Creating a system to thank your network consistenly
A few weeks ago, I wrote about how best to thank people who refer business to you.
In another article, I suggested a book that provides an example of a system to thank people consistently. (The chapter on Principle #4 is where you’ll find details on this.)
So this week, let’s step through how you can create a system that allows you to thank people promptly, consistently and appropriately.
Basically, there are 2 steps.
1. Find out what people value and appreciate, and how they’d like to be thanked. If you know someone well, you probably know this information already. If not, you can find this out in a variety of ways. You can ask their friends and associates, if you know who they are. You can ask them directly.
If you want to ask people directly, and cannot do so in person, do a survey.
- “Survey Monkey” is an online tool that I use to poll people (in fact, I used it a couple of weeks ago to get your opinion on the format of these articles). The basic service is free, their paid option is very affordable, and I’ve found it very easy to use.
2. Use the information you gather from your “research” above, about what people want, to create a “thank you” program that fits your budget, style and preference.
Here are some ideas, tools and resources to help you design a system to thank people in a way they will appreciate it most.
For instance, if you find that a lot of people would like a financial reward, consider creating an affiliate program for your product or service. (If you’re not familiar with affiliate programs, it’s basically an arrangement where you a fee or commission to people who make a sale on your behalf).
If this is of interest to you, here are a couple of resources:
- ClickBank
If you have a digital product (e.g. eBooks, eCourses, etc.) you can use ClickBank to create and manage your affiliate program. They handle everything for you, and the setup is very easy. This is the system I use to manage my affiliate program. - Your Own Affiliate Program
If you want a setup your own affiliate program (vs. using a third-party like ClickBank), or if you have physical products for which you want to offer an affiliate program, try this product from Paul Galloway. I haven’t used this particular product myself, but I have used Paul’s other products. And I’ve had very good experience with those. Also, the support he provides is EXCELLENT.
If you find that many people just want to know that what they’ve done for you has been useful, have a stack of “thank you” cards at hand, so you can send those out promptly.
- For a personal touch, consider having custom-designed cards printed (vs. sending generic, store bought cards). An inexpensive vendor from whom you can order these is VistaPrint.
- Depending on the person, you might also enclose a gift certificate in these “thank you” cards, as a little treat. For instance, I might include a gift card to Starbucks. This allows me to treat the person to a little something without being there myself. Here’s where knowing what the person appreciates is useful — so your gift card is for something that you know they’ll use and enjoy.
Enough ideas for today?
Well, till next week then…
– Sri
