And of all the strategies that I’ve used to grow my businesses (and that I teach), there is one that is my favorite, hands down.

I have since named this strategy:

“The Referral Flood Formula”

But before we talk about the formula, there are two critical concepts that you need to grasp.

First off, people prefer to hire window cleaners whom they know, know about, respect, like and trust on a personal level. Sounds like common sense, right?

But when it comes to generating referrals, you have to start to look at the world through your prospective customers’ eyes.

Stop and consider that for a minute…

Think about how YOU make a decision to hire any contractor or even a doctor, lawyer or any other provider of services.

You feel more comfortable if you KNOW them or if you KNOW ABOUT them, right?

The more RESPECT you have for their expertise, experience and knowledge, the more comfortable you feel about hiring them.

And when you feel like you can TRUST them, and if you really LIKE them, then it’s really a no-brainer as to who you will choose as your sole provider.

And a large majority of the time that’s without even considering any other options, taking bids or shopping prices.

Secondly, you need to realize this: People feel accountable and take PERSONAL RESPONSIBILITY for the results of their referrals.

You will NOT get referrals unless people are certain that you will provide your services at an exceptional level.

Referrals reflect directly back on the person who MAKES them. And nobody wants to be perceived as an idiot by referring an unworthy window cleaner.

Are you with me?

Alright, with that in mind, let’s talk about my Referral Flood formula. In fact, I have this same formula written on a note card at my desk and refer to it frequently.

Here’s the formula:

STRONG RELATIONSHIP + WARM NURTURING +
FREQUENT COMMUNICATION = BIG-TIME REFERRALS!

Let’s take a closer look…

STRONG RELATIONSHIP:

What exactly does this mean?

Well, it’s the answer to the FIRST simple concept I talked about above. But it’s more than just that. It’s about the QUALITY of the relationships you have in your business.

A strong relationship means that people feel like:

• They know you, and like you
• You’re competent in the work you do
• They can trust you
• They naturally want to work with you.

And the good news is that ALL of these things are controlled by YOU.

• YOU control how FREQUENTLY you communicate with them
• YOU control the VALUE you provide to them
• YOU control their perception of your competence

Let’s move on to the next part of the formula.

WARM NURTURING: What do I mean here?

For most window cleaners, the only reason they contact anyone is to ask for business or to collect money. So people are usually ‘on the edge’ and skeptical in their relationships with window cleaners.

That’s a bad type of relationship to have with people.

But it’s different for window cleaners who use “welcomed” contact, greeting cards, or their own company newsletters.

See, first and foremost you must fill your communications with top-quality, DESIRABLE information about Window Cleaning, Home Improvement, Consumer news, Financial Tips, funny jokes, teasers, and several ‘involvement’ and response devices.

Specifically designed to do ONE thing:

Make your reader feel WELCOME!

It’s a HUGE MISTAKE to send out information only about the services you offer.That’s because you’ll lose the readership of people who are not looking to purchase anything new right now.

By sending out a newsletter or communication that is service or product specific, you miss out on the relationship building aspect (which is the whole point of sending it out in the first place).

BOTTOM LINE: Anything you send out must be WELCOMED and ENJOYED each month to be effective.

Let’s move on to the THIRD part of the formula:

FREQUENT COMMUNICATION: What do I mean by this?

There are actually 2 parts to “frequent communication”.

First, there is “frequent”.

MULTIPLE studies within the direct marketing industry have repeatedly shown that for every month you fail to make contact with your customers, prospects and referral sources, YOU LOSE 10% of the value of your customer base.

Think about that.

Enough said.

Secondly, there is ‘communication’. When you send someone something of value (like an interesting and stimulating newsletter) people naturally want to reciprocate with you. That’s human nature.

And when you let them know exactly HOW you want them to reciprocate, they will do it.

So…

• Tell people that you rely on referrals to run your business
• Tell people that you welcome their referrals
• Reward people when they do send a referral
• Reciprocate with them by sending referrals to your clients as well

I really hope you’ve found this information helpful and that you will make a conscious and systematic effort this year to improve your referral based marketing. We all know that referrals are the best new clients we can acquire.

As I mentioned earlier, most of this is common sense and you’ve probably heard it somewhere before. But if you’re anything like me it really helps to hear it again. My hopes are that this article will prompt you to take action right away.

Take the time to read this. It’s worth a minute of your time!

