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How to build a strong customer referral program [ideas ...
HubSpot Sales Blog
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However, that’s not the main takeaway. Instead of just knowing that customers can refer you, the key is figuring out which ones are most likely to actually do it. Additionally, consider other individuals who aren’t customers but have a vested interest in your growth. For your business, consider the following: Who’s most motivated to refer you?Your happiest and most loyal customers, as well as partners who benefit from your growth. Who hasreach? Are you connected with any influencers or leaders in your industry? Who’s already sharing? Do you have customers who already post about you without being asked? Reward them handsomely, and interview them to build a profile of ideal referrers. As I’ve mentioned, my band’s most significant source of referrals is our existing fanbase. However, we’ve also gained traction through word-of-mouth from other bands we’ve toured with, as well as from engineers and producers we’ve worked with in the studio. My point is, don’t limit your program to customers alone. Think outside the box and consider everyone who is allied to your business — fans, peers, partners, and collaborators alike. 6. Identify the right channel to host your referral program. For your referral program to be successful, it needs to be easy for your customers to access. The best way to do that is by meeting customers where they are. For example, fans of my band tend to be on the younger side and rely more heavily on social media to read and share information. Therefore, it makes sense for me to reach them there, rather than hoping they’ll start caring about email newsletters. Here are the most common channels that customers use, where you can meet them with your referral program. Social Media. You can share links and direct customers to your website through Instagram Stories, links in your bio, and more. Live Chat. “The best referral programs combine both approaches.” Even the best referral program in the world will fall flat without proper execution. You can’t just go live with a referral program and hope for the best; you need to make a plan for who to ask, and when. I start with who. For my band, I look first to our most loyal customers, the superfans who run our fan pages and travel hundreds of miles to see us live. I know they are primed to advocate for us, and when I ask for their help, they usually follow through. For your business, consider starting with your happiest, most engaged customers. They’re likely already advocating for you, and when you ask them for a referral and sweeten the deal with incentives, they will surely follow through. When you ask is also essential. You don’t want to bother people by constantly nagging them for referrals. Time your ask at natural moments. Try popping the question after a positive support interaction, product milestone, or successful purchase for your best chance at referral success. Pro tip: Make a list of your ten happiest customers and schedule a time to reach out for a referral. 9. Create resources to alert your customers. If no one can find your referral program, it might as well just not exist. To maximize success, your referral program needs to be discoverable and easy to share. For me, that means leaning into socials. I post about our program on Instagram and other channels leading up to shows so that fans are always aware of how to claim their perks. The best resources for promoting your referral program depend on the channels you and your customer already use, but here are some assets you should definitely consider: A dedicated landing page that explains your referral program and how to join. Emails and newsletters. Social media posts and graphics. Scripts for sales and customer support teams to use when promoting the program. Blog posts that highlight success stories and promote your referral program.
I’m a professional bassist in a touring band, and word-of-mouth marketing has been one of the most powerful tools for growing our audience. Those referrals often become our most loyal fans, and without them, we’d be missing the bedrock of our fanbase. That’s the power of a referral. When a friend recommends something like a restaurant, a song, or an app, we’re far more likely to give it a try. Referrals from loyal customers bring in new ones, and they tend to stick around. In fact, 30% of consumers report discovering new brands through word-of-mouth referrals. Humans are wired for social proof. We implicitly look to others for cues on how to act and what’s worth our time and money, and you can leverage a referral program to transform that instinct into a reliable and scalable growth engine. In this post, I’ll break down how you can do the same for your business with a referral program. A successful referral program leverages word-of-mouth marketing to transform loyal customers into brand advocates, attracting new customers, enhancing brand awareness, and driving revenue. How do referral programs work? A referral program rewards existing customers for referring new ones. Businesses typically manage these referrals with software that generates unique links and forms that can track which referrals result in conversions, ensuring rewards are given out accurately and automatically. In my band, we’ve been experimenting with a more “analog” version of a referral program at shows. If a fan brings a friend who has never seen us before, they can both visit the merch table for free stickers, guitar picks, and the opportunity to purchase an exclusive tee reserved only for referrers and their guests. It’s a simple program, but it works. I’ve noticed that it’s not just the free stuff that gets people to bring their friends — it’s the exclusivity. “It can be discounts, freebies, or exclusive access.” With my band, I’ll reuse language from previous referral request emails, text message campaigns, and social media posts. That way, I don’t have to start from scratch every time we make a referral push, and I can just slot in relevant details while retaining our brand voice. HubSpot’s free referral templates offer the following resources to help you streamline your referral program: Referral request emails. A simple, effective way to ask customers to refer you. Referral follow-up emails. Because sometimes, people just need a little reminder. Social media copy. Quick, shareable posts to spread the word about your referral program. And more!The right templates keep your referral program running smoothly without you having to reinvent the wheel every time. Templates save time and help you maintain consistent brand messaging. Using templates reduces the barrier to entry of your referral program and enables you to turn it into a repeatable, scalable process for driving growth. 2. Set your goals. When I start a new project, the first thing I do is clearly outline my goals. When it came to a referral program for my band, my goal was to sell more tickets, increase merchandise sales, and attract new fans (i.e., drive growth and revenue). Here are some things to consider when brainstorming a new referral program for your business: Do I want to drive revenue, growth, or both? Am I looking to increase both customer retention and acquisition? Does my industry require an exceptional amount of trust-building? Without clear goals, you risk building a client referral program that doesn’t serve your business needs. Once you define your goals, you can craft a referral program around them, whether that means focusing on incentives, enhancing the customer experience, or building trust. 3. Research how referrals are coming to your business. Referrals are like water; they follow the path of least resistance.
