Stephanie Barney
Contributing Writer
Spark Service Academy

As a service professional, one of your most effective (and inexpensive) forms of generating new customers is word of mouth advertising. More specifically, word of mouth referrals from other service professionals. This is what I call your “Personal Power Team”. In this article, I am going to tell you how to identify your power team and how to nurture those relationships to generate more business.

First of all, your power team needs to include people who find themselves in situations where they can refer your business. For example, I am an electrician, and the people in my power team consist of HVAC techs, plumbers, and home inspectors. These people are in constant contact with customers who are remodeling their homes, installing units that require electrical upgrades, or preparing their homes for sale, and they often need an electrician.

So, who belongs on your “Personal Power Team”? Think about tradespeople who find themselves in conversations with customers who need your services. If you are in pest control, your power team might include housekeepers, moving companies, realtors and electricians, because those service people are likely to see when a customer has pest control needs. They are in the perfect position to direct a customer to you.

Once you identify all the people you want on your power team, it’s time to do a little relationship building. Get to know them, ask how you can help them, and let them know how they can refer to you in return. Be sure to call them every time you are sending a customer their way, so that they know you are helping them. And most importantly, always call and thank them when they have referred someone to you.

They say it’s who you know that counts; I say it’s also who knows you. Remember, local businesses are stronger when they join forces and help each other!