One of my favorite marketing books is Referral of a Lifetime. It outlines a proven system to touch base with the people in your life who already know, like and trust you. When I began to implement the system, I had a much steadier flow of web design clients. And it got me thinking about some of the strategic partnerships I have in place.

These days I send out a lot of referrals: to my bookkeeper, writers, SEO partners and printers. I thought about how I wanted to see these referrals flow in both directions. And for my referral partners that didn’t send leads back my way, to consider seeking out new partnerships.

I’m not a fan of paid referrals. They seem inauthentic. If someone wants a “cut” for a referring me as a marketing or web design resource, it seems disingenuous. I want referrals because someone likes my work and trusts that I will take great care of whoever they refer. The same is true when I send referrals: I only send people to professionals that I know, like and trust.

When I sat down to consider my referral partners, I came up with the following list:

1. My printers
2. My banker
3. My bookkeeper
4. My social media person
5. My business mentor/coach
6. My SEO partners
7. My writers

Because we often share the same target customers, yet our services don’t overlap, these are great referral relationships for me.

Who are your referral partners? Do these partners understand what services you offer and who your ideal client is? If not, Referral of a Lifetime can help you to develop a great system for letting them know about your newest service offerings and keeping in touch.