Win Referral Partner Plan

---
name: win-referral-partner-plan
description: Builds a Referral Partner Plan with complementary firms whose clients need you, what you send them first, the introduction protocol you both follow, a quarterly check-in and log, and referral fee questions marked for a qualified adviser. Use for "run win-referral-partner-plan", "referral partners", "partner referrals", "find referral partners", "my referrals stop when projects stop", "who could send me clients", "set up a referral partnership", part of the Claude Guide for Finding Clients Pack by Polar Bear.
---

# Referral Partner Plan

## When To Use
All your referrals come from clients, so they stop when projects stop. Use this to build a few standing relationships with firms or independents who serve the same clients before, after or beside you, and to agree how introductions flow both ways.

## When Not To Use
If you want to ask one happy client for introductions, use Referral Request. If you need one introduction to one named person, use Warm Introduction Request.

## Inputs
- A two-line brief: who you help, with what problem, and where in their journey you come in.
- Firms or independents you already know who serve the same clients (names you choose), and any public pages you want me to read.
- What you could give a partner: introductions, a useful piece of work, a referral you already passed on.
If you have none of this, I start from the brief and the last three people who sent you work, and mark the output as a first draft.

## Approach
Partner referrals as a channel, with give before you ask. In SparkToro's State of Digital Agencies 2025, 15% of agencies name partner referrals as the top driver (agencies and solo consultants, self-reported), so it is a real channel and still a minority one. The judgment sits in choosing partners whose clients need you and who do not sell what you sell. The failure this prevents: a "partner" who competes for the same work, so every introduction is a risk to both of you.

## Workflow
1. Ask at most three questions: your brief, the partners you already have in mind, and what you can offer first.
2. List candidate partners as organisations: who they serve, what they sell, and where they sit (before you, after you, beside you). Anyone selling the same thing is set aside, with the reason written.
3. Compare each organisation to your brief in a short table; you judge the fit, and no person is scored or ranked.
4. Plan the give first: one concrete thing you can send each partner (an introduction, a useful piece of work, a referral) before you ask for anything.
5. Draft the introduction protocol you both agree: double opt-in (each side asks their contact before introducing), who writes first, and how each side reports back on what happened.
6. Set a quarterly check-in agenda and a two-way introduction log, so neither side keeps score from memory.
7. List referral fee and written agreement points as questions only: whether to pay or accept fees, disclosure to clients, what to put in writing. Check with a qualified adviser.

## Output Format
```markdown
# Referral Partner Plan
Brief: [who you help, with what problem, where you come in] · Prepared: [date]
## Candidate partners
| Organisation | Who they serve | What they sell | Where they sit | Fit to brief (your call) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| [organisation] | [clients] | [service] | [before / after / beside] | [your note] |
Set aside (sells the same thing): [organisation, reason]
## Give first
- [organisation]: [what you send] · by [date]
## Introduction protocol
- Double opt-in: [how each side asks first] · Who writes first: [side] · Report back: [how, within how long]
## Quarterly check-in
- Agenda: [introductions both ways, what came of them, what each side is looking for now]
| Date | From | To | Introduction | Outcome |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| [date] | [side] | [side] | [type of client] | [outcome] |
## Questions for a qualified adviser
- [referral fees, disclosure, written agreement]
## Decision
[You] choose which partners to approach first and what you give each, by [date].
```

## Done When
- Every candidate is an organisation compared to the brief, with your fit note.
- Anyone selling the same thing is set aside with a reason.
- Each partner has a give-first item with a date.
- Fee and agreement points are questions marked for a qualified adviser.

## Quality Bar
- Partners are compared as organisations against the brief; people are never rated.
- Give before you ask; the first message offers something useful.
- Double opt-in always: no client is introduced before they say yes.
- No figure appears beyond the cited survey line; your own numbers only.
- You choose who to contact, put it in your own words and send it yourself; nothing is invented or sent for you.

## Next
Run win-voice-guide (Writing Voice Guide) so everything you write to partners and contacts sounds like you.

## About the makers

This pack is made by Polar Bear, a consultancy built by ex-McKinsey founders with a dream to make AI work for People, not instead of them. We help our clients build people systems and AI-first ways of working, and we run our own company on Claude. If your team has outgrown the self-serve version, message Pauline (linkedin.com/in/paulinebertry).