Specialists Win More Referrals

If you say, "Who do you know who's a sports enthusiast? Here's how he can use my product," then you're letting your referral source do a simpler kind of mental sorting. The more you can educate people about the different things you do -- one at a time -- the more likely you'll get referrals in the long run. And getting referrals in a specific area doesn't mean you can't continue to offer other products or services.

When operating in a referral network, your immediate goal isn't to close a sale; it's to train a sales force. You're training people to refer you, and saying that you're a full-service provider and that you do everything doesn't train anyone. You wouldn't tell a salesperson for your company, "Just tell them we do it all." As the specialist, you can more thoroughly articulate to your referral sources what you do and how you do it, allowing them to present it readily to other people.

A professed generalist will likely be considered a "relationship assassin." Suppose an insurance agent who's just joined your group comes up to you and says, "I can cover all of your insurance needs. I have life insurance, medical insurance, auto, home, business and every other kind of insurance you'll ever need. I'd like to be your one-stop insurance shop." But you already have coverage from five or six different agents, most of whom you have solid business and personal relationships with. And she's asking you to dump all your relationships and replace them with one relative unknown -- herself.