CLIENT QUESTION TO ME (via email):

=====
At 12:54 PM 8/29/2009, you wrote:

Tanner-

I am a purchaser of both your Streak Free Profits and Cashing In On
Christmas systems. I would like this question answered:

I keep hearing people say they are afraid to spend. What do you
say to them?

What are your strategies to get new work in this economy? Is there
anything in your courses which specifically covers this subject
that you can point me to?

Regards,
Jeffery
=====

MY RESPONSE TO JEFFERY’S EMAIL:

Hi Jeffery:

That’s a good question to ask, but I’m just not hearing where
people are making big cut-backs on window maintenance, OR even
Christmas light installations.

I talk to contractors all across the country all day everyday, and
sure, some people complain about the economy. To be honest, most
of these contractors have clients that are almost always in a
low-end residential market – a market I’d never want to be in even
in “good” times.

The contractors that are pursuing the clients with money and high
value homes and commercial properties still have to spend money on
window cleaning and pressure washing to protect their investments
and these same customers are still spending to have their holiday
decorations professionally installed. That’s what I preach and
where I want to be.

(My proprietary system teaches dozens of simple and easy ways to
grow your business no matter what the economy is like. If you
don’t already have it, check the links at the bottom of the page
after you’ve read this entire email.)

My good friend and world class marketer Yanik Silver sums it up
best in this article he wrote a few days ago.

Here’s what Yanik had to say:

====

Dear Friends and Clients:

Turn on any news broadcast or pick up any newspaper, and you’ll get
smacked upside the head with the latest bad economic news.

The media loves to harp on:

- Housing crash

- Layoffs

- Bank failures

- Foreclosures

- Lifetime savings wiped out

-Consumer confidence at an all time low

-The “worst economy since the great depression”

Blah, blah, blah, blah…

What they’re not telling you is that some of the greatest fortunes
have been built during “hard” economic times!

Take a look at this list — do you recognize any of these companies?

Hewlett-Packard
General Electric
Sports Illustrated
MTV
CNN
Federal Express
Burger King
IHOP

What do these companies have in common? That’s right – they were
all STARTED during a recession!

Remember, spending doesn’t just “stop” during economic downturns.

People are more selective, and they work harder at getting value
for their money — but they’re still spending.

So you want to make sure you’re out there where they can see you,
and that you offer a superior value to them.

[Side note: That's one of the best questions you can ask yourself -

"How can I add 10x- 100x value to my customers services?"

I promise if you ask (and act on those answers) you'll leap head
and shoulders beyond any competitor.]

So let the doom-and-gloomers carry on, but don’t listen to them!

Instead of waiting for the politicians to ’spend’ us out of
trouble, focus on how you can make more money!

Yanik Silver
www.surefiremarketing.com/go/blah_economy

=======

PS: If you’re not familiar with Yanik Silver and are serious about
marketing your business and growing fast, you should seriously
check out his website.

Yanik has tons of f-ree business building info on his sites and has
written several best-selling books.

Even though he is a self proclaimed “computer dunce”, he still
makes millions online each year helping entrepreneurs like you and I.

Here’s Yanik’s main site, check it out now:

www.surefiremarketing.com/go/blah_economy

=====

Click the following links to find Tanner Larsson’s
Business Success Systems:

StreakFreeProfits.com

WindowCleaningSuccess.com/Glass-Restoration

CashingInOnChristmas.com

Take a look at a few of the updates to this course:

- Powerful new marketing strategies and methods to help you grow your business.

- Updated and expanded business advice to help you structure and run your business right.

- A full chapter on proper ladder usage and safety so you can prevent accidents.

- Enhanced information on growing your business with employees and work crews.

- A huge new chapter on the sales process and how to capitalize on it.

- New sideline services to earn you even more money.

- New business forms, letters and spreadsheets you can start using instantly.

- A free graphics editing software fully as powerful as Photoshop so you can easily edit your marketing materials.

- A ready to go customer and contact database so you can keep track of your customers.

- A professional ready-to-go window cleaning business website for you to use.

And that’s just the tip of the iceberg… Over 110 pages of brand spanking new written material has been added to Streak Free Profits to give you every advantage in starting, running and growing your window cleaning business.

So, if you are on the fence, now is the time to strike while the iron is hot and profit from all this new window cleaning business information.

