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How to ask for a referral from a client [+ best email templates]
HubSpot Sales Blog
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While I personally love adding a few good exclamation marks in my emails, a referral request email warrants a friendly but professional tone. You can establish a warm greeting and sincere signoff, but opt for neutral language in the body of the email. It can be easy for us to turn these emails towards ourselves, but it’s best practice to keep the email focused on the recipient of your email as well as the problem you’re trying to solve. Instead of saying, “I was wondering if you’d give me a referral,” say something like, “Do you have anyone in your network who might benefit from [xyz] as well?” Be genuine about why you’re asking the individual recipient for a referral, and keep the message focused on them, their success, and how their referral could help other customers in their network. Pro tip: An easy way to stay focused on the customer is to proofread your email after writing it, but before sending it. If you’re using a lot of “I’s” or “me’s” in the body of the email, consider rewriting it. And as mom always says, “Don’t forget to say please and thank you!” 7. Send it at the right time. Happy customers make the best referrers. Identify when your customers start to see value with your product and take the opportunity to ask them for a referral. If you’re in SaaS, this might look like waiting until after the implementation phase is completed and the customer is starting to see results with your offering. Post implementation, you could also dedicate specific milestones that warrant a referral request, such as at renewal or when a customer submits a positive NPS score. You can create an automation that triggers a referral request based on user behavior, such as hitting a milestone with a product, leaving a good review, or making a second purchase. If you do decide to use automation, make sure you’re leveraging personalization so it feels authentic and not spammy. “By automating your NPS survey to deploy based on certain triggers or milestones, you continually add potential referrers to your list.” I’ve seen many tools that deploy an NPS survey when a customer completes an action in the product that creates a “reward” response. By triggering an NPS survey when the customer is completing an action that makes them feel happy or accomplished, you’re likely to generate a positive response from the customer. 2. Follow up with your advocates. Receiving positive feedback via an NPS survey is great, but it doesn’t help your referral efforts if you don’t act on it. By taking the time to submit your NPS survey and giving you a positive score, your promoters have basically raised their hand and said, “I’m willing to recommend you to my network.” Now you’ll need to decide exactly how you’ll engage them in the referral process. You should develop a plan to follow up and make it easy for them to refer your company or product to their professional network. You could do this via personalized outreach through an SDR or BDR, or via your company’s customer marketing team. I’ve even seen some companies have the account manager or customer success manager (CSM) be the one to reach out to the promoter, since they own the relationship. Where possible, I suggest having a human reach out personally and see if your promoter would be interested in referring you. However, if you’re a small and scrappy company, you can set up an automated email to deploy that follows up with promoters. (Just make sure that the email is as personalized as possible, and is sent from an individual email address versus something like “[email protected]”). Like we talked about earlier, make it easy for promoters to refer your company or services to their network. Word of mouth marketing outperforms other marketing efforts by a long shot, so standardizing this process is worth your efforts. Pro tip: Automation is your friend here.
They also make it easy to do by including the customer’s unique referral URL in the email, which reduces friction and makes it easy to copy it and share it. Finally, I like the added touch of including a customer testimonial at the bottom of this image, as it gets the customer thinking about when they personally may have been complimented on something they purchased from QVC. 4.Gong.io- Influencer Club Gong’s loyalty program offers its members the chance to partake in a variety of advocacy initiatives, including a referral program. Since my company uses Gong, I was invited to join their “Influencer club” and participate in advocacy initiatives of my choosing. Above is the email Gong sends via an automated outreach, but from a real person’s email address, that invites you to join the program. While it doesn’t directly ask for a referral, it invites you to participate in a broader program that rewards you for things like referrals. Why This Works This email leverages personalization (my name) and makes the request feel human by focusing on the customer and contributing to their success in the opening line. It also feels low pressure and doesn’t come off as spammy. 5. Account Team Customer Outreach As a CSM, here’s an example email that I might send to one of my customers after connecting with them. Why This Works This email recognizes the value the customer is actually seeing from our product, celebrates the measurable win, and acknowledges the customer’s effort. By referencing the customer’s title, I help narrow down the list of potential referrals, making it easier for the customer to think through who they could connect with me. Finally, I include a link that makes it easy for the customer to submit the referral information on their own time, as they may want to go talk to the people they’re considering referring me to before they submit their information to me. I also mention that we’ll compensate them for the referral but I don’t lead with it. “I suggest leveraging customer sentiment, direct feedback, and customer behavior data to first identify which customers would make great advocates.”
