The Secret to Generating Referrals Is Easier Than You Think


Susan Katz took what she most loved about her job in higher educational publishing and executive management and branched out on her own.  She carved out a name for herself  in the business coaching space.  It wasn’t always easy and generating referrals took time.  This April will be the 10th Anniversary of Susan Katz Advantage.

What I love about this interview with Susan:

  • Susan had the courage to step out of the fast-paced corporate world and built an incredibly successful business from scratch. Read her story.
  • We all want more referrals in our businesses. We also don’t want to feel pushy or uncomfortable asking for referrals. Susan Katz is currently building her business today consistently generating referrals and shares her secret four-pronged approach to generating referrals.
  • Susan wears her coaching hat throughout this interview giving advice to women who are thinking about starting a business. Finally, Susan shares two ways women are holding themselves back in business.

Let’s jump into the interview with Susan Katz, President and CEO of Susan Katz Advantage.

Susan, you made a huge shift from the corporate world to starting your own practice. Why did you take the leap?

I always had an itch to have my own business, and I knew that wasn’t going to be in publishing. I learned so much and had a wonderful career, but itSusan Katz wasn’t where my spark was. So, I began exploring possibilities, doing some soul searching, and asking myself tough questions to figure out exactly what I loved most about the jobs I had.

I realized that I most loved helping and nurturing the folks who worked with me. I also loved the interaction that I had with my clients and my ability to help them be more productive, fulfilled and better communicators.

So, I decided to build a business around what I loved and what I was good at. I began my coaching practice ten years ago (this April) and have had the privilege of working with small business owners, executives, and larger organizations such as the Baltimore Ravens.

Best advice for women thinking of starting their own practice or business?

  1. Give yourself a good runway – but realize that it will never be long enough. Your practice will not be built overnight. It will take time. You must plan and have savings to fall back on. When starting a business, always have more money set aside than you think that you’ll need. You NEVER want to sound desperate to your potential customers / clients.
  2. I’m a big believer in either building your business while you are working, or when you don’t need a lot of money. If you are trying to build a practice while putting your children through college, it would be extremely stressful.

How did you find clients and build your practice?

I was new to Baltimore. I didn’t have any connections. When I was in my corporate job, I was always traveling during the week. My weekends were consumed with  spending time with my children who were living in New Jersey. So, I really started from the ground up. While I’ve always been an effective networker in my past jobs, this time was a bit different because I knew no one. Here is what I did:

Joined a BNI (Business Networking International) group

The group was tremendously valuable in helping me figure out the different networking groups available and which ones to attend. The group also gave me a whole resource of people to meet.

Complimentary Coaching

Susan KatzIn the beginning I also gave away a lot of complementary coaching with the understanding that if people got value from my coaching that they would 1. write a testimonial and 2. generate referrals for me by introducing one or two others to me.

When people have success from the work that you do, they become fans. Over time, your fans send you referrals which have become a big piece of building my practice. Keep reading for my secret four-pronged approach to generating referrals.

Speaking Engagements

Speaking gets you in front of people, it gets them seeing what you do. In my line of work, people don’t always understand what it means to have a coach and how a coach can be helpful and effective. Presenting to groups and providing a condensed coaching experience for the listening attendances was incredibly valuable.

Give away nuggets of advice to those you meet.Susan Katz

I do this without any expectation in mind. It is authentic. I want to add as much value as can and help people. I do know, however, that the more value that you can add to someone else, the greater impact that you will be able to make on their lives and the more you are going to get back.

You never know who someone else knows. And, it is very likely that at some point in the future (event though it could be years from now) your nugget of advice will travel from one person to another with your name attached to it. The value you bring to others will aid in generating referrals and introductions for you.

Play to your strengths.

Figure out what you are good at and what you are effective in and build a marketing strategy around it. For me, it was networking. For others, it can be picking up the phone, speaking, writing, generating referrals, etc. Be visible and consistent to get known.

