Your Pot of Gold is a Handshake Away by Linda Ballestersos - Book review

Your Pot of Gold Is A Handshake Away

A Step By Step Plan To Quickly Grow Your Business Through Referrals

By: Linda Ballesteros

Published: August 1, 2012
Format: Paperback, 130 pages
ISBN-10: 1105681750
ISBN-13: 978-1105681752
Publisher: Lulu











"Client relationships are perhaps the most important aspect in deciding the fate of your business. In fact, your current clients are your best referral partners", writes networking strategist, speaker, and radio host Linda Ballesteros, in her transformational and client relationship building book Your Pot of Gold Is A Handshake Away: A Step By Step Plan To Quickly Grow Your Business Through Referrals. The author describes the importance of referrals to building a successful business through customer relationships and developing lasting trust.

Linda Ballesteros understands that a company's most loyal customers are also the most powerful source of referrals to create new customers. The author presents an alternative concept of networking based on building a deep emotional relationship with clients. In place of the intellectual basis for referrals and networking as is typically the case, Linda Ballesteros guides business people toward establishing a commitment based on the heart.

In effect, the author teaches business people to develop relationships that go much deeper than mere financial transactions, but move to the level of an emotional partnership. Linda Ballesteros offers the concept of going far beyond traditional referrals, and into the realm of a complete transformation of how the business, its people, and the customer are viewed, treated, and cared for in with this completely new way of thinking and behaving as a company.

Linda Ballesteros (photo left) recognizes that people want to be part of a community, and that the company and its brands can form the foundation for creating that very community feeling. All too often, however, business people are unaware of the critical importance of relationships and community to the overall growth and success of the organization. Linda Ballesteros shows business people how to transform your clients and your business into the at all important community built on loyalty, trust, and mutual commitment.

Linda Ballestaeros changes the way business people think about clients, and how they behave toward those clients. Instead of the standard idea that the company values the client's business, the author transforms that view into one of the company valuing the client. This personalization and relationship building approach changes the entire dynamic of the arrangement between the company and the client, creating a deeper commitment and sense of loyalty and community.

To establish this desirable and transformational, relationship based community, Linda Ballesteros offers ideas and principles in the following areas:

* Community and relationships
* Confidence
* Consistency
* Positive outlook
* Ethics and values
* Vision

For me, the power of the book is how Linda Ballesteros provides a completely different approach to referrals through the development of relationships and community. The author presents the concept of caring about the customer as a more mutually beneficial alternative to caring about the client's business. This change of focus to the customer as a person and member of a community creates a complete change in thinking on the part of the business person. For companies seeking to grow based on referrals, this fresh approach makes referrals not only desirable, but a natural part of sharing within the community.

Linda Ballesteros establishes an intriguing format for her ideas as well. The concept is presented at the beginning of each chapter and sub-section in the form of a quotation by a well known individual. The people selected for quotations represent a wide range of backgrounds and personalities as well. Linda Ballesteros adds to the quotation by establishing the relationship between the quote and referrals. Each chapter and sub-section ends with an actionable item that can be applied to a business immediately.

I highly recommend the engaging and very practical book Your Pot of Gold Is A Handshake Away: A Step By Step Plan To Quickly Grow Your Business Through Referrals by Linda Ballesteros, to any business leaders, managers, or entrepreneurs who are seeking a fresh approach to building a referral based business. This book will guide you toward establishing deep and lasting relationships with your clients through the formation of a mutually beneficial and vibrant community. You will never return to the old fashioned methods of networking or obtaining referrals again.