Pro tip: I don’t suggest using this as your only referral strategy, but it can be a complementary strategy to source referrals in addition to some of the other methods that we’ve discussed so far. It can be especially beneficial for small businesses or a business that’s just starting out, as well as those in the services industry. Customer Referral Letter Templates Once a new customer is onboarded, let enough time pass to produce some results. You want the customer to decide whether they’re pleased with your work or not. This could take a week, or it could be a few months, but when you’re satisfied you’ve made an impression, follow up by asking directly for referrals using these templates inspired by our friend Rick Roberge: Customer Success Manager:“You told me you’re happy with my work thus far, and I’m glad to hear that. Have you shared these sentiments on a review board or with a friend or colleague?” Customer:“No, I hadn’t thought about it.” CSM:“Is it because you’re not pleased with the outcomes?” Customer:“Not at all, we’re pretty happy with the quality of the product and service we’re receiving.” CSM:“That’s great! Perhaps your clients, vendors, or competitors might need this same level of quality from a software service like ours. What do you think?” Customer:I don’t want you working with my competitors, but I can think of a few vendors who might want to work with you.” CSM:“Your vendors then — do you have a favorite? Do they sell to other people you know?” Customer:“Yeah, we have a good relationship.” CSM:“And are any of your favorite vendors trying to grow their businesses?” Customer:“Yes, a few in particular.” CSM:“There sounds like an opportunity here. If you called or sent your favorite vendor an email and said ‘I’ve been working with [Name] for six months, and we’re doing some pretty interesting stuff. I know you’re growing your business, so I thought I’d put you two together,’ would they be receptive?” “However, it may still be a good idea to ask a new customer for a referral on the back of a successful onboarding experience.” It’s at this point — if everything’s gone well — that their emotions are high on having solved a big problem using your offerings, and they’re still in the honeymoon phase. Only ask after a moment of delight during the beginning of a relationship, and don’t wait for buyer’s remorse to set in or those emotions to level off. Be sure to ask for feedback throughout the process, and after a particularly glowing email, respond with your ask. For example: Hello [Customer name], That’s amazing that you’ve had such a great experience with our team already. They continue tosurprise even me, and I work with them daily. I trust they’ll take care of you through the rest of the process, and you can always reach back out to me with any questions. In the meantime, since you’re in good hands, do you know anyone else who also needs help with [pain/problem that led them to you]? Let me know, [Your name] Template 3: How to Ask for a Referral From a Partner, Vendor, or Affiliate You likely have service providers, affiliates, or — best of all — partnerships in your industry who offer solutions complementary to yours. If you have a good relationship with an individual at one of these companies, you might have an opportunity to tap into their sphere of influence. The goal is to provide valueto their clients/contacts. Here’s how you can approach the topic: Hello [Point of contact’s name], I’ve noticed that our customers who work with [their company name] have far fewer issues with [problem that they solve] on average. I think that [your company name] and [their company name] makes for a powerful combination. Do you currently know anyone who would benefit from [your solution]? I’d be happy to help. Best, [Your name] You may also consider adding an incentive to your email such as providing them with a referral in turn or promoting their product/service on your social media channels.
