, I just watch these people light up. They’re just so excited that they were part of that change that, like that. That is sitting hidden and we’ve all missed it for years, but that the power of that relationship has been there. The whole time is just precious few have actually been leveraging it.
Right, you see these people with the Super impassioned followers, and I guarantee you. That’s what they’re leveraging to do that right. But the great part isn’t scalable so take out of paper in notepad. Go back to the last couple referrals, and just find an authentic way to connect with him and you’re gonna get addicted to it, you’re gonna be like. Hey, if I just did a little bit more. I did a little bit more. I did a custom session with someone yesterday like really mapping out a custom strategy for different things. The temptations, like I want like where is more of the tactics and like don’t be deceived by the simplicity of this really the only thing that you have to leverage more is starting to understand what story is going to impact this person the best for them to be able to find more people like that, like that’s the only little nuances that you’re going to learn but you’re going to learn that from telling these stories. And so just let it let it progress and scale with you and so, yeah, we have a workshop in a system that helps implement that and it keeps it scales up. It keeps going. There’s uh. There’s this rabbit hole can go as deep as you wanted to go, but you’re going to be making steps that are natural right because every step is going to bring you back to your customer serving your customer connecting with your customer.
00:41:48 Darryl Bueckert
Investing in the relationship investing in the change and so as you do it. It will make sense to be like, I’m gonna go a little further. I’m gonna have more nuances. My follow up. I’m gonna have a uh. In system you know, whatever the next product is whatever it is. It just gonna take you that much further. The other thing that I really like about it. Yes, we’re in the referral space. This and so this isn’t a hey, you need referrals, not paid advertising. This works in concert with you, literally could build a business with referrals and if it fits you. That’s awesome. ’cause you actually have control of it. If you have paid acquisition. If you have other mechanisms and you bring somebody into this experience and you design this experience intentionally well. You just got more bang for your Buck ’cause. They’re going to stick around and they’re going to be more people right, so it literally works with the other things that you do. It’s not an either or.
00:42:39 Gary Ruplinger
That’s amazing and I you know the part. I really kind of like about like your approach here is that it. Take some of the kind of it. This isn’t kind of like the awkward ask everybody for referrals. That kind of feels sleazy a little bit of 00. Somebody signs up with you. Hey, who else do you know that would want this? Which is one of those like I’ve, if my, like my car insurance person or something, it’s like who else do you know II never give a referral on that ’cause? I’m like I don’t know I haven’t even used this yet. I don’t know how good it is.
00:43:10 Darryl Bueckert
And that’s the timing that’s just a timing thing like the timing is off the question is often the timing is off. Right? If I get a chance to use it. We have that with one of those to the door meal companies. And they were giving us you know 53 kits for families, but they asked us like a day after getting it. The first time we’ve literally didn’t cook the meal yet.
00:43:31 Jodi Bueckert
Who do you know that I could pass?
00:43:33 Darryl Bueckert
And it’s like the offer was super generous, hey, they’re gonna get a weeks’ worth of meals to try this out and it’s smart what they’re doing, but literally. The timing in the askerov if they had asked me a couple of days later and they? Preface it by asking me. Hey, how like what was your first experience like cooking that meal and I connect with that. Hey, how much like was it was, it great. Being able to have you know like plate to sorry kitchen to plate in 25 minutes, so that you can do more stuff with your family. Then it was like, Hey, who do you know that could benefit from that you know has a busy life or whatever guess what? I’m going to be thinking about people right. And this is this is a big company that in our opinion is doing it wrong. In their close their super close. But just off a little bit because they’re missing that that connection part. And Yeah, it could be that much more powerful right.
00:44:31 Jodi Bueckert
Yeah, so yeah, like you could say we can. Talk about this all day long we’re very passionate about this. But yeah, it’s just there’s so many missing opportunities that we want people to tap into especially like I said if. If people are doing great work. They should be referred over and over and over and it in it, It can’t. It shouldn’t be complicated, and it doesn’t have to be hard and it can take minutes. Once you understand what’s happening within your relationships.
00:44:59 Darryl Bueckert
And it’s an advantage that a small business has over big business. Home Depot Walmart, they have no idea who I am as a customer right where most people who are listening to this, you’re going to know a good amount of your customers if not all of them. And you have you have that ability to leverage relationship. You know these big companies? Don’t yet we’re following with the big companies do right in the charity space that charities were like well. I’m going to do it World Vision doesn’t like they don’t know us as donors. You know your donors face to face leverage that like don’t look at what someone bigger is doing an idolize it, you have an advantage they would kill for.
00:45:35 Jodi Bueckert
Yeah, it’s very monkey, see monkey do, yeah, we see what other people are doing and what is going to work for them is not necessarily going to work for us so just being like bringing it to the surface and yeah, it all comes back to having a system relationship and then operating within your values. That’s the opportunity that we see for all small businesses’ entrepreneurs and consultants’ coaches for sure.
00:46:04 Gary Ruplinger
I love it, so I guess if there’s somebody out there who’s kind of hearing this and says they can see something there and see the power of this, if they want to explore this deeper what where they should go where they should go to kind of learn. Where is the entry point for them to get into your world?
00:46:20 Darryl Bueckert
With that, we have we have a workshop that takes you through the foundations of this so here here’s why to do it. Here’s how to identify the dimensions. I talked about here like to understand the motives of why we do what we do an action. It also includes the connection tracking system and that’s at referralsonrepeat.com. And so, it is designed it’s a low ticket. It’s a low-cost entry to get people doing this because we want people served more than I want to charge a million dollars for it. Simply because when you start doing this, you’re going to do more, and we will continue to develop it. So, it’s a super exciting thing we’re doing this from a place where everybody gets to win your customers when your customers involved new customers are being helped like this isn’t coming at the expense of anybody.
00:47:12 Gary Ruplinger
Awesome so I guess for the.
00:47:14 Darryl Bueckert
Problem is, is where our workshop is so that’s that would be a great starting point.
00:47:19 Gary Ruplinger
OK, perfect, so we’ll make sure we put that in the show notes again. That’s referrals on repeat if you want to get the win for everybody. I know I’ll be checking it out myself. Now I’m I want to explore this deeper, too, so any parting words for everybody before we hop off the line here.
00:47:36 Darryl Bueckert
Oh, wow probably said enough.
00:47:39 Jodi Bueckert
No, not at.
00:47:40 Darryl Bueckert
All I would just I would just encourage people to start, where they’re at. Like take small consistent steps reach out show gratitude tell stories of you know what that referral has done for somebody and you can try that without even checking out, our thing and you’ll find out that it works, and so then if you know if you want to come with us then. Will this help you do it further faster?
00:48:07 Jodi Bueckert
Yeah, you can find me mostly on Facebook, so if you tried that find me on Facebook. I’d love to hear how that experience went so feel free to friend me on Facebook. We always love meeting. New people, yeah, let’s and we’re grateful to spend this time with you Gary.
00:48:24 Gary Ruplinger
It’s my pleasure. I’m so glad you were able to join us Jodi and Darryl, thanks so much for coming on the show. This was great and for everybody at home again, that was referralsonrepeat.com be sure to check that out, thanks so much for coming in today guys.
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