Ask yourself why are your referral sources are motivated to actually refer new clients to you or your law firm. It could be they just like you, but is that enough?
John Jantsch at Duct Tape Marketing asks and answers the question in a post that is really right on. His simple answer is because it makes the referrer both look and feel good. Why do you refer people to a particular movie, or a product, or a mechanic who did an outstanding job at a reasonable price?
I think John is really on to something here, so I have given his answer some thought in terms of law firm referrals. Certainly, no one would want to refer a friend or acquaintance to a lawyer they know doesn’t return phone calls promptly, misses deadlines, doesn’t keep clients informed, surprises clients, etcetera. Simply put, it would make them look BAD in the eyes of the person they referred. As to feeling good, this could have dual benefits. The referrer may be returning a favor for work sent to them, and/or they feel really good sending the client to someone they know will do a good job for them.
Clearly, if you provide quality legal services and handle your relationships with referral sources well (whether clients or others such as bankers, accountants, neighbors), it will go a long way in motivating them to send you business.