Referrals vs Partnerships - which way to go?

Referrals or Partnerships - what's the difference?

I hear this a lot (honestly, I’m not just saying that for the sake of some content).

And yes, they're both about getting leads through word of mouth. Which means both tap into that tribal human instinct to connect with shared values. And both leverage trusted relationships where the other party Knows, Likes, and Trusts you.

But they are unique in how you approach and support them.

And so to make the most of either channel you need to understand their differences, their respective strengths, and from there you can maybe make a decision on which one to focus on first.

So which way do you go? 

Let's kick off with some top line definitions. These are Dave definitions, not dictionary ones  - but the fact you're reading this may mean that my words hold some value to you. 

Referrals

These come from your customers, your prospects, your friends, family and wider network - anyone and everyone essentially.

Referrers are the tribe who appreciate your value but may not fully understand it. They need to be educated.

Partnerships

These come from other organisations or individuals, who you’ve specifically targeted and built a relationship with, because they introduce your ideal clients, at the ideal time to buy, on a consistent basis.

Partners are the tribe who know your value and can leverage it. They need to be motivated.

Let’s delve a little deeper.

And I’ll start by talking about referrals. Or warm introductions if that feels nicer for you.

Most people reading this will almost certainly get them, and be very appreciative when you do, but experience tells me very few of you will be asking for them with any type of consistency or intention.

I get it.

It can seem like there’s no halfway house between letting it happen organically or running an affiliate programme where you spam the life out of someone begging for referrals in return for a commission.

And that feels very icky. And for good reason, those types of approaches are for brands who have lost touch with their customer base in my opinion.

But there absolutely is another way that’s not about going all gung ho and risk upsetting your customer base and wider audience.

People refer you for what you do, rather than the specifics of what you sell. It’s an emotional, human, thing rather than a transactional one.

So how can we keep it that way?

Well, we keep it conversational. First and foremost.

No pushy tactics here. Referrals isn’t sales.

But we do make it intentional.

There’s a bunch of people out there who are all too willing to help you, you just need to help them to do that.

And you do that by being specific (that's the education piece).

Referrals is the oldest and most successful form of marketing - and yet we don’t look to develop it like we would other channels?

When would a referral strategy be ideal for you?

-You’ve got a bunch of happy customers, past and present, who you’ve never asked. Maybe you’ve even got them to fill out NPS scores. Your relationships are close, and friendly, but have never leveraged that good will.

-You’re looking for some quick wins - referrals can be a great source of this, as long as you're specific in what you ask for.

(this one can especially be true if you’re moving into a new area - be that sector or service)

-You’ve got a great team of confident customer facing people where building a proactive  culture of referrals would relieve the pressure on key individuals who typically get all the organic introductions.

Big pluses

You don’t have to do too much different than you’re already doing - it’s about behaviour stacking. Baking things into the way you already work. The mindset shift is often the biggest hurdle.

Things to be aware of

It’s going to be harder to truly scale your business with referrals compared to partnerships - but that depends on the volume of leads your looking for and how far you’re looking to take your business.  

Partnerships

So this is where you’re confident in your target market. You’ve either got social proof or you're disrupting a marketplace and have some credibility behind you.

Your ideal partners want to consistently refer clients to you because you make them look amazing.

If you have a shared end goal for the client and so if you can help deliver the ultimate result a customer is looking for, and do it in a way that matches the values of the partners organisation, then of course they should be excited to talk with you.

But that’s the easy part.

Strategic partnerships take work to get right and actually deliver. And it’s on you to do that. (that’s the motivation piece)

The relationships will have much more structure behind them, often with some commercials - but that doesn’t mean they’re not fun. 

Is just that everyone has made a commitment to actually make something happen - and the easier you can make it for the partner to pass you opportunities, the more often they’ll do it - and that comes from processes and support.

They are wonderful things when you pick the right partner, and get the relationship working. You get a steady flow of your perfect clients - the ones you really love working with - and everyone involved in the process is excited by it.  

When would partnerships be best for you?

- You’re confident in your target market, and the value you deliver to them, and have the social proof to back that up.

- You’re looking for your business to scale but don’t want to lose the personal touch

- You’re not adverse to working in a structured way behind the scenes (but still keeping it personal front of house!)

Big pluses

The opportunity to scale.

The compound reward on effort for getting a partnership strategy right is huge. Once set up each relationship can provide opportunities for as long as you nurture them. And the more partners you bring on the easier it becomes each time.

If you have some loose partnerships already in place then working on developing these can deliver significant results in a short space of time.

Things to be aware of

Look, they do take more time to set up. There’s an outlay of effort in the first instance if you want to get this right. But it’s much more about time than cash. And that effort will be rewarded.


So there we have it - and if you’d like some support on building out either of these channels then you know where to come.


For support on building out client referrals why not check out the Better Referrals. More Often programme

Or for partnerships the Kick Ass Collaboration programme is the one for you

(or just get in touch for a chat about working directly together)


Photo by Jens Lelie on Unsplash