5 Steps to Awesome Strategic Referral Partnerships

Here's a breakdown of my DANCE framework

There’s quite a few moves within each step if you want to perfect this, but at least giving each of the things below some thought will set you on the right path;

🔎 D is for Discovery

The Why and the Who

Why are doing what you do, Who’s your ideal customer, Who’s your ideal partner, and WHY would they want to work with you.

You need a strong Partner Value Proposition if you want all this to work

🏭 A is for Assembly

All the behind-the-scenes systems that allow you to build and maintain trust with your partners (vital for long term success) and sets you up for scale.

🫶 N is for Nurturing

How are you communicating with your partners.

You need to think about the whole journey. From setting expectations, to onboarding and then all through their hopefully long relationship with you.

It’s about the right mix of transactional and relationship building.

Partnerships have human connection at their core remember.

🔀 C is for Connection

Activating the partnership.

How are you proactively helping your partners to connect you to their audience?

What support and training are you giving their customer facing teams, and how can you become their marketing departments best friend?

💍 E is for Engagement

Got all that sorted, now it’s time to get out there and engage with more potential partners.

And if you have got a good grasp of all this it’s MUCH simpler then you think.

Fancy seeing more than a couple of sentences per step? Check out my free event below, would love to see you there.

Growth Hub Plus business networking breakfast - In Person, Chippenham

I’ll be sharing my Top 3 Referral Tips live and in person with lots of time for Q&A. 

It’s a great opportunity to meet up with other business owners, managers and leaders from across the South West – I’ve heard great things about the early sessions of this new run of events.

Breakfast (very good by all account) and unlimited tea/coffee thrown in so what's not to love about that!

Want to stop leaving money on the table and effortlessly get more referrals in from your customers and wider network? Then this event is for you.

Referrals and word of mouth introductions are THE best type of lead you can receive into your business. They already trust your brand, and your reputation and services have already been pre-sold by someone who’s actually experienced them.

So why do so few businesses have a proper strategy around it? It’s not about trying to turn every customer, person in your network, or friendly introducer into a hardened sales person for your brand.

And it’s not about pushy, in your face tactics. That doesn’t work.

What it is about, is working more intentionally to make referrals a natural, stress free part of your lead generation strategy, that delivers value for everyone concerned. In just 20 minutes of your time (leaving plenty for Q&A) we’ll look at:

1./ Removing ‘the Ick’ of asking

2./ Making it easy for people to refer you

3./ When to ask

4./ How to ask

5./ Saying Thanks

I promise a high energy talk, full of simple, actionable tips you’ll be able to go and use in your business right away.

If you’ve been to one of our 5 Steps To Awesome Strategic Referral Partnerships events in the past, but would like to explore customer referrals in more detail, then this is perfect for you to!

Want to stop leaving money on the table and effortlessly get more referrals in from your customers and wider network? Then this event is for you.

Referrals and word of mouth introductions are THE best type of lead you can receive into your business. They already trust your brand, and your reputation and services have already been pre-sold by someone who’s actually experienced them.

So why do so few businesses have a proper strategy around it? It’s not about trying to turn every customer, person in your network, or friendly introducer into a hardened sales person for your brand.

And it’s not about pushy, in your face tactics. That doesn’t work.

What it is about, is working more intentionally to make referrals a natural, stress free part of your lead generation strategy, that delivers value for everyone concerned. In just 20 minutes of your time (leaving plenty for Q&A) we’ll look at:

1./ Removing ‘the Ick’ of asking

2./ Making it easy for people to refer you

3./ When to ask

4./ How to ask

5./ Saying Thanks

I promise a high energy talk, full of simple, actionable tips you’ll be able to go and use in your business right away.

If you’ve been to one of our 5 Steps To Awesome Strategic Referral Partnerships events in the past, but would like to explore customer referrals in more detail, then this is perfect for you to!

The Foundry offers the opportunity to work alongside and learn from other ambitious small businesses.

The Foundry has been designed to help Swindon’s micro and small businesses by providing participating companies with free, high quality office space and structured business growth support. The Foundry offers the resources and support needed to help achieve growth ambitions and facilitates growth through appropriate and experienced business mentoring and coaching.