Pro tip: If your company leverages a customer health score, you can prioritize reaching out to customers whose health score reflects a combination of high product adoption, positive ROI, and/or positive sentiment. 12. Add referral options to your website. Make it easy for your customers to refer you, even without you asking. By adding an online form, box, chatbot, or page with a referral link to your website, you encourage more referrals from customers and reduce manual outreach effort for your team. Whatever functionality you decide to add, make the CTA clear and be sure to list any incentives that you’re offering for qualified referrals. Try to make the process as self-serve as possible so that customers can generate referrals for you on their own. Pro tip:Test this process to make sure there’s no unnecessary friction for the customer. I’ve seen some referral programs that are so clunky and complicated that I’ve personally quit on them mid-referral. When in doubt, KISS (keep it super simple). 13. Consider a quid-pro-quo mindset. Offering to refer others in exchange for a referral from your company is a great way to team up with other businesses and combine referral efforts. You could reach out to your own customers (where it makes sense) and ask if they’d like to participate in a referral exchange. I’ve seen this work well at the C-level, where my marketing team worked with CEOs or CMOs from both my company and my customer’s company to exchange very custom, personalized referrals. You could also consider finding a referral networking group that offers mutually beneficial opportunities with other businesses. This is a great place to get a referral without the awkwardness that can come in other settings, and you’ll also stand out in your team for proactively seeking referral opportunities outside of your immediate network. “Once a new customer is onboarded, let enough time pass to produce some results.” If your customer agrees their vendors would be open to the suggestion, send out the email template in the section below. If your customer is on the fence, work to reframe the situation to assure them they’d be helping the referred party, not setting a money-hungry sales rep on their trail. Emphasize to your customer that your purpose is to grow businesses — or whatever your company’s mission may be — and not to be a hard-pitching nuisance. Template 1: How to Ask for a Referral From a Loyal Customer When requesting a referral, you want to keep the focus on your customer and their happiness. You don’t want to appear like an opportunistic sales rep who’s done with them and ready to move on to their friends — you want to seem like a helpful CSM who’s invested in building your relationship. Instead, only ask for a referral after first ensuring they’re happy with your product or service and can think of no way in which their experience could be improved. Then, gently ask if they have a friend or industry colleague you might be able to achieve similar results with. Here’s an example: Hello [Customer name], I’m so glad to hear you’re happy with the results of working with [Your company name] so far. I knew we could help, and I’m pleased you’re seeing results so quickly. Since things are going so well, I found myself wondering if you have any colleagues at similar companies who would benefit from our [product/service]. I would love to help them achieve similar growth. Regards, [Your name] This is friendly, focuses on your customer’s success, and is hopeful you can help one of their friends at another company achieve the same results. Who could say no to that? Template 2: How to Ask for a Referral From a New Customer A new customer may be a more difficult ask than an existing one with a wealth of positive experience with you. However, it may still be a good idea to ask a new customer for a referral on the back of a successful onboarding experience.
For example, you can have your marketing team keep an eye on their social media profiles and interact with them when they post. Your account executives can reach out proactively to check in and see how they’re doing. And your support team can even treat them differently (like prioritizing their tickets if possible) when they write in with a request. Pro tip: Consider tracking your efforts across programs and channels to see how long it takes, on average, from referral request to referral completion. From there, you can iterate across programs and find ways to improve while also tracking which methods result in the most, or the best quality, referrals. 4. Build value before asking. You can certainly ask for customer referrals immediately after closing the deal — but I wouldn't recommend it (unless it’s a contract renewal). Wait until your customers are seeing value with your company and have experienced great service from your brand before making this kind of ask. Asking them to give you a referral before they’ve even tried the product isn’t a great move, as it can make them feel uncomfortable since they haven’t actually used your offering yet. They’ll be more likely to share names of trusted colleagues once they’ve seen value for themselves, and at that point, they’ll wantto tell their network about you. Share relevant content with them and let them know when your company releases new products or features that would benefit them. This is how you continue to build brand loyalty after the sale and turn happy customers into loyal promoters. 5. Ask them, “Do you know anyone else who could benefit from this?” Some industries have small social circles, so chances are your customers are networking with peers who are facing similar challenges. By asking your customers if they know anyone facing a similar problem or pain point that they’re experiencing, you’re putting the focus on the solution that your product or service can offer. “The whole point of a referral is to get a warm introduction, so don’t be afraid to reference things that have come up between you and the referrer.” Consider offering an incentive program that includes gift cards, a discount on next month’s invoice, company swag, or a donation to the charity of their choosing. You could also create a loyalty program for customers that includes a customer referral program, with higher-value rewards dedicated to referrals. Whatever the incentive, you can try creating urgency by sending an incentive offer (like a gift card) to a portion of your happiest customers and telling them the first 10 to respond with a referral will receive the prize. (You might be surprised at how fast those referrals suddenly come to your customers’ minds!) Pro tip: Whatever incentive you offer for referrals, be sure to be up front about the terms and conditions. For example, if you’re offering an incentive just for the referral submission itself, that’s one thing. But if the reward is only given after the referral is considered qualified or after they make a purchase, be sure that you’re clear about that up front with your customers. 8. Get comfortable with asking for referralsin themoment. It can take some getting used to, but just getting comfortable with this kind of ask can help you leverage those positive yet unexpected moments with customers. If you receive a great comment on a social media post, you can easily reply and ask a customer if they’d be open to giving you a referral. Or, if a customer calls in and gives you a nice compliment, being comfortable with your ask can allow you to quickly respond with something like, “I’m so glad you had a great experience with us. Would you be open to giving us a referral?” As a customer success manager, when I prepared my QBR decks, I would include a slide at the end of them that asked my customers for a referral if I knew the customer would be happy with the outcome of the meeting.