How ‘peer to peer referrals’ are shifting the business world — Alan Weiss

Author: Jaelyn Campbell

What is influencing your customers’ buying decisions today? On today’s Small Business Show, we’re pleased to welcome Alan Weiss, business coach, speaker, and New York Times best-selling author, to discuss one of the principles mentioned in his newest book, Sentient Strategy: How to Create Market Dominating Strategies in Turbulent Economies.

Available for pre-order now. This title will be released on March 23, 2023.

According to Weiss, “today’s consumers are able to do away with the middle stuff.” For instance, customers can discover a vehicle’s invoice value from the manufacturer to the dealer or from the dealer for invoices of $500 and above. Additionally, “evangelism has taken over,” Weiss argues. Peer to peer referrals, particularly in the context of businesses, have taken over as the primary method of purchasing products and services.

The chain reaction of attraction, according to Weiss, “lies in getting on the radar of the people who can influence a lot of people, and I’m not talking about social media influencers, but the people with natural credibility.”

“The New Normal”

Weiss argues, “there is no ‘new normal’, but rather a new reality.” Every business owner should take into consideration the peer to peer referrals as soon as they greet their customers.  Weiss continues, “From the moment they accept the initial order, three sales occur every time:”

1. The original sale, like the money, check, etc. 
2. The expansion business, such as the customer will do more business with you when they trust you.
3. And finally, the referral business, when consumers begin to talk to others about your great service/products. 

Weiss claims that “too many businesses leave two out of three off the table.” However, due to the turbulence of the previous three years, individuals are now more focused on money, which potentially could have a more profound long-term influence on businesses.

"The quicker you adjust, the better off you're going to be." — Alan Weiss

“Just because something worked in the past doesn’t mean it’s certain to continue to work,” claims Weiss. Hence, it is crucial that businesses steer clear of any “new pet rock” that emerges from nowhere as well as any current trend and projections. You need to consider how people are performing right now. To illustrate, Weiss’ book, Sentient Strategy, outlines the typical fallacies about strategy and demonstrates how the past 70 years will not resemble the anticipated years to come. Additionally, Weiss notes the few takeaways from his novel as follows: 

• Volatility disruptions should be exploited offensively rather than defensively.
• On a rolling basis, strategy is definitely a smart thing to consider for a year, but you shouldn’t keep planning five years in advance.
• Avoid wasting your time and the time of the firm on “skunk work” and other activities that are centered on time-consuming tactics.

“If you and your team use my book, you can come up with a solid strategy for success in a single day,” says Weiss.