Reffering to word of mouth

WORD OF MOUTH probably is one of the many ways you recruit new customers to your bays. According to SCORE, a nonprofit group serving as counselors to America's small businesses, referrals are a great way to boost sales volume.

It starts with providing your current customers with prompt, reliable, quality service. After that, SCORE offers four other tips to building referrals.

• Ask current customers if they know anyone looking for repairs and follow up with them.
• When you receive compliments, ask the customer to write it down so you could use it as a testimonial. But make sure to get permission to use their name.
• Send thank-you notes or calls to the customer who referred someone new to your business. This is a great time to include coupons to keep them coming back.
• Finally, if your budget permits, institute a referral reward program for current customers.