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Give Referral Partners Trigger Phrases, Not Elevator Pitches

Stuart Bell 2 min read
Give Referral Partners Trigger Phrases, Not Elevator Pitches

Your referral partners want to send you clients. But they don't know what to listen for.

I was on a call with my friend Mitchell Levy, talking about why business owners aren't getting referrals, and he nailed exactly why this happens.

When someone asks "who do you serve?" and you give them 10 answers, or say "we help anyone," they remember zero.

So step 1 is to define who you really help.

Instead of "I'm an Executive Coach," try "I help anxious executives quiet the noise." Instead of "I'm an Estate Planner," try "I help business owners protect their families."

Now your future clients recognize themselves.

The Real Problem

Most people you talk with are referral partners, not prospects. And they still don't know which conversations are your conversations.

They need trigger phrases. Exact words to listen for. The moment to say "you need to call my person."

Business owners make this mistake constantly:

  • "I help anxious executives" (okay but what do I listen for?)
  • "I work with growing companies" (what does that sound like?)

You're specific about WHO but vague about WHEN.

Build Your Referral Trigger Framework

  1. Define who you help in specific terms
  2. List the EXACT words your ideal clients say
  3. Create "If you hear..." statements
  4. Give referral partners the specific trigger
  5. Make it impossible to miss

Here's an example with the referral triggers built in:

  • Who you help: "Business owners tired of slimy LinkedIn tactics"
  • Problem phrase: "I hate getting those spam LinkedIn messages"
  • Referral trigger: "If you hear someone complain about LinkedIn spam, give them my book. It has an easy plan to grow their network authentically"

People can't remember your elevator pitch. But they WILL remember one specific complaint to listen for.

The psychology is simple. People pattern match to triggers. Give your referral partners something concrete to match against, and you turn every conversation they have into a potential referral opportunity. They just need to know what to listen for.

Thanks to Mitchell Levy for the CPOP (Customer Point of Possibilities) framework. When you combine his specificity principle with giving referral partners exact trigger phrases, the whole system clicks.