Fearless Referrals

Fearless Referrals

Proven methods for expanding business by helping salespeople conquering their fears of requesting referrals from existing customers and providing them with the tools they need to go about it the right way.

According to Matt Anderson, president of the Referral Authority, for every ten happy clients a small business owner or sales person has, at least six of them would refer that person to friends or colleagues - but they are not asked!

That means most independent professionals are missing out on a lot of potential business. For more people, though asking for referrals just doesn't come naturally, and they avoid doing it because they simply feel uncomfortable. Anderson's book Fearless Referrals helps readers confront their fears, build their confidence, and come up with the strategy and language that's right for them to solicit new business through existing clients.

Complete with quizzes, exercises and scripts, Fearless Referrals is the guide that will transform even the most timid professional into a referral machine.

Matt Anderson has grown his business exclusively through referrals and now speaks and coaches not only across the US, but in Canada, the UK and the Middle East. He specialises in training and coaching financial advisors how to build referral-based businesses. Referral coaching clients come from independent advisors and companies including Berstein Global Wealth Management, Ameriprise, Principal Financial, Morgan Stanley, Smith Barney and Standard Life. Matt has recorded a program for the FPA's Virtual Learning Centre on referrals. As well as being published in Advisor Today and National Underwriter, he is a regular contributing author to Horsesmouth.com in the US and Professional Adviser and Mortgage Solutions in the UK. Matt has presented several webcasts for Bright Talk and the UK's Thought Leadership Live financial advisor community.

Fearless Referrals
McGraw Hill Australia
Author: Matt Anderson
ISBN: 9780071782876
Price: $21.95

Interview with Matt Anderson

Question: Why did you decide to write Fearless Referrals?

Matt Anderson: Truthfully, because I heard it would bring more credibility to me as a coach and a speaker. Now it's been published and I've had a lot of positive feedback about it being helpful to others wanting to grow a business, I'm glad the time I put in went to something meaningful.


Question: Can you describe what the Referral Authority is?

Matt Anderson: I help business owners and those in sales bring in more referral business. Ever since I first started in business (then as a more general personal/business coach), I was struck with how almost everyone I met said they got most of their business from word of mouth. Yet there were hardly any books on the subject to help people. The disconnect I got early on about this was also the fact that 80% of business fail in five years - so my goal is to help people bring in more of the business they love and thrive.


Question: How important are referrals?

Matt Anderson: Regardless of our virtual world, most people are always going to trust the opinion of a friend or loved one over an advert or something seen as a marketing ploy. Given how many business have limited marketing budgets and even then don't know which marketing works, I think word of mouth continues to be everyone's favourite way to get business.


Question: What is one tip that can help a sales person or business owner build their confidence to ask for referrals?

Matt Anderson: Pay much more attention to the value you bring to others. Realising that makes it easier to transition a conversation into 'it would be silly of me not to ask you about (specific person) or (specific door you could open for me so I could potentially help them too)'


Question: Why did you decide to include exercises and quizzes in Fearless Referrals?

Matt Anderson: Because most people want actionable items, practical suggestions of things they can turn around and 'do' in a business book rather than interesting concepts to mull over.


Interview by Brooke Hunter