Use the BOND formula to plan and conduct conversations with Top 150 members of your After Unit, and see how easy it is to keep yourself at their top of consciousness.

One of the best ways to generate referrals is to stay in personal contact with your top referral sources. Think of them as your “referral garden.” To produce referrals, regularly water your garden using Evidence of Success postcards, Letters From The Heart, Client Newsletters, and Personal Acknowledgement Notes (PANs). And for a really bountiful garden, periodically fertilize it with phone calls and personal contact.

The BOND formula is one great way to stay in touch when you have no other particular reason to do so and you just want to make a phone call to touch base. The BOND formula is:

B   Bring Value
O   Open a Conversation
N   Nurture the Relationship
D   Drop a Referral Seed

After learning the BOND formula, members tell us, “I used to be nervous about calling past clients out of the blue. I didn’t know what to say…just ‘Hi, how’s it going?’ It felt awkward. Then I started using the BOND formula and the impact on my referral business has skyrocketed.”

BOND calls can take as little as five minutes – and return big dividends in the quality of your relationship. Plan your BOND conversations in advance by writing down key phrases you’d like to say next to each letter of the formula. Notice the examples in the following description of the BOND formula:

Bring Value	Send your client something of value such as a gift, an Evidence of Success that reminds you of them, a newsletter with a relevant article, or other item of value.
Open a Conversation	Open a conversation by referring to the item you sent, asking them if they were able to use it, then telling them how you were thinking of them. Example: “Did you see that last postcard I sent?…It reminded me of the transaction you went through where the buyer wanted you to remodel the house or he wouldn’t close.”
Nurture the Relationship	Write a one-line Personal Acknowledgement Note (PAN). Refer to MORE Document #5583 for information about writing PANs, including a list of characteristics you could use to describe them. Example: “Jan, I appreciate how calm (caring, thoughtful, patient, happy, etc.) you always are, even under stress.” PAUSE FOR THEIR THANKS.
Drop a Referral Seed	Finish the conversation by dropping a referral seed. Example: “You’re welcome, Jan. And remember, I’m always here for you and your friends when you need me.”

Pay close attention to the following points:

• Nurture: The most important step in this formula is the N, which stands for Nurture the Relationship. Although it may be tempting to skip or gloss over the Nurture step, without it, you will sound like a salesperson and the conversation will be awkward. The N is what makes them happy you called.
  
• Drop a Referral Seed: Remember the purpose of this call is simply to touch base, not to ask for a referral. The D stands for Drop a Seed, not ask. When you bring value to someone, you don’t want to immediately ask for something in return, such as a referral. Instead, use this conversation to remind them you’re there to serve.

How it Works:

1. Compile a list of your Top 150 raving fans
   
2. Select five raving fans that you haven’t touched base with in a while.
   
3. Using the BOND formula as a guide, prepare a conversation for each of the five raving fans you’ve selected. Write a one-line PAN for the Nurture step of the formula. Then prepare one or two simple phrases you can use to Drop a Referral Seed. A great example is “Don’t keep me a secret!” or “I’m always here for you and your friends when you need me.”
   
4. Select the best time of day to reach each of the five raving fans, then place your calls. You cannot BOND with an answering machine. You must actually have a conversation for the BOND formula to have the desired affect.
   
5. Repeat the process with the next five raving fans on your list, and so on until you’ve contacted all your Top 150 raving fans. Do this two to four times per year on an ongoing basis.
   
6. Keep copies of all your BOND conversations in each client’s file so that you can vary the BOND conversations throughout the year.

Options and Alternatives:

• If you want to call past clients in your After Unit specifically to ask for referrals, a better formula to use might be the ACTS Formula (MORE Document #5630) for having a referral conversation.
  
• If you’re working with a client in the During Unit, consider using the BRAG Formula (MORE Document #6012) for having a referral conversation.

LOOK

Sample BOND Conversations

With an Evidence of Success Touchpoint
B	Bring Value	Send an Evidence of Success card. (This may be part of your regular mailing schedule.)
O	Open Conversation	“Hi, Mary. Joe. I wanted to give you a call because that last postcard I sent out reminded me a lot of you. “I thought you might find it funny in hindsight, given what you went through on your transaction.”
N	Nurture Relationship	“Thanks for being such a forgiving person.”
D	Drop a Referral Seed	“Thanks, Mary. And as always, don’t keep me a secret. I’m here to help your friends get into homes of their own, too.”

With an After-Celebration Touchpoint
B	Bring Value	Send a $50 gift card for Home Depot.
O	Open Conversation	“Hi, Tom. Joe. Were you able to use that Home Depot card? “I know you’re just getting things functional in your house about now, and I was betting you’d need to fix a few things.”
N	Nurture Relationship	“You and Janet were a real pleasure to work with. I really appreciated your enthusiasm. Is there anything I can do for you right now?”
D	Drop a Referral Seed	“Thanks, Tom. I’ll talk with you later. And remember, I want more clients just like you – so please let your friends know about your transaction and how I work.”

Top of Page | Close Window

Copyright © 2003 By Referral Only, Inc.

While you are a By Referral Only Community member in good standing, you have a personal, non-transferable license to use and adapt documents in the Members Only Resource Exchange for the sole purpose of soliciting and serving clients of your business. The documents, campaigns, special reports, ads, and other materials that you download from this website may be reproduced for your own use only, and must contain the following copyright information in each copy of your final product: Copyright © 2001 By Referral Only, Inc.

All publications in the Members Only Resource Exchange are protected by U.S. copyright and trade secret laws, and are provided to you under your By Referral Only Membership Agreement. Downloading this material constitutes your agreement to protect the confidentiality of these documents. You may not distribute this material to your agents unless they are members of the By Referral Only Coaching Program. You agree not to disclose, divulge, discuss, teach to others, offer for sale or license, make or distribute copies of, or prepare derivative works based of any of this material except in the course of directly soliciting and serving clients of your business.