How To Acquire Five Referral Partners So That You Can Keep Your Business Organically Booming5/12/2025 By Laurel Elders, MCC What is one key way to craft a successful business that builds itself? Referrals!
Today, I want to teach you a formula for crafting a business that builds itself by cultivating five referral partners. Why five? Notice the word “partners”. A partnership is when two or more people come together for a mutual relationship, purpose or mission. Partnerships require nurturing to remain activated and alive. If you take on too many partners, the nurturing can fizzle, and this can minimize the potential for reciprocity. Not to worry! More than five people can and will refer you. However, we want to start off by building the partnership part so that your entire referral system will optimize. Before diving in, let’s talk value. Referrals are so valuable because they are a shortcut to building trust. New clients are not always going to be people you know. They are going to include people who have never met you. If someone they trust, recommends you, then they are much closer to trusting you than someone who is coming to you without any previous trust points. If there is no trust point, the question “Are you trustworthy?” can be booming in the back of their mind. Since building trust can take weeks, months or years, referrals can save you mountains of time, energy, talent and money when growing and sustaining a thriving business. Step One: Examine Immediate Relationships This step is simple. Take 10-20 minutes, scroll through your phone or social media channels and answer this question: Who in my circle is in front of my ideal clients daily, where my services could be a powerful resource and solution for their challenges? As I mentioned in the article, Three Simple Ways to Overcome Business Blues and Blossom in 2025, these are some key considerations depending on your niche:
Make a list of each person you can think of. If you have five or more, then you can skip Step Two and get to work on completing Step Three. If you do not have five, then Step Two is critical. Step Two: List Out Potential Relationships This step is going to require more thought and intention. Take 20-30 minutes and consider: Who is not yet in my circle that is in front of my ideal clients daily, where my services could be a powerful resource and solution for their challenges? Brainstorming can include associations, groups and communities. However, keep in mind that the ultimate goal is not to partner with a group, but a single individual within the group. Hanging flyers at a church might get you a few interests, but the direct partnership can yield much more value over time. Make a list of what groups or professional stand out to you as a potential partner. For the groups, locate the person in charge and place their name as your contact for now. For the professionals, just list them by name for now. Step Three: Prioritize Your Lists & Approach
You can also ask colleagues for help if you feel stuck or unable to come up with fresh ideas. Ok, before you begin reaching out to your lists from Step One and Two, please ensure Step Three is completed in full. Step Four: Consider Reciprocity Ok, my friend, you have you lists! Congratulations! The next step is to consider: What could my potential partner gain by partnering with me? List out all of the benefits you could provide. Ex: mutual referrals, a Thank You monetary stipend or affiliate fee, advertising on your website as a partner, other. Get really creative here too. It also helps to consider what motivates this person. For example, fiduciaries may love the extra monetary stipend. Other coaches in different niches, may be more motivated by positive impact, you can offer to donate to their favorite charity. Really consider what would have the most value for them. If you don’t know, that is ok. You can always ask them later. One thing I’ve seen work well is have a list ready and let them choose what has most meaning, value or benefit to them. Step Five: Water the Garden You Wish to Create Now that you have built a sound partnership foundation, it is time to approach your potential partners and see if they would love to partner with you. There is no one right or wrong way to do this. What approach is best aligned with who you are? Sending a video, dropping off bagels, or sending a handwritten card and invitation to lunch? I invite you to have fun with this. Even it every contact on your list doesn’t end up in a partnership, you have gained another networking connection in the world. After you gain a new partnership, consider the cadence of connection. How often will you check in, go out lunch, to send a random thank you gift, or just touch base? I recommend quarterly, but also consider the needs of your partner. Coaches who skip this step can see their referrals sizzle out. Or the partner may not prioritize the partnership if you don’t. Step Six: Embrace Your Clients as One of Your Key Partners Once you get the ball of referral partners rolling, it Step Five becomes paramount of importance. Find a way to nurture and embrace all past clients as referral partners. I can tell you firsthand, when I have lost touch with past clients and remember to get in touch years later, one of two things can happen. They say, “Oh my gosh, I forgot I could have called you as a resource.” Or they say, “Darn I already hired so and so.” Every now and then they hire you again because of the reach out. My point is that if you stay in touch, response 1 and 2 can be avoided. It isn’t personal, people are just busy and are bombarded with new information and new people daily. Consider:
This won’t be a single idea. It can have layers. For example, one of the consultants I work with periodically sends a Valentines letter to all of his past and active clients. This is a great gesture and keeps us connected. You may choose to send a free birthday session, or card. There are so many options. Also, keeping actively in touch once a quarter or twice a year, can help people remember you are there and remember they can refer you, or sign up with you at any time. In Summary There you have it. Five simple, doable steps to fostering a coaching business that grows itself. It will take effort of course. Nurturing does require effort. However, it is much less effort that running ads, or placing flyers, and always needing to get in front of new people. If you are seeking a group of like-hearted coaches to do this work with, and that is spearheaded by an expert in building six figure coaching businesses, I invite you to join us! I’m hosting a mastermind for ten coaches who are all building their businesses organically using principles like these. If this is you, please visit me here and consider if you will be one of the ten! We kick off May 28th https://www.integrativecoachtraining.com/biz-launch-mastermind.html
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