Each cycle of The Foundry runs for three months, allowing an influx of fresh talent the chance to benefit from the programme.

They hold regular events too! Come and see me speak on the 16th of May!

Find Out More About The Foundry Here

A good Strategic Referral Partnership (and even better a whole partner programme) is the holy grail of lead generation.

It takes the most common source of new business, word of mouth, and turns it from something that can be frustrating (as you can’t measure, rely, or scale it)

Into something consistent, dependable, and scalable.

And it’s not just the quantity of leads that becomes consistent, but the quality too.

The right strategic referral partner delivers you your ideal clients, all warmed up for you, at the perfect time for them to make a buying decision.

Like all good things though, they take work. They don’t just happen organically.

But not where you might expect - the hardest work isn’t finding partners.

It's in ensuring you’re searching for right ones in the first place, and that you make the most of the relationships once in place.

In this free live event we’ll cover:

* How to identify who the ideal partner is for you RIGHT NOW, and how to form a powerful value proposition that taps into WHY they to work with you, making conversations effortless.

* HOW to build trust (vital in a partnership) by using the systems and process that allow you to scale

* The partner communication strategies you NEED to form rock solid relationships that are both enjoyable and impactful.

* WHAT support you must provide your partners if you want them to succeed.

* The simple 3 step process for growing your partner network

We’ll do all this within a maximum of 40 minutes, and then the rest of the time will be for you to ask questions about how you can specifically apply this in your business.

This session is perfect for you if:

* You know partnerships are the key to your next stage of growth but are unsure how to make the most of them.

* Conventional sales methods aren’t getting the results you’re looking for and your willing to revert to something tried and tested

* You want to take control of your lead generation and protect yourself from the fluctuations of your sales team

See you there!

Focus On Why hosted by the wonderful Amy Rowlinson is an awesome and inspirational podcast that really makes you think about why you are doing what you're doing. 
It was such an empowering experience recording it.

It will be available here if you would like to take a listen.

Create A Bespoke Partnership Programme…

Our new group programme.

You and seven other awesome business owners will be coached and guided through our DANCE framework.

The result - you’ll have those strategic referral partnerships that will take your business to the next level.

Run online over 6 months (but you’ll be ready to go by month 4) with 12 live sessions and all the support you need in between.

This programme is about DOING, not just learning.

At just £400p/m we’re confident in generating you huge ROI that will pay dividends for years to come.

We kick off Cohort 1 on March 2nd (but catch options are available) with Cohort 2 getting going in May.

Find out more and secure your spot on cohort 2 here

Create A Bespoke Partnership Programme…

Our new group programme.

You and seven other awesome business owners will be coached and guided through our DANCE framework.

The result - you’ll have those strategic referral partnerships that will take your business to the next level.

Run online over 6 months (but you’ll be ready to go by month 4) with 12 live sessions and all the support you need in between.

This programme is about DOING, not just learning.

At just £400p/m we’re confident in generating you huge ROI that will pay dividends for years to come.

We kick off Cohort 1 on March 2nd (but catch options are available) with Cohort 2 getting going in May.

Find out more and secure your spot on cohort 2 here

A good Strategic Referral Partnership (and even better a whole partner programme) is the holy grail of lead generation.

It takes the most common source of new business, word of mouth, and turns it from something that can be frustrating (as you can’t measure, rely, or scale it)

Into something consistent, dependable, and scalable.

And it’s not just the quantity of leads that becomes consistent, but the quality too.

The right strategic referral partner delivers you your ideal clients, all warmed up for you, at the perfect time for them to make a buying decision.

Like all good things though, they take work. They don’t just happen organically.

But not where you might expect - the hardest work isn’t finding partners.

It's in ensuring you’re searching for right ones in the first place, and that you make the most of the relationships once in place.

In this free live event we’ll cover:

* How to identify who the ideal partner is for you RIGHT NOW, and how to form a powerful value proposition that taps into WHY they to work with you, making conversations effortless.

* HOW to build trust (vital in a partnership) by using the systems and process that allow you to scale

* The partner communication strategies you NEED to form rock solid relationships that are both enjoyable and impactful.

* WHAT support you must provide your partners if you want them to succeed.

