In Part One of this series, I spoke about there being inadequate knowledge of other partners’ expertise as an obstacle to cross-referrals occurring. In Part Two, I wrote about the flawed belief that simply because an individual is a member of your firm he/she should automatically be accorded confidence and trust and be assumed to have competence by the rest of the partners. This is just not true, no matter how much  management insists on the stellar nature of every professional. No rational person ever believes such claims. The challenge to the professional who wishes to be referred by his/her peers is to prove that he/she merits respect and regard, one peer at a time, and unless this occurs, the referrals will rarely arrive. This issue, Part Three of the series, will focus on the critical importance of the script.

Let us assume that Jerry knows what Madeline does. Let's assume that he has been convinced that Madeline is competent, handles clients well and will not overbill the client. Let's say that Jerry is sitting with his client Todd Hudson and a need arises that Madeline could fill. Jerry remembers Madeline's expertise and says to Todd, "We have a woman in our Chicago office, Madeline Wurtz, who could help you with this problem. I like her. She's competent. She gets the job done. I think you should talk to her." That is a poor script, and a poor script will rarely sell. What is a good script? A good script contains some acknowledgment of the problems Madeline has solved, some recognized names of companies she has helped, an understanding of Madeline's special abilities (such as creativity, resourcefulness, frankness with the client, track record, etc.). With a strong script, the chances of the target agreeing to meet the referred professional are five times as great, and the chances of the target actually retaining the referred professional are dramatically increased.

What does this mean? It means that in order to create a successful referral, you have to have a script, a real script. But wait a minute, does the professional who wishes to be referred in the case above, Madeline, have a real script about her desirability that she could relay to the other partner, who would be making the introduction? Most likely she doesn't! So one of the reasons we aren't getting cross-referrals is because the one who wishes to be referred has no script to give the introducer. We can't expect the one who is making the introduction to create the script, can we? So how do we get this done? We hire a competent sales coach and he teaches every professional how to create a script (something they sorely need anyway).

Make sure to read Part Four of this series, “Let's Talk About the Money!”


Comedy Corner

Hospital regulations require a wheelchair for patients who are being discharged.

However, while working as a student nurse, I found one elderly gentleman already dressed and sitting on the bed with a suitcase at his feet who insisted he didn't need my help to leave the hospital.

After a chat about rules being rules, he reluctantly let me wheel him to the elevator.

On the way down, I asked him if his wife was meeting him.

"I don't know," he said. "She's still upstairs in the bathroom changing out of her hospital gown."