Referral Script: How to Get 3 Referrals Before Your Customer Leaves the Dealership
Our data shows that when customers introduce their salesperson to friends and family, 1 in 5 of those introductions turns into a car sale within 90 days. Your goal is to help each customer introduce you to 3 people they know before they leave the store.
When asking for referrals, don’t say, “Download this app later.” Help the customer download the app, connect their Venmo or Paypal, sync their phone contacts, and send their first warm introduction while you’re together.
North star: Aim for 2–3 warm introductions per customer during the same conversation whenever possible. This is critical. The first introduction helps remove fear referring a salesperson. The second and third build momentum. Momentum creates habit.
Tone guidelines:
- Confident
- Casual.
- Fast.
- Never apologetic.
- Never optional.
- Never a long explanation
This should feel like: “Let’s do this real quick.”
Step 1: Ask for a referral
| YOU | “Hey [CustomerName], real quick before you head out, do you have 5 more minutes? I want to show you something.” |
| CUSTOMER | “Yeah, sure. What’s up?” |
| YOU | "[CustomerName], most of my business comes from happy customers introducing me to friends and family. If I made it super easy, would you feel comfortable introducing me to 3 people you know? Even if they’re not shopping right now. They can save my contact information and reach out whenever they need help. I just want to be the car person they know. |
| CUSTOMER | “Sure. No problem.” |
Step 2: Help them download your referral app
| YOU | Position it as standard and fast “Great! A lot of my customers use this referral app. Let me show you real quick and get you set up to get paid through it. Whenever you introduce me to someone and they buy a car from me down the road, you’ll get [$Amount] as a thank-you. Do me a favor and scan this QR code. Let’s get you set up." |
| CUSTOMER | Wait for the customer to download the app. |
Step 3: Get them set up to get paid
| IMPORTANT Your goal is to help the customer connect their Venmo or PayPal to the wallet in the referral app before they leave. Our data shows that 50% of customers who do this start referring, compared with just 16% who don’t—about 3 times the referral rate. If a customer has already spent 2 hours at the store buying a car, they’re likely eager to leave. Give them a reason to stay a few more minutes: “Let’s get you set up so we can make sure you get paid on time.” Connecting their Venmo or PayPal account makes the referral reward payment feel real and gives you a chance to show them how easy it is to introduce you to people and get paid. Avoid words like “earn,” which can imply work or effort. Use “get paid” instead. It keeps the focus on something they want: getting paid. | |
| YOU | "First, let's make sure you're set up to get paid. Click on the Wallet tab." |
| CUSTOMER | Taps the Wallet tab. |
| YOU | "Do you see Venmo or PayPal? How would you like to get paid?" |
| CUSTOMER | "Venmo" |
| YOU | "Great, click that button and connect your Venmo account. Once your referrals qualify for the reward, the money gets deposited straight into this account." |
| CUSTOMER | Connects their account. |
Step 4: Help them send their first introduction
| YOU | "Great, now you’re set up to get paid. Let me show you how to make an introduction. It’s super easy. Tap the plus sign at the bottom middle of your screen. What do you see?" |
| CUSTOMER | "It says sync your phone contacts." |
| YOU | “Great. Go ahead and tap that. It’s just like syncing your contacts on Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, or LinkedIn." |
| CUSTOMER | Wait for the customer to sync phone contacts. |
| YOU | "Do you have a brother or a sister? What are their names? Alternatives: “Think of someone you’d text today.” “Think of someone you talked to last week.” “Think of someone you talked to this month.” “Think of people who ask you for advice.” DO NOT SAY: “Who do you know shopping for a car? Most people will say, “I can't think of anyone.” The goal is not to find someone buying a car today. The goal is to get your name and contact information in front of more people so they know who you are and call you when they need a car. |
| CUSTOMER | Wait for the customer as they are scrolling through |
| YOU | “Tap "Make an intro" button. The introduction message is already written. Hit send. That’s it." |
| CUSTOMER | Wait for the customer to send. Stay silent. Smile. |
| YOU | “That’s it—it’s that easy. Anytime you hear someone say, ‘I need a car,’ just use this app to introduce them to me. Now tap the ‘Referrals’ tab. Every referral you send shows up here. You can check its status, see how much you’ve earned, and track the status of your payment.” |
Step 5: Help them send 2 more introductions
| YOU | North star - Immediately say: “Want to send 1 more while we’re here? It takes like 5 seconds.” OR “Let’s send 2 more while we’re here. Takes 5 seconds.” |
The real leverage
Our data shows that 1 in 5 introductions turns into a car sale within 90 days. Every warm introduction is another opportunity to sell a car.
The difference between getting 1 introduction and getting 3 can be just 60 more seconds with the customer. Take an extra minute to help the customer send 2 more.
Outsmart the competition in 5 minutes a week
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