I’d like to buy you dinner

March 27, 2024 by
Share

Client appreciation dinners are a great way to recognize your best clients and thank them for their loyalty. Basically, you invite them to a free dinner where you present awards and gifts, introduce them to other clients in their niche, and enjoy a good meal.

You might have guest speakers who may be willing to co-sponsor the event. You might invite your clients to bring guests. Or you might keep the evening information-free and pitch-free and just have a good time.

A Facebook friend of mine, a Realtor, mentioned his firm’s upcoming “Top Referring Client Appreciation Dinner.” I thought that was a smart variation on the idea because his clients have to do something to get invited to the dinner.

There’s a little competition involved. Clients hear about the event and want to come. After the dinner, they see photos on your website and do their best to get invited the following year. Those who do attend will work hard to make the guest list again the following year. They’ll also talk about the dinner to their friends and colleagues.

Of course, it also allows you to promote the subject of referrals to all of your clients by simply talking about the dinner in your newsletter.

When you recognize good behavior (referrals), you reinforce that behavior and it tends to be repeated. When you recognize that behavior publicly, many of those who didn’t get recognized (invited) will change their behavior so they can be included the next time.

The bottom line is that you get more referrals, not just from those who make the grade as “top referrers” but from all of your clients. Your top referrer may send you ten clients, but you may have 100 clients who send you one or two.

If you can’t or don’t want to do a client appreciation dinner (criminal defense lawyers, I’m talking to you), how about a dinner for professionals? Invite your best referral sources and recognize them for their efforts.

If a client or referral source appreciation dinner isn’t in your budget, consider a breakfast or luncheon. Or, invite your best referring client or referral source out to dinner, just the two of you, to say thank you for their support throughout the year. Next year, you can invite a few more.

Here’s another way to get more referrals 

Share
Filed Under: Marketing legal services, Referrals Tagged With:

How to motivate clients to send you more referrals

July 8, 2015 by
Share

You can’t pay clients for sending you referrals. Not cash, anyway. But you can reward them nonetheless, and thus motivate them to send more referrals.

Reward them? Yes, by including them in your inner circle. The one you have established to recognize your best clients. You know, the clients who hire you most often, send you the most referrals, and otherwise help your practice grow.

Clients who qualify for your inner circle get a special invitation, a scroll or plaque, or maybe a polo shirt with your firm’s name on it.

Nice. But you can do more.

You might invite inner circle clients to special “client dinners” with guest speakers (who pay for the dinner in return for being able to offer their services). You might invite them to your firm’s Christmas party, bar-b-que or beach party. Do you play golf? Perhaps the best of the best get to join your foursome.

If your inner circle clients own a business or professional practice, you feature them on your website and in your newsletter. You might take their employees out to lunch.

Inner circle clients get preferred access to you. You take their calls first, return their calls first, and respond to their letters first.

You might periodically enter the names of inner circle clients in a drawing for a new iPad. Maybe one lucky winner gets their legal fees free that month.

You talk up your inner circle in your newsletter. You congratulate new inductees and prize winners. You promote the upcoming event. Your other clients, the ones who haven’t yet made the cut, hear about the inner circle and want in.

You might establish qualifications for joining your inner circle, or keep it at your discretion. You can invite all clients who pay their bills on time, or only invite clients who send at least one referral every six months.

Whatever you do, those who are in will want to stay in, and those who aren’t will want to be invited. Everyone will talk about your inner circle, everyone will want to be on your team, and everyone will do more to be included.

If you like this idea, your next step is an inner circle for professionals you send you referrals. It works the same way. Behavior that gets recognized and rewarded gets repeated.

Share
Filed Under: Client loyalty, Client relations, Marketing legal services, Referral sources, Referrals Tagged With: ,

Get more referrals with client appreciation dinners

December 16, 2013 by
Share

Client appreciation dinners are a great way to recognize your best clients and thank them for their loyalty. Basically, you invite them to a free dinner where you present awards and gifts, introduce them to other clients in their niche, and enjoy a good meal.

You might have guest speakers, who may be willing to co-sponsor the event. You might invite your clients to bring guests. Or you can keep the evening information-free and pitch-free and just have a good time.

A Facebook friend of mine, a Realtor, mentioned his firm’s upcoming “Top Referring Client Appreciation Dinner.” I thought that was a smart variation on the idea because his clients have to do something to get invited to the dinner.

There’s a little bit of competition involved. Clients hear about the event and want to come. After the dinner, they see photos on your website and do their best to get invited the following year. Those who do attend will work hard to make the guest list again the following year. They’ll also talk about the dinner to their friends and colleagues.

Of course it also allows the host to promote the subject of referrals to all of their clients indirectly, by simply talking about the dinner.

Nice.

When you recognize good behavior (referrals), you reinforce that behavior and it tends to be repeated. When you recognize that behavior publicly (dinners), many of those who didn’t get recognized (invited) will change their behavior so they can be included the next time.

The bottom line is that you get more referrals, not just from those who make the grade as “top referrers” but from everyone. Your top referrer may send you ten clients, but you may have 100 clients who send you one or two.

If you can’t or don’t want to do a client appreciation dinner (criminal defense lawyers, I’m talking to you), how about a dinner for professionals? Invite your best referral sources and recognize them for their efforts. You can do this even if you do sponsor a client dinner.

If a client or referral source appreciation dinner isn’t in your budget right now, consider a breakfast or luncheon. Or, invite your best referring client or referral source out to dinner, just the two of you, to say thank you for their support throughout the year. Next year, you can invite a few more.

Want another way to get more referrals without asking for referrals? Here it is.

Share
Filed Under: Client loyalty, Client relations, Marketing legal services, Referral sources, Referrals Tagged With: , , ,