Networking Success Tips

  • One thing I learned quickly in Baltimore is to show up early. I came from New Jersey where everyone was fashionably late. I quickly realized to get there early, stand somewhere near the door, and you’ll start meeting people as they come in.
  • As you start going to events and meeting people, start introducing people to each other. They will always appreciate that introduction.
  • I don’t try to meet everyone in the room. Try to find a few people that you would like to connect with after the event
  • Be interested, not interesting. Talk to people, and be interested in them. Learn what you can about people. It’s not just about their business or your business. While that’s a great place to start, make it more about them: Where do they live? How did they get to where they live? Where do they go on vacation? Try to learn something about them.
  • Always follow-up with a few people you meet after a networking event and get to know them better. That’s where the magic happens. It doesn’t happen at the networking event, it happens afterwards.

Also, see my interview with Gina Ramsey for 10 Easy Networking Tips Every Woman Must Know. Verna Regler offers valuable networking advice as well in our interview about Building an Association and Networking Advice for Women.

Coaching Advice for Career Women — What holds women back in their careers?

Say “Yes”

Self-doubt holds men and women back, but what I often see in women who I am coaching (and you can read a lot about this) is that if given an opportunity, Men will typically say “YES” and then figure out how to do it. Women, on the other hand, would like to figure out how to do it and hesitate before saying “yes.”

While this is a broad generalization, I encourage women to throw out those self-limiting beliefs. Stop talking  yourself out of opportunities. You can do this. Say “yes” and then figure out how to make it happen.

Body language is key.

Women often display poor body language; hunched shoulders, crossed legs, moving from side to side. It’s not a straight powerful posture. Through their own body language women often come across as being less powerful. Ladies, take notice and pay closure attention to your body language.

Ok, now tell us how you generate those referrals.

Referrals must play a larger role in all of our businesses, but how exactly do you go about generating referrals?  Women are often terrified to ask for referrals as we worry that we will come across as pushy or needy.  Women also do not want to  put themselves in an uncomfortable position.  What if they say “no?”  Also, let’s be honest, we all suffer from the imposter syndrome from time to time and our self-doubting beliefs have a way of creeping in.  Here is my four-pronged approach to generating referrals.

Generating Referrals

For generating referrals, you take the person you are speaking with through a series of 4 questions:

  1. It was great talking with you today.  We covered a lot.  Let me ask you, what has been most valuable for you about our work together?   (When people are in a positive frame of mind they will want to help you too and send you referrals.) What has been most valuable about the meeting today?  What has been most valuable about our conversation? (Use inflection, ask these questions like you are asking your girlfriend what she is going to wear on Saturday night.  The tone should be open, genuine and comfortable.)
  2. Knowing this, how would it help you in the future? … .  (Let them respond…) Anything else?
  3. Let me ask you this, how do you feel as a result of our conversation?
  4. Who are one or two people that you know who (insert situation or problem them are facing) who would benefit from having a conversation with me about becoming more effective in their  business? (Asking this very specific question triggers ideas of a few very targeted referrals.)

Best Advice from Eric Schmidt, CEO of Google

Eric Schmidt CEO, of Google said the best advice he ever received was to “hire a coach.”  At first Eric resisted it because he thought that he knew everything there was to know about his business.  Very quickly, however,  Mr. Schmidt realized that having an objective outside third party who listens, acts as a  sounding board with a second set of eyes and ears ended up being one of the best decision he has made. http://archive.fortune.com/galleries/2009/fortune/0906/gallery.best_advice_i_ever_got2.fortune/14.html.  Also, elite athletes would never think about training and working without a coach.  Neither would an elite musician or anyone who is at a really high level. The most successful people are the ones who seek outside help to take them to the next level.  I want to help you get there too.

Susan Katz generating referrals

Susan Katz Advantage is all about inspiring individuals to achieve their full potential through a laser-sharp process of business coaching and an accountability framework that’s second to none.  Working with Susan, you’ll gain greater clarity, confidence and inspiration you need to realize your full potential.  To learn more about Susan Katz and Katz Advantage head over to https://susankatzadvantage.com/

Thanks for reading and don’t forget to sign up for updates of new interviews.

Hugs and Handshakes,  Lauren

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