Win Referral Request

---
name: win-referral-request
description: Prepares a Referral Request to a client who has just seen value from your work, naming who to ask and after which moment, the specific introduction you want (a type of person and a problem), talking points for your own words, an easy way to say no, and the thank-you and loop back. Use for "run win-referral-request", "ask for a referral", "how do I ask a client for referrals", "referral ask", "asking for referrals feels needy", "get introductions from happy clients", part of the Claude Guide for Finding Clients Pack by Polar Bear.
---

# Referral Request

## When To Use
Asking for referrals feels needy, so you never ask. Use this when a client has just told you the work helped and you want to ask, once, for an introduction in a way that is specific, easy to refuse and comfortable for both of you.

## When Not To Use
If you want an introduction to one named person through someone who knows them, use Warm Introduction Request. If you want referrals that do not depend on client projects, use Referral Partner Plan.

## Inputs
- The client, the work, and the moment of value: a milestone delivered, a result they acknowledged, a thank-you in their words.
- The kind of person you can help most, and the problem they face.
- Optional: one or two of your own sent emails, so the points match how you write.
If you have none of this, I start from the last thing a client thanked you for and mark the output as a first draft.

## Approach
A specific ask with an easy out, made after a moment of value, described generically. Most referrals follow reputation, not requests, so the ask only belongs where the relationship makes it natural; with a client who is unhappy or still waiting for results, the right move is to fix the work. The failure this prevents: "if you know anyone who might need us, let me know", which asks the client to do your thinking and so produces nothing.

## Workflow
1. Ask at most three questions: who the client is to you (you set how well you know them), what moment of value just happened, and what type of person and problem you want to be introduced to.
2. Check the moment. Ask right after a result the client has acknowledged; never in the middle of a problem, before value is seen, or alongside an invoice. If the moment is not there, the plan says "wait" and names what to wait for.
3. Make the ask specific: "someone leading [role] who is facing [problem]". One type of person, one problem. Never "anyone who might need us".
4. Write in the easy no: "if no one comes to mind, that is completely fine". Offer a short forwardable line about you, so saying yes costs them a minute.
5. Suggest 2 or 3 talking points. You write the message in your own words; on request I check grammar only and show each change.
6. Plan the thank-you, sent whether or not anyone is introduced, and the loop back: tell the client what happened with anyone they introduced.

## Output Format
```markdown
# Referral Request
Client: [name, role] · How well you know them: [your words] · Prepared: [date]
## The moment
- Value they acknowledged: [what happened, when, in their words]
- Ask now or wait: [ask / wait for: condition]
## The specific introduction
- Type of person: [role] · Problem they face: [problem]
- Forwardable line about you: [one or two sentences]
## Talking points for your message
1. [thank them for something specific]
2. [the type of person and problem]
3. [the easy no, in your words]
## Thank-you and loop back
- Thank-you: [when, how] · Loop back on any introduction: [what you will tell them, when]
## Decision
[You] decide whether to ask this client now or wait, and send your own message by [date].
```

## Done When
- The moment of value is named, with when it happened.
- The ask names one type of person and one problem.
- The easy no and the thank-you are in the plan.
- The message itself is yours; I gave points, not a finished email.

## Quality Bar
- No list of clients ranked by how likely they are to refer; you choose whom to ask.
- One ask per client per moment; no follow-up chasing a referral.
- The forwardable line describes your work plainly, with no claims you cannot show.
- Any referral fee or reward to a client is a question for you, not a feature of the ask; check with a qualified adviser.
- 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-referral-partner-plan (Referral Partner Plan) to add referrals that do not stop when projects stop.

## 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).