Referrals are the way people want to meet their advisor, says Bill Cates, president of Referral Coach International in Laurel, Md. and author of Get More Referrals Now. The best way to gain referrals is by making clients feel relaxed and confident about you.

“You don’t want to push people to feel uncomfortable,” he says.

Here are six tips to help you get more referrals:

1. Make sure you are referable
Whatever your referral strategy, make sure you have the brand in place to back it up.

If you don’t have a compelling message and marketing support, “you are way behind in the game” for maximizing referrals, says Kirk Lowe, chief branding tactician with Oshawa, Ont.-based TactiBrand Inc. Without a strong brand in place, including a website and a message, clients won’t know how to refer you.

2. Make a referral a service for clients
Frame your questions so clients feel referrals are a benefit for them.

In the past, advisors were taught to tell clients that referrals were part of the way in which they are paid, says Duncan MacPherson, co-founder and co-CEO of Pareto Systems in Kelowna, B.C. Instead, frame referrals as a value-added service for clients.

For example, tell your client that you often act as a resource for friends and family members of other clients, by helping with general financial and economic questions, he says. Clients will then be specific in whom they refer and will feel comfortable with the process.

3. Ask permission
Before getting into specifics, ask clients if they wouldn’t mind discussing the issue of possible referrals.

Don’t ask immediately for names of friends and family for you to contact, says Cates. Instead, ask the client about how he or she would feel about introducing you to someone. If your client is interested, then you can brainstorm together about whom to contact and how the introduction will work.

4. Answer your clients’ concerns
Part of making clients comfortable with the idea of referring you is dealing immediately with any questions and worriess they have about the referral process.

Clients often hesitate to