Even the best referral program in the world will fall flat without proper execution. You can’t just go live with a referral program and hope for the best; you need to make a plan for who to ask, and when. I start with who. For my band, I look first to our most loyal customers, the superfans who run our fan pages and travel hundreds of miles to see us live. I know they are primed to advocate for us, and when I ask for their help, they usually follow through. For your business, consider starting with your happiest, most engaged customers. They’re likely already advocating for you, and when you ask them for a referral and sweeten the deal with incentives, they will surely follow through. When you ask is also essential. You don’t want to bother people by constantly nagging them for referrals. Time your ask at natural moments. Try popping the question after a positive support interaction, product milestone, or successful purchase for your best chance at referral success. Pro tip: Make a list of your ten happiest customers and schedule a time to reach out for a referral. 9. Create resources to alert your customers. If no one can find your referral program, it might as well just not exist. To maximize success, your referral program needs to be discoverable and easy to share. For me, that means leaning into socials. I post about our program on Instagram and other channels leading up to shows so that fans are always aware of how to claim their perks. The best resources for promoting your referral program depend on the channels you and your customer already use, but here are some assets you should definitely consider: A dedicated landing page that explains your referral program and how to join. Emails and newsletters. Social media posts and graphics. Scripts for sales and customer support teams to use when promoting the program. Blog posts that highlight success stories and promote your referral program. “You can see where customers came from, what platform they converted on, and who referred them.” Your referral incentives are a way of thanking customers, but I think it’s still important to offer a genuine thank you to show how much you value them, whether they are new or old customers. For me, “Thank you” is usually the first thing out of my mouth when I meet a fan of the band. Without them, none of what we do is possible, and I think it’s crucial that they feel that through our words and actions. Showing appreciation builds trust with your customer base and demonstrates to new customers that they made the right choice, which encourages them to continue referring others. 13. Improve your referral program. A referral program isn’t a set-it-and-forget-it type of thing. It should be an evolving program that you tune up and refine over time. I started small with my band’s referral program, and specifically took note of which incentives were the most impactful. Initially, I thought that free stuff like stickers, guitar picks, and other small items would be the most popular. However, I discovered over time that access to exclusive merch was by far the most popular incentive, even though they still had to buy the T-shirt. We now lean heavily into designing limited-edition merchandise items to commemorate individual shows and tours, which are only accessible through our referral program. You should apply the same type of analysis and iteration to your referral program. Here are some ideas to consider: Track results to determine which incentives and channels are most effective in converting customers. Collect customer feedback to learn what they like and what they want to see in the future. Experiment with new incentives and fresh messaging over time. Your referral program is a living system that should evolve in tandem with your business, your product, and, most importantly, your customers’ needs and desires. Pro tip: Schedule a quarterly review of your referral program to analyze results and discuss new incentives, strategies, and initiatives.
Even the best referral program in the world will fall flat without proper execution. You can’t just go live with a referral program and hope for the best; you need to make a plan for who to ask, and when. I start with who. For my band, I look first to our most loyal customers, the superfans who run our fan pages and travel hundreds of miles to see us live. I know they are primed to advocate for us, and when I ask for their help, they usually follow through. For your business, consider starting with your happiest, most engaged customers. They’re likely already advocating for you, and when you ask them for a referral and sweeten the deal with incentives, they will surely follow through. When you ask is also essential. You don’t want to bother people by constantly nagging them for referrals. Time your ask at natural moments. Try popping the question after a positive support interaction, product milestone, or successful purchase for your best chance at referral success. Pro tip: Make a list of your ten happiest customers and schedule a time to reach out for a referral. 9. Create resources to alert your customers. If no one can find your referral program, it might as well just not exist. To maximize success, your referral program needs to be discoverable and easy to share. For me, that means leaning into socials. I post about our program on Instagram and other channels leading up to shows so that fans are always aware of how to claim their perks. The best resources for promoting your referral program depend on the channels you and your customer already use, but here are some assets you should definitely consider: A dedicated landing page that explains your referral program and how to join. Emails and newsletters. Social media posts and graphics. Scripts for sales and customer support teams to use when promoting the program. Blog posts that highlight success stories and promote your referral program. “You can see where customers came from, what platform they converted on, and who referred them.” Your referral incentives are a way of thanking customers, but I think it’s still important to offer a genuine thank you to show how much you value them, whether they are new or old customers. For me, “Thank you” is usually the first thing out of my mouth when I meet a fan of the band. Without them, none of what we do is possible, and I think it’s crucial that they feel that through our words and actions. Showing appreciation builds trust with your customer base and demonstrates to new customers that they made the right choice, which encourages them to continue referring others. 13. Improve your referral program. A referral program isn’t a set-it-and-forget-it type of thing. It should be an evolving program that you tune up and refine over time. I started small with my band’s referral program, and specifically took note of which incentives were the most impactful. Initially, I thought that free stuff like stickers, guitar picks, and other small items would be the most popular. However, I discovered over time that access to exclusive merch was by far the most popular incentive, even though they still had to buy the T-shirt. We now lean heavily into designing limited-edition merchandise items to commemorate individual shows and tours, which are only accessible through our referral program. You should apply the same type of analysis and iteration to your referral program. Here are some ideas to consider: Track results to determine which incentives and channels are most effective in converting customers. Collect customer feedback to learn what they like and what they want to see in the future. Experiment with new incentives and fresh messaging over time. Your referral program is a living system that should evolve in tandem with your business, your product, and, most importantly, your customers’ needs and desires. Pro tip: Schedule a quarterly review of your referral program to analyze results and discuss new incentives, strategies, and initiatives.
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