Get Your Copy Here:
http://StreakFreeProfits.net

Since this is nearing the end of the season I thought we’d talk about a few quick money makers you can use right away to go along with your current marketing plan to build your window cleaning business. But first, I want to give a personal message to everyone with one of my courses sitting on a shelf gathering dust — “HEY, GET OFF YOUR BUTT AND DO SOMETHING — ANYTHING — JUST TRY SOMETHING!”

Sorry for the shouting. Anyway, let’s get going with some ways to produce instant profits. If you haven’t really put any of my system into effect then the ideas I’m about to share with you are the easiest, most “no-brainers” to get going — so now that means you have no excuses…

Instant Window Cleaning Money Maker #1

Go Back To Your Old Clients With An Incredible Offer
Remember all those old window cleaning client files sitting in your office — well we’re going to bring them back into your window cleaning business. You’ve spent an enormous amount of money, time, resources, etc. to get them in the first place so let’s recoup on your investment.

First, you’ll need to put together a list of everyone who hasn’t called in for 1 year, 2 years, 3 years, etc. whatever you think is a reasonable amount of time. I suggest 1 year because they’ll still remember you and your list will be more current. (Also as a side note, as we start testing your “Welcome Back” letter for the most recent group of clients first. Meaning that if it works with 1 year old clients you then move on to 2 year old clients, and then on to 3 year clients and continue through until the letter stops being profitable.)

Claude Hopkins (author of Scientific Advertising and one of the most brilliant ad men ever) said, “The right offer should be so attractive that only a lunatic would say ‘no’.” I agree.

And the most compelling and irresistible offer is something for FREE!

Free is the best offer you can make. I suggest you use something with a high perceived value but very little hard cost to you. A free screen cleaning, water stain removal or some kind of labor service works very nicely.

A very smart thing to do is set an expiration date and also limit the time they can come in for these free services. That way you have a very structured offer. Also, don’t send too many at once because I guarantee you’ll be swamped with business. So try out 100 or 200 at a time and see how it goes.

Then if you really want to pour on the profits, you should use a sequence of letters. After 2-3 weeks the clients that didn’t respond should get a very similar letter with “2nd Notice” on the top and you should reference that first letter. The letter can start off something like this, “Frankly, I’m puzzled. About 2 weeks ago I sent you an invitation for a free hard water stain removal. I haven’t heard from you….(then continue with benefits and same offer from 1st letter).

Then 10 days after that you should send out a “3rd and Final Notice.” This will politely say how you can’t keep this offer open unless they call by the expiration date you sent in the first letter or you’ll be giving away their water stain removal offer to somebody else. This a polite way of doing a take away close.

Unfortunately not many window cleaners know very much about window cleaning marketing. Yet effective marketing for your window cleaning business is your ticket to success. There are many different ways you can market your business too.

When you market your window cleaning business you are ensuring that you always have enough customers. You won’t have to worry about any slowdowns. Having an effective marketing plan will keep a steady stream of customers rolling in all the time.

One of the major keys to window cleaning marketing is to have an effective elevator speech ready to go at anytime. An elevator speech is a very short speech that you’ll give to anyone who might be a potential customer. This includes anyone who asks you what you do for a living. It’s called an elevator speech because it should be short enough so that you could give it to someone in the time it would take to ride an elevator a few floors. Of course the speech also needs to be long enough to tell the person exactly what you can do for them. So, an elevator speech should be about 150 words and shouldn’t take any longer than about 20-30 seconds.

But the elevator speech should just be the start of your window cleaning marketing. You need to get the word out about your business. You want as many people as possible to be exposed to your window cleaning business. So, you need a plan of attack. You need to actually sit down and write out how you want to market your business. Be as specific as possible. Make sure you include when, where, and how you will market your window cleaning business.

There are many great ways you can market yourself. Some great ideas for window cleaning marketing include advertising in newspapers, running an attractive ad in the yellow pages, direct mail marketing, telemarketing, and building an email list of customers you can market to directly.

Of course, in order for any of the above marketing methods to be effective you need to have a great message. This begins with a USP or a unique selling proposition. You need to let people know why they should choose you over your competitors. Why are you better?

In addition to having a great USP, you also need to be able to construct great headlines. The headline is the most important part of any ad because it’s the headline’s job to grab the potential customer’s attention

Effective marketing for your window cleaning business is very important if you hope to be successful with your business. In fact, window cleaning marketing is everything. If you want to be successful with your business then you need to make sure you concentrate on marketing that business.