Episode #511 – Steve Benson, Lori Richardson, and Joanne Black
Meet
Steve Benson
Steve Benson is CEO and founder of Badger Maps, the #1 App in the App Store for outside salespeople to upgrade existing CRMs with mapping, routing, and scheduling. Steve is also founder of Badger Sales University. After receiving his MBA from Stanford, Steve joined Google, where he became Google Enterprise’s Top Sales Executive globally in 2009. He also hosts the Outside Sales Talk – a podcast specifically for outside salespeople, and is the current President of the Sales Hall of Fame.
Lori Richardson
Lori Richardson is author of “She Sells: Attract, Promote, and Retain Great Women in B2B Sales”, is a podcast host, and is CEO of Score More Sales, a sales strategy firm. She helps company leaders determine the health of their sales team through data around 21 core sales competencies and then coaches and trains them to higher revenues and shorter sales cycles.
Joanne Black
Joanne Black is known as America’s leading authority on referral selling—the only sales strategy guaranteed to produce a qualified pipe and convert prospects to clients well more than 50 percent of the time. Joanne works with sales leaders and their teams to build a referral culture, fuel growth, and drive revenue. She is a member of the National Speakers Association and speaks at sales meetings and conferences with her signature talk “Referrals Are Retro: How to Build a Referral Culture in a Digital World.” Joanne is the author of No More Cold Calling™: The Breakthrough System That Will Leave Your Competition in the Dust, and Pick Up the Damn Phone!: How People, Not Technology, Seal the Deal.
Our Mission Is To Change The Negative Perception Of Sales People
Our Vision Is A World Where Selling Is A Profession To Be Proud Of
Referrals are the lifeblood of high-performing sales organizations, yet many teams overlook their full potential. In this Best Of episode of Sales Reinvented, I bring together three dynamic referral selling experts, Steve Benson, Lori Richardson, and Joanne Black, to share actionable strategies, hard-hitting do’s and don’ts, and memorable stories from their own careers.
Outline of This Episode
- [0:00] When to ask for referrals
- [00:55] Importance of tracking referrals
- [02:03] Making the referral process fun and personal
- [05:48] Creating value leads to natural, mutually beneficial referrals
- [07:30] Making it easy for others to refer you
- [11:00] Sharing positive experiences and being open about your needs drives further referrals
- [13:30] Emphasis on having a referral strategy, metrics, skills, and accountability
- [16:13] Warning against over-reliance on technology instead of relationships
Making Referrals Effortless and Fun
For Steve Benson, the secret to successful referral selling is all about being deliberate and positive. His top do’s are to track every referral conversation, ensure the process is easy and transparent for everyone involved, and always match your referral requests to moments when you’ve created genuine value—never force it. Among his don’ts: don’t make it awkward, and don’t make it all about your own gain. Technology can streamline the workflow, but never at the expense of the relationship. Steve illustrates how one meaningful internal referral transformed the trajectory of his business, underlining the lesson that when value is clear, referrals multiply organically and can become a game-changing growth engine.
Plant the Seeds Early and Think Abundantly
“Referrals should be anticipated from the start, not as an afterthought,” says Lori Richardson. Her three top do’s begin with creating and honoring a ‘third list’—tracking prospects who could be great sources for future referrals. She recommends weaving referral conversations right into the early stages of your relationships and leading by giving, not just seeking help. On the flip side, Lori cautions against expecting referrals without earning them, making the process difficult, or operating from a scarcity mindset. Her story about recommending a talented hairstylist and the ripple effect that followed, demonstrates how openness, helpfulness, and positivity can foster exponential business—and personal—growth.
Measure, Ask, and Move Beyond Cold Calls
Joanne Black hammers home the importance of accountability: “Measure referral activities always, and never settle for mere names—get real intel from your referral sources.” She warns sales leaders against simply telling teams to seek referrals without providing strategy and support, underscoring that relationships, not just technology, drive results. Drawing from her own early consulting experience, Joanne reveals how overlooked referral opportunities were transformed into measurable revenue gains. Her story is a powerful reminder that the best referrals come from strong client relationships, not cold outreach, and that embracing a systematic, relationship-first referral process is the fastest route to increased sales and reduced cost of acquisition.
Connect with Steve Benson
Connect with Lori Richardson
Connect with Joanne Black
Connect With Paul Watts
Audio Production and Show notes by
PODCAST FAST TRACK
https://www.podcastfasttrack.com
Share This Episode, Choose Your Platform!