* The simple 3 step process for growing your partner network

We’ll do all this within a maximum of 40 minutes, and then the rest of the time will be for you to ask questions about how you can specifically apply this in your business.

This session is perfect for you if:

* You know partnerships are the key to your next stage of growth but are unsure how to make the most of them.

* Conventional sales methods aren’t getting the results you’re looking for and your willing to revert to something tried and tested

* You want to take control of your lead generation and protect yourself from the fluctuations of your sales team

See you there!

Create A Bespoke Partnership Programme…

Our new group programme.

You and seven other awesome business owners will be coached and guided through our DANCE framework.

The result - you’ll have those strategic referral partnerships that will take your business to the next level.

Run online over 6 months (but you’ll be ready to go by month 4) with 12 live sessions and all the support you need in between.

This programme is about DOING, not just learning.

At just £400p/m we’re confident in generating you huge ROI that will pay dividends for years to come.

We kick off Cohort 1 on March 2nd (but catch options are available) with Cohort 2 getting going in May.

Find out more and secure your spot on cohort 2 here

Are you a Service or SAAS Based Business Owner who…

• Is fed up with your existing sales methods not getting the results you’re looking for?

• Wants to take control of your lead generation. Protecting yourself from the fluctuations of sales teams, online algorithms, or your own busy schedule?

• Knows partnerships are the key to your next stage of growth, but need some head space and support to develop and implement your strategy?

  If you answered yes to any or all of the above then the Kick Ass Collaboration Programme could be for you.

  Click Here To Find Out More and Book On

Get Ready for ISMAUK’s
Online Global Stress & Wellbeing Summit
on International Stress Awareness Day!

The highlight of International Stress Awareness Week is ISMAUK's Online Global Stress & Wellbeing Summit, on International Stress Awareness Day 9th November. The programme will include world-class speakers, panels, and interactive sessions, reflecting this year’s theme, Working Together to Build Resilience and Reduce Stress. Further information will appear on this page as it becomes available.

Dave is moderating a panel on ‘Why Collaboration is Key to Building Resilient Partnerships’! Keep and eye out using the button below to get more information as it is released.

Create The Roadmap to Your Success With GrowthCLUB with our In Person Workshop!

If you’re an ambitious business owner, wanting to take your business to the next level, this workshop is for you. It’s also a fantastic opportunity to make valuable connections with 40 other entrepreneurial business owners, as the day includes a dedicated speed networking slot.

Guest Speaker Appearance from Dave Plunkett

In 2020 (pre COVID), fed up with the business he was running, Dave set up Collaboration Junkie. Helping ambitious business owners leverage their credibility to get high quality inbound leads, on a consistent basis, from trusted 3rd parties, making Lead Generation an enjoyable process!

During his talk and workshop you’ll move through his DANCE framework:

1. WHO your ideal strategic partner is, and WHY they really want to partner with you

2. HOW to ensure you partnerships get off on the right foot, and only get stronger

3. WHAT support you should be providing to ensure your partners connect you to their audience

If you would like to know more and book a ticket, click the button below:

Referrals and word of mouth introductions are THE best type of lead you can receive into your business. They already trust your brand, and your reputation and services have already been pre-sold by someone who’s actually experienced them.
The result? A steady flow of pre-qualified leads into your business that are easy to convert, and go on to refer you to their own contacts.

As well as uncovering the blocks or gaps you currently have, you’ll also come away understanding:

* Who, Why, When, and How to ask for referrals

* Methods for making it so easy for people to refer you that it becomes second nature

* How to keep the people that refer you feeling valued, so the referrals can keep coming in on a consistent basis

* The secret strategy that will make you the most referable person in your network
 
To keep the event both interactive and relevant we limit places to 6 businesses only so we recommend booking early!

Would you like to know the Who, Why, How and What behind a successful lead generation partnership?
Well I’d love to show you the moves!
Collaboration and Partnership are words we hear more and more.
But 'want' and 'like' don't pay the bills.
If you want profitable partnerships that are still fun to be a part of, then you need to have a proper strategy (or routine) behind them.
I’ll be running through my DANCE framework on the 14th of July which will help you start to formulate just that!

It’s free for Agency Local members, but guests are more than welcome and I’d love to see you there!