Ep #375: Why Now is the Best Time

Stacey Brown Randall: Hey there, and welcome to the Roadmap to Referrals podcast, a show that proves you can generate referrals without asking or manipulation.

I’m your host, Stacey Brown Randall. More than a decade ago, I started developing a science-backed methodology and framework to generate referrals without asking for them.

As I’ve refined it, I’ve had the privilege to help thousands of business owners take control of their referrals on their terms. Join me every week as I break it down for you.

So I know you’ve heard the saying, the best time to plant a tree is like 20 years ago, and the next best time to plant one is now, today. Well, guess what? Like tree planting, it’s a little bit the same for referrals as well. Why?

Well, truly, there’s probably a dozen or so reasons as to why getting started now is the best time if you didn’t get started in the past. And I know it sounds cliche to say that, like, oh, you should get started now, even though you haven’t done it in the past. But it’s true.

And while there are lots of reasons why you should start with referrals now versus waiting, there’s actually two really important reasons that I want to break down for you today.

So the first reason why getting started with referrals matters now more than you waiting, say, a month or a year is that you’re actually sitting on your next client, you just don’t know it, and you can’t see it.

I just actually heard in my head how that analogy sounds about you or sitting on your next client. Let’s just say that’s not really how I meant it. I just meant like your next client is actually probably very close in proximity, not literally, but figuratively, that’s what I meant.

Like, you don’t even know sometimes how close you are to your next client because you don’t know it and you can’t see it. What the heck am I trying to say? What do I mean by that, right?

Okay, well, there’s a couple of things that you need to understand about your next client is actually closer to you than you know it to be. You just don’t know it, and you haven’t figured it out and you can’t see it.

So let me tell you where you’re supposed to be seeing it, right? Quite potentially, there is a client waiting to refer you, but they haven’t realized it yet.

And you don’t know what to do to prompt them in a natural and normal, which is really important, in a natural and normal way, while also protecting and respecting the relationship.

So you have clients, more than likely one, but I’m going to guess more than one, that are actually willing to refer you and actually know someone that they potentially can refer to you, but you don’t know what to do to prompt them in a way that is natural and normal.

Which means you can’t say, hey, can you refer me? No, that’s bad. We don’t say that. But there is a way to prompt them in a natural and normal way while you still protect the relationship. But you don’t know what that is, so you’re not actually taking advantage of it.

And how do I know that there are probably clients waiting to refer you? It’s because I see it all the time. I see it happen with my clients all the time. There is outreach you can do to a client that will get them to start thinking about referring you.

I was talking with a financial advisor that had this happen this summer. Literally in July, sent out what I teach, the tactic that I teach, and got two referrals within 48 hours. Yeah, just sitting there, didn’t know that client actually had anyone to refer.

But when the outreach came across and it was done correctly and not with a request, not with an ask, not with a, hey, do you have anybody? That’s bad. Don’t do that. Two referrals.

I have another client who did this and got eight referrals in 30 days. So there is, like when I say one of the most important reasons for you to start on referrals now is because you’re probably sitting on some clients that you may very well need.

You just don’t know it. What I mean by that is a client, more than probably one, maybe, who has the potential to refer you.

Here’s another example. You probably have an existing referral source who an existing referral source is someone who has referred you in the past, at least within the last two years. We consider them active, okay?

So you probably have an active existing referral source or probably more than one who needs to hear from you so that they can actually help them focus their attention.

But you think your monthly or maybe even weekly e-newsletter that you’re emailing to their inbox is doing the job. But that isn’t going to cut it.

Just seeing you pop into their inbox doesn’t always get, even people who’ve referred you before, your existing referral sources, to think, oh, yeah, I need to refer Stacey. Nor is the text.

Sometimes you’re taught, like, hey, just send some text messages to people and say, hey, I’m just checking in. That isn’t going to focus their attention to refer you either.

But that doesn’t mean those existing active referral sources, people who have actually referred you in the past, don’t actually have people to refer to you. But you haven’t focused their attention on the that potential to refer you.

And you think you’re doing it, though. You think you’re focusing their attention by sending that newsletter out once a week or once a month. Or you think you’re doing it by sending them a text message that says, hey, I’m just checking in.

That’s not focusing their attention to think about referring you. It’s a nice little keep in touch, but it’s not keeping you top of mind, and it’s not making referrals happen.

And here’s another reason why you’re probably sitting around very close somehow, figuratively, around your next referral that has the potential to be your next client, but you don’t know it.

At that networking event, let’s be honest, you know you’ve been to a number of them over the last couple of weeks, or you’re getting ready to go to a bunch because school’s about to be back in session. And we kind of get back into a natural flow of like fall, back to school, networking events coming up.

So whether you have been to some networking events over the last couple of weeks, or you’re headed to some soon, or maybe you’re headed to one like right now, as you listen to this podcast, right?

In that networking event, you probably have a business friend or a business buddy or someone that you know, a business colleague that’s mentioned, they told you, hey, I told someone about you.

