Set up introductions where both people agree before anyone connects them.
Before your next client meeting, draft the two short messages a client would need to introduce you to a friend: a private check-in for the friend and the introduction itself. Most clients are happy to pass your name on, but writing those messages themselves is the step they put off, so having both ready is what gets an introduction sent.
Picture a friend adding you to a WhatsApp group with a stranger. They post one line saying the two of you should talk, then say nothing more. Neither of you knows who the other is, and you can't tell whether the stranger is about to sell you something. You both send a polite "Hi", and after that nobody writes anything more in the group.
Now picture a friend messaging you privately first. They say their adviser helped them sort out insurance after their baby arrived, and ask whether you'd like an introduction. You say yes. That evening a group appears with a short message saying who the adviser is and why your friend thought of you, and you reply because you already agreed to.
The second version is a double opt-in introduction, where both people agree before they are connected. The client asks the friend first, the friend says yes, and only then does the client connect both people in one message or one group chat. The order matters because the friend keeps control of their own contact details and arrives having chosen to be there, as Lesson 5.3, "Consent comes first", explained. A friend who agreed in advance is far more likely to reply than one who was simply added to a chat.
The client usually doesn't need to ask you first. You already said you'd be glad to help when you made your referral ask, so that is the first opt-in, given in advance. The second opt-in is the friend's, and the client gets it before connecting anyone.
Most clients are happy to introduce you, and effort is what stops them. They have to ask the friend, then write an introduction explaining who you are, and they aren't sure what to say. So the introduction can sit on their to-do list for weeks. A short template they can copy, change a few words in and send turns the job into a minute instead of an evening.
You need two short pieces. The first is a check-in message the client sends the friend privately. For a clinic client, it might tell the friend that the person who does their booking software helped the clinic cut down on reminder calls, ask whether they'd like an introduction, and add "No pressure." The second piece is the introduction itself, which the client sends once the friend says yes.
The introduction covers three things in about one line each: who you are, what you helped the client with, and why the friend might want to talk. Describe what you did in the client's own terms and leave your products out. Keep it short, specific and friendly, and end with a handover line so the client can step back.
Wei Ling (an invented example) sets up online booking and reminder software for clinics. She writes a WhatsApp template for her clinic clients to send. When her client, Dr Lim, uses it to introduce her to Kumar, it reads: "Hi Kumar, meet Wei Ling. She set up our clinic's online booking and reminders last year, and our front desk now spends much less time on the phone. I thought of you because you're setting up a new clinic. Wei Ling, Kumar runs a new GP clinic in Punggol. I'll leave you two to it." The last line is the handover, which lets Dr Lim step out of the conversation once both people are connected.
Arjun is an adviser covering insurance and savings. He writes a template his clients can send by WhatsApp or email. When a client uses it to introduce him to Priya, it reads: "Hi Priya, this is Arjun, the adviser I mentioned. He helped us work out our insurance and savings after we got our flat and before our baby came, and he was patient with all our questions. You mentioned you and your husband were starting to think about the same things. Arjun, Priya and her husband just collected their keys in Tengah." Both templates describe the help in the client's words and give the reason the friend might want to talk, with no product named.
Write your own template so clients can change the details easily. Leave obvious gaps such as "[friend's name]" and "[what I helped you with]". Send it in the same channel the client will use: a WhatsApp message they can forward, or an email they can copy.
Have the template ready before any client offers an introduction. When a client says they'll introduce you, thank them, offer the template as something they can copy if it helps, and send it within the minute.
Once the introduction lands, the next move is yours, and speed matters. Reply within a day, ideally within a few hours. Your reply has three parts:
Thank the client publicly in the thread. This recognises the favour in front of the friend and makes the client look good. Say a warm hello to the friend and mention something from the introduction, so they can see you read it. Move the friend to a separate chat so the client doesn't have to watch the rest of the conversation.
The separate chat matters because clients don't want to be part of a sales conversation, and the friend may also want to ask questions they wouldn't ask in front of their friend.
When Dr Lim's introduction arrives, Wei Ling replies in the thread. She thanks Dr Lim for the introduction, says hi to Kumar, congratulates him on the new clinic, and says she'll message him separately so they don't fill up Dr Lim's phone. She then sends Kumar a direct message. Lesson 6.2, "Following up a referred contact", covers what to say in that first private message.
In the activity below, you'll write an introduction template your clients can copy into WhatsApp or email, with the three parts and obvious gaps for the details they'll change.
Write an introduction template your clients can paste into WhatsApp or email.
Junxiong-WFG Organisation is an authorised representative of AIA Financial Advisers Private Limited (Reg. No. 201715016G).