"In many businesses today, referrals are viewed as an organic byproduct of the company successfully doing its job. If you exceed customer expectations, it’s natural to assume they’ll return the favor by singing your praises to their networks. If you blow them away with world-class customer service, you can expect a flood of social-media goodwill.

But here’s the problem with those assumptions.... while referrals do happen organically, they’re never a given -- even from your most loyal and satisfied customers. A Texas Tech University study found that while 83% of customers say they’re willing to provide referrals after a positive brand experience, only 29% actually do. That chasm exists for many reasons, but it’s often exacerbated by a failure to properly prioritize and manage a referral program." 

Here are 5 Do's and Don'ts of a GREAT referral rewards program!

1. DON'T EXPECT YOUR SALESPEOPLE TO ASK

I know this seems ridiculous but we live in the 80/20 world. Where 20% will do what you ask and maybe more and the rest will get by with doing as little as possible. So, what can you do to combat this?

1. DO - Give your salespeople the tools that make asking less awkward like an enticing incentive that they'll want to tell their customers about. Someone's friend, relative or family member could use the extra cash and benefit from this opportunity. 
2. DO - Give them tools like promotional material or an app that makes sharing information about the program easy and fun. 
3. DO - Create an automated email campaign that asks your customers for referrals directly.

2. DON'T EXPECT YOUR CUSTOMERS TO GIVE YOU REFERRALS

This is always a hard pill to swallow. We do great work, we give great service, shouldn't referrals just be rolling in? unfortunately, no. Our customers are busy people. They've got kids and bills and work to deal with. They aren't always thinking about how great your dealership is. But what can you do to remind them?

1. DO - Entice them to refer with an incentive offer that shows you appreciate their referrals.
2. DO - Give customers the tools to make referring easy and quick for them, such as a submission page. 
3. DO - Follow up with a thank you and reminder for them to keep referring!

3. DON'T "SET IT & FORGET IT"

Referral programs are not a switch that a marketer and company can just turn on and watch the magic happen. Referral programs are similar to a garden, the more we take care of them the more they grow and then they flourish. It must be started from management and lead down to the whole team for a referral program to be a true success.

1. DO - Mention your referral program every week at your sales meeting
2. DO - Remember to tell your office, service and other team members about the program and their chance to earn.
3. DO - Hold your team accountable for driving in referral business.
4. DO - Incorporate referral marketing into all of your sales and marketing aspects. Email signatures, direct mail, TV commercials, and billboards. 
5. DO - Monitor your program, which reward amounts garner the most response? Who are my top referring customers? Who's my top salesperson? You should be able to track all of these valuable analytics within your referral program. 

4. DON'T FORGET TO REWARD!

Seems simple right? But how many times can you recall a customer calling up about a friend they referred 3 months ago and they never got their reward? YIKES! 

1. DO - Put a plan in place to thank your customer for their referral within 10 days of closing a deal.
2. DO - Follow up with customers to ensure they received their reward
3. DO - Track your sales safely to ensure a referral really did take place. You never want to shell out money unwarranted, keeping an organized list of customers and their referrals will help you combat that. 

5. DON'T TREAT REFERRALS LIKE "ANY OLE' CUSTOMER"

Referred customers are 4x more likely to purchase and have a 16x higher lifetime value than a fresh up. Treating a referral like any old web lead can diminish your chances of not only this sale but future revenue!

1. DO - Follow up with a referral lead ASAP
2. DO - Remind them that their friend referred him
3. DO - Inform your management that you've received a referral and follow it from start to finish. 

Do any of these Do's and Don't surprise you? Are you already implementing some of these today? And how many referrals is that helping your store generate?