How do small business owners in North Carolina get more referrals?

Scott Cundill · 2026-11-07 · Leland

By making it easy and safe for other people to recommend them. A referral is somebody lending you their name. The owners who get the most are the ones who are clear about who they help, who give first, and who make the person who referred them look good.

Why do referrals dry up?

Usually for one of three reasons. People do not know exactly what you do, so they cannot think of you at the right moment. They are not sure you will treat their friend well, so they hold back. Or nobody has asked them, and they assume someone else has already made the connection.

None of these is about the quality of your work. All of them can be fixed.

What does a pig pickin' have to do with it?

More than you would think. At a North Carolina pig pickin', somebody cooks a whole hog, usually with friends helping through the night, and then the guests pick the meat off it themselves. Nobody is served. Everybody stands at the same table, talking to whoever is next to them. It is why they are held for reunions, weddings and church dinners on the grounds: the point is not the food, it is that everybody ends up knowing each other a little better.

Referrals work the same way. They come from tables like that, where people meet as themselves and somebody says "you two should talk."

What habits bring in more referrals?

Be specific. Say who you help, where, and with what. "Families in Brunswick County planning for retirement" is something people remember. "Financial services" is not.

Give first. Send someone a client, an introduction or a useful name before you ask for anything. People refer those who refer.

Make the referrer look good. Reply fast, do what you said, and tell the person who sent the work how it went. That is what makes them do it again.

Ask clearly, and rarely. One request, for one kind of person, with a reason. Not a blanket "let me know if you hear of anyone."

How do you scale this past your own circle?

Through other people's trusted connections. Your own list only goes so far, but each person you know knows dozens of people you do not. North Carolina Business Connect, part of My Most Trusted, is built for this: members introduce each other by name, and the introduction comes from the person who knows you both. It is hosted from Leland by Kayla Price, and a second host seat is open.