But you have no idea who they talk to. You have no idea who it is. And you have no idea if that person they talk to, who supposedly needs you, will actually ever follow up. And you don’t know, in the moment, how to turn that word-of-mouth buzz into a real referral.

You’re sitting on opportunities and you’re missing out on them. And in this case, these are opportunities for referrals that have the potential to turn into paying clients. And you’re missing out on them because you just don’t know the right tactics and the right strategies to do to generate referrals.

So that’s one big reason why it’s super important that you start with referrals now, because it has the potential to impact clients for you, right? Maybe not like, tomorrow, but it has the ability to impact clients for you more quickly if you know some of the right strategies to put in place.

But I said there were two main key reasons why you should start with referrals now versus waiting. And here’s the second one.

You’ve heard me say this before. Referrals come from relationships, and you need time to develop, nurture, and grow those relationships. Specifically, when we’re talking about relationships with people who’ve never referred you.

Now, the first reason I gave you as to why you should really start on referrals now, because it can impact clients, hopefully, maybe in the next couple of weeks, maybe the next 30, 60, 90 days for you, that’s because I’m talking about the low-hanging fruit.

Those are the clients that could refer, those are the existing referral sources that could refer, right? The outreach that you do, the tactics that you do, that’s your low-hanging fruit, because those clients know you, and those existing referral sources have referred you before.

And when you know how to do the outreach to them in a very special and unique way that I teach my clients, that’s your low-hanging fruit.

But I’m not talking about that with this second reason. I’m talking about the people who’ve never referred you or worked with you before, but you would still love for them to refer to you. That’s a different scenario.

It’s a process that you know, if you think about it, you know this needs patience, and a willingness to invest in the long game. And that willingness to invest in the long game is usually with your time, not necessarily dollars, but usually with your time.

So when you think about developing new people to start referring you who’ve never done it before, the other reason why you should really get started on referrals now versus let’s say waiting till January, is because you probably need some time between now and January to nurture those relationships with new people who have the potential to refer to you.

So when you think about why now is the best time to start generating referrals, it’s because there is the potential for an impact on your short-term reality with getting some referrals to turn to paying clients.

And there is impact to what this is going to look like beyond the short term in the long term. So that may be six months from now, it could be a year from now, but it’s definitely gonna impact year after year after year from now.

So again, there are many reasons why, okay, I get that I’m biased, but there are many reasons why you should focus on generating referrals now. You should consider doing something different with your referrals now.

There’s many reasons, and I know I just gave you two, right? But you also don’t have to look at this like you’ve got to jump in and put all the strategies in place today or tomorrow, because let’s be honest, most of us don’t have the capacity for that.

But sometimes just implementing one well-planned strategy can jumpstart your referrals, whether that’s jumpstarting referrals that’s going to impact your next 30, 60, or 90 days, or it’s going to impact referrals that will serve you for years to come.

Two very important reasons to why you should definitely not delay and get started with referrals now. And it doesn’t really matter if you’re listening to this episode in August of 2025 when I recorded it.

Maybe it’s now months forward, right? It’s like months ahead and you’re listening to this. That time is still now the right time because of what it can impact in the short term and the long term.

But did you notice that when I talked about short term strategies, The three things I talked about that you could be doing to generate referrals in the short term are actually very different from the strategy you’re going to put in place to impact referrals in the long term, which is that’s new people.

So you need different strategies, different tactics for what you’re trying to accomplish and on what timetable you’re trying to accomplish them. So really important. Keep in mind, you’ve got this.

You can jumpstart your referrals. You can start now. You can also wait. But if you start now, you’ll impact your short term and your long term.

Speaking of jumpstarting your referrals, that’s exactly what we’ll be doing during our More Referrals Masterclass starting in September.

This is a virtual masterclass. It’s going to be held over three individual sessions with me, held virtually live over Zoom. Of course, there’s always recordings, where you’re going to learn one of my signature strategies.

I have three foundational signature strategies that I teach, and I’m gonna break down one for you. It’s actually the one strategy that my first book, Generating Business Referrals Without Asking, is based on.

So you’re gonna learn how to cultivate more referrals from people who are already referring to you by accessing my strategic playbook and what I teach during this live virtual masterclass.

So if you want to learn what’s not included in that book, then you’re definitely going to want to register for the upcoming More Referrals Masterclass.

Of course, we have more details on the dates, the times, and that’s meant all that information can be found on a very specific information page. Just go to StaceyBrownRandall.com/morereferrals.

You can learn about everything you need to know about understanding what are we going to cover? What’s the strategy we’re going to break down? Not only what will you learn, but what will you walk away with having done and completed within those three sessions with me?

We’re going to do this over a couple of weeks in September. You can learn all about it at StaceyBrownRandall.com/morereferrals. Learn more and secure your seat.

Alright, all the resources mentioned in the episode today plus the transcripts of this episode can be found on the show notes page at StaceyBrownRandall.com/375. Alright, thanks for making it to the end. Until next week, take control of your referrals and build a referable business. Bye for now.