In order for people to become paying clients of yours and purchase your products or services for the first time, they need to go through three essential stages:
- They need to know you and be aware of your existence.
- They need to like you and feel comfortable with you.
- They need to trust you professionally.
This international model is called Know – Like – Trust, and I’ve been researching it for two decades.
The first stage – Know – means that you need to be “in the game” and visible when potential clients are searching for your products and services.
Even if you’re the best in the world and your products are the top in the market, if people search for what you offer and don’t find you—then, for them, you don’t exist.
This is why I’ve been writing and advocating for years about “multi-platform distribution” (publishing the same content across as many different platforms as possible) and “multi-channel marketing” (being present and relevant in as many customer touchpoints as possible, including lectures, conferences, books, videos, and more).
The second stage – Like – means that people need to like you on some level to buy from you.
People do business with people, not with ideas, companies, or organizations.
In the end, there’s always a person behind every deal, and it’s important to all of us to have good personal chemistry.
You can create this chemistry even without meeting in person (since your potential client hasn’t bought from you yet!).
How? If they’ve seen a video of you and liked it, heard you speak at a conference/webinar/podcast and connected, or read an article you wrote and felt aligned with your values and insights, it can be enough to bring them “ready” to buy.
The third stage – Trust – means that your potential clients need to believe you can deliver the goods.
They already know about you, have connected with you personally, and now they need to trust you professionally.
They need to believe that you’re an expert in your field, have experience, and know what you’re doing.
The most effective method for building this professional trust is through “social proof” — showing objective evidence (in various forms) that proves you are indeed the expert you claim to be.
Only after a potential client has gone through these three stages are they ready to move to stage 4 – Buy (or Invest in the case of investors), and they’re prepared to pay you for the first time.
While these three stages – Know, Like, Trust – are highly effective, they take time and require a lot of effort, money, and energy over a long period to build your visibility, presence, trust, and branding in the market. But there’s a way to shorten the process and reach more paying clients easily, efficiently, and cheaply!
That way is referrals!
Let’s say I, Yaniv, have been working with an accountant named Yehuda for years, and I’m very satisfied with him, trust him, like him, and he delivers great results over time.
Now, I meet a client of mine, let’s call him Avi, and Avi asks me if I know a good accountant.
I say to Avi, “Of course, I’ve been working with Yehuda for years. He’s excellent, highly skilled, a great person, and has helped me a lot over the years.” I give Avi Yehuda’s number.
What happens when Avi calls Yehuda?
It’s essentially a sales call, at the end of which Avi should become a paying client of Yehuda.
But Avi enters the conversation already much more prepared and “ready” to buy Yehuda’s services, even though they’ve never spoken.
Avi hasn’t gone through the Know-Like-Trust process with Yehuda, but he has gone through it with me!
Avi knows me, likes me, and trusts me.
So, before he even calls Yehuda, Avi is already thinking (even subconsciously), “If Yaniv says Yehuda is great and Yaniv only works with top-notch professionals, then Yehuda must be a good accountant!”
Now, Yehuda just has to avoid messing up the sales call and close the deal with Avi.
This is why referrals are an incredibly efficient way for business owners to grow their operations, acquire new clients, and increase profitability — with minimal additional effort, time, or cost.
You can also initiate referrals, rather than just hoping your clients will spontaneously recommend you to their friends.
Looking forward to having you join us,
Dr. Yaniv Zaid
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