In many buying cycles, prospects request or even demand references as a key element of our response. These references typically include the names of companies as well as the names of specific people that can testify to our abilities.

These references are part of our unique value. They are delighted customers who can testify to our solutions, service and expertise. They are assets and it takes effort to utilize them. We have to determine the right references for each situation, get to the people on our team who "own" these relationships, contact the individual reference, and position our request. We also have to worry about going to the well too often. This process can be frustrating to our references, too. We reach out to them, position our request, they agree to help, and in many cases, no one ever calls them. The reason: the situation was never qualified in the first place. We needed to provide the references as a condition of our response, but since we never became a finalist, no one ever reached out to them.

Our references are valuable assets and we only want to use these references in qualified situations. When responding to an opportunity, we don't have to follow the exact rules. One option is to provide the prospect with the names of appropriate companies we work with, and mention that specific contact names will be provided at the right time. Or we can go farther and say that specific contact names will be provided prior to or just following our business presentation to the decision maker or decision team. The more we recognize the value of our references, the more likely our prospects will as well.

One last idea: a unique way to use a reference is to have your reference call your prospect. This takes a unique and powerful coach relationship, but this can have a unique and powerful impact.