Asking for Recommendations - tips 16-20

Think ahead when it comes to testimonials - consider the changes that you have seen personally - and remember your manners; business relationships often last well beyond a single deal.. think ahead; weeks, months, years or decades down the line!

16.    What changes has your client seen in themselves since getting involved with you.
17.    Thank your client with a thank you card

18     Or with something more substantial if it leads to business
19.    Don’t date testimonials
20.    Write testimonials for your clients and educate where you can. Help  them to increase their own referrals

Asking for Recommendations - tips 11-15

Consider the practicalities when asking for a testimonial - where, when, and how will it be used?

11.  Make sure your client puts your testimonial on their letterhead.

12. Ask them not to date it so it doesn’t become out of date.

13. Always give your client a deadline for when you need the testimonial back.

14. Ask your client verbally.

15. Send them a prepaid envelope to send it back.

Asking for Recommendations - tips 6-10

Consider what a testimonial is used for.. it tells other people why they should use a product or service - so make it relevant to the people who are going to read it...

6. How easy is it to do business with you?
7. Why do they continue to do business with you?
8. Why are they loyal customers?
9. What would you say to someone who has never heard of you before?
10. What is unique about your service.

Asking for Recommendations - tips 1-5

It's always good to get recommendations or a good testimonial; the easiest way on LinkedIn is to recommend someone yourself - they will then have the opportunity to recommend you back.


Sometimes it's difficult to know what to ask for/give in a recommendation; this is a series of 20 top tips to help you:

1. Three problems your client faced before you came along.
2. How delighted and happy your client is with your services.
3. How easy and fulfilling it is to work with you.
4. Would they recommend your services to anyone else.
5. How does your client feel by taking up your services.

Obvious? maybe - but good to keep in mind next time a supplier or business associate asks for a testimonial.  

Top 5 LinkedIn Tips

1. Build your profile.  It's your CV available for anyone in the world to check out!
2. Be careful who you connect with.  
3. Remember your manners.  Say "thank you" if someone recommends you.  
4. Join groups.  A useful way of getting to know someone without being LinkedIn with them.  
5. Offer advice.  Search for questions that need answering. 

The Future of Networking

What does the future of networking online and offline look like? Can
you identify any trends that owner/managers should be paying attention to?

“In a word – LinkedIn.”

This social media tool is as close to face-to face networking as you can get.  It cannot replace it however.  But it offers certain advantages such as the opportunity of being able to see your contact’s contacts.  This enables you to find out who knows whom and be proactive and ask for an introduction. 

It is a very powerful concept: I have 1173 level one contacts, my direct connections. Those 1173 contacts can lead me to over 55000 further - level two – connections.  Take it to the next level, it amounts to an astounding 4,250,400 business professionals, give or take a few thousand.  It is enough potential business for a lifetime.

So get on LinkedIn if you are not already and work on your online profile, start joining and interacting in the many specialist groups available and of course link-up and don’t be shy to ask for introductions to your contacts’ contacts.”

Face-to-face vs. Online Networking

Clearly online networks now play a major role in networking. Are the skills needed to successfully utilise these online networks different to those needed for a physical networking event?

”Networking, online or off, is all about being proactive. The more you do the more opportunities you will create.

Be focussed though, be generous and helpful to others and they will help you and always follow-up! How many opportunities are let to go by the wayside unnecessarily? – a crime in good and less favourable economic climates, whether online or offline.”

Your life through LinkedIn

We start out in life knowing no-one. Shortly most of us get to know members of our family, then we go to primary and high school then for some it’s off to college and university. Along the way we join clubs, teams and associations. We may attend our chosen place of worship which for some could be the pub or the gym! Then we go to work, sometimes in parallel with our education until we end up in our chosen careers.

When I started work all those decades ago the career you chose was meant to be for life, but this doesn’t seem to be the norm nowadays. In a recent keynote speech Reid Hoffman co-founder of Linkedin said;

“Part of the thesis that LinkedIn was founded on is that every individual is now becoming a small business. What do I mean by that? A typical job lasts two to four years, so that there is a sequence of jobs.”

So you move from your first job to the next and so on until we finally retire.

Accepting Invites to Connect on LinkedIn

Most people simply click the yellow ‘Accept’ button and leave it at that. Yes you must do that, that formally links you but why not send a message at the same time, something like this;

“Good to hear from you.

Thank you for your kind invitation to become part of your network.

Now we're 'linked in' don't forget to look around my many contacts and if there are any to whom you'd like an introduction...just ask.

We are running half day workshops nationwide to ensure you get the very best from this great online tool. Good discounted price for group members...see below

Kintish Business Networking Skills Group

When you join this group we plan to send you lots of free information including big discounts on training courses and products.

www.linkedintraining.co.uk

Please check out our exciting new site to download a number of special reports relating to LinkedIn with lots of other free information. This includes information on the locations and dates for all our seminars. I am looking to collect LinkedIn success tales for this website to encourage others to join. Please do tell me when you have some and I will link your profile and website to the story on this new site.

Best Wishes”

If you have found this article interesting, why not visit www.linkedintraining.co.uk for more useful hints and tips.