Running your own small business is a complicated balancing act. You need to market your business, attract and nurture new clients, and create a name for yourself, all while doing the actual work your clients give you.

There's a common mistake that's often made by small business owners, and I was guilty of this. When we get busy, we'll often stop looking for new business. After all, how can we start working with a new client when we're already swamped with work?

But searching for new prospects and customers is something you should be doing continually, even when you have enough work.

Finding new clients is a constant struggle but an important one. It's something you should do on an ongoing basis, even when you're busy.

In this episode, I'll be sharing a few ways to find more customers or clients for your business both online and off.

Let’s talk about rapport. I’m sure you’ve heard about establishing rapport, but you may not have a clear understanding of what it is and why it’s important. We’ll start there and then spend the rest of this short report going over how to establish rapport and use it to create friendships and good working relationships. Once you’ve established rapport, it becomes easier to build a mutually beneficial relationship. That’s why it’s important to establish rapport in the first place. It gives you that instant connection that makes both of you feel like you’ve known each other for much longer than you have. This, in turn, creates trust and allows you to move on with whatever it is the two of you need to get done.

What do you want most? What do you feel is holding you back? Do you desire more happiness in your life? How about success? Would you like to be able to achieve your goals and see your dreams come true? How about abundance? Would you like to get more of the good things that life offers and that make living worthwhile? How about more referrals for your business? If your answer to any of these questions is yes (and especially the last one), then your next step is simple – you need to begin removing negativity from your life.

Building a network is a key component of success for many small businesses today. Whether you need more customers or want to increase visibility in the marketplace, having a reliable referral network can give any small business owner access to an almost endless pool of potential new customers.

On this week's episode of the Let's Talk Referrals podcast, I'll be talking about the one rule to rule them all when building your business by referrals. Which will help you leverage a powerful referral network that will lead to long term success. I'm talking about the follow up.

Referrals can be one of the most powerful marketing tools for any small business owner and it can be critical for professions such as realtors, insurance agents and financial advisors. Let's face it, you guys have way too much competition to get this part wrong.

When the follow up is done well, it will help you get more referrals which will grow your customer base and help you build a strong business, even when the economy is not in your favor.

How many of you think that good customer service will result in more referrals for your business?

It’s a valid question. I hear a lot of companies say they have great customer service and it’s one of the reasons we should be using them. Some businesses brag about it in their TV ads. How they always put the customer first. Or our customers are why we do what we do. etc, etc.

Why do they do that? Do they need to tell people they have good customer service because they’re trying to justify why they charge more or to cover up for other failings? Is it because they can’t think of another reason for us to do business with them? Or maybe, and I think this is probably the case, to try to look better than the competition by implying they don’t.

Companies are focusing more and more on customer service. The spend a great deal of time, money, and effort on resources to improve their customer service so they can keep the customers they have, especially with the competition out there, and to try and get new customers that are unhappy with whomever they’re currently using.

Let’s face it, it’s ridiculous. Are you telling me that for years, decades or even centuries, that offering good customer service was something companies tried to avoid?

No one goes out there to provide terrible customer service, though I do think Monty Python could have made a great sketch about a business that offers it. The Dead Parrot comes close though.

How would you like to leave a room and people start talking about you in a way that is not only flattering but where they wished you hadn’t left? That is how to be unforgettable in a positive way. It’s not as difficult as you think, either. It does take a bit of practice and maybe even a bit of refocusing on your core beliefs.

If everyone's out there networking, what makes you stand out from everyone else?

I like the word “steadfastness”. It’s such an old-fashioned word and if you think about it, the whole concept of perseverance seems a bit ancient and outdated in our fast paced world. Yet, then and today it seems to be the real secret to success. Here’s what one of the most successful business men of the age had to say about it:

I do not think that there is any other quality so essential to success of any kind as the quality of perseverance. It overcomes almost everything, even nature.

John D. Rockefeller

So, don't quit networking. Persevere!

First impressions are an important part of networking and building long-term business relationships. Making a good first impression helps smooth the way and makes sure you're on the right foot going forward.

But what happens when we make a bad first impression and what can we do to correct it?

Let me know what first impressions you make and why.