Referral marketing might sound difficult to some people, but it’s truly an easy way to expand your outreach and gain more customers! You probably already have a marketing or business plan in place in order to grow your business. Setting up a referral plan is the icing on the cake, designed to attract a large crowd with the hopes of finding a few great customers in the future. Tracking your referral plan’s specific results can be difficult, but you will know if it’s working if revenue begins to climb.
So, what is referral marketing? Referral marketing is basically word-of-mouth promotion of your business by regular customers. It is a spontaneous action that you cannot control since it happens between two people at a random location and time (your customer and someone they know). Word-of-mouth is one of the most powerful marketing tools you can have. Think about it, how many times have you bought something or visited somewhere based on what a friend suggested or told you about? Did you know that referred customers usually spend more on that particular product or service? Don’t forget: Social Media sites like Facebook and Twitter are KEY referral locations! People can easily share their experiences with their friends and they do!
Aside from encouraging your customers to tell their friends about their recent experience and your business, you can set up a program with incentives for your regulars. In most cases, this requires very little or nothing out of your pocket to get started. You also have complete flexibility! Set up a promotion code based on the customer you think would make a good referral guide. This person should be friendly, outgoing, knowledgeable, and somewhat convincing. Offer them a stepped program of discounts or benefits for each person they refer. Something like percentages off entry or free food and drink based on how many people come in. When they hit a certain number, give them free entry for a day or a t-shirt. Use your judgment and budget flexibility to create something affordable yet exciting enough so the referral customer wants to do it.
When it comes to tracking these referrals, there are several things you can and must do. You can ask customers when they come in how they heard about you. Don’t be afraid to ask for specifics (who referred you, what website did you see us on, etc). Keep a tally sheet or computer record on each person and their referral count. You can also provide your referral group with business cards or something similar that they can pass out. Put a special code that corresponds to that person on the card so that when it is turned in, you can count it. This is also a good chance for you to offer discounts for first-time players. The person who turns in the card could get 10% off. Chances are you will recover the cost of selling something else (food) during their experience. In the case of online referrals, have your referring customer show you the actual conversation or ask the new customer the specific question (who told you on Facebook?)
You don’t have to be limited to individuals doing referrals either. A lot of times, groups from churches, fundraisers, etc will approach you or are regular customers. Offer them a group discount if they collectively refer a certain number of people. If one church group loves your place, chances are they can inform other whole church groups to check it out.
Referral programs are not without risk, however, so keep these few things in mind. One, referral programs cast a wide net on the public. You may gain some valuable customers, but chances are some bad apples will appear at some point. These people might be complainers, on bad behavior, or just plain not into laser tag but came for the discount. You can help reduce this by picking smart people to do your referring. Two, your staff must be prepared to recognize good potential customers that arrive and turn them into regulars. All too often would-be good customers come in but never return due to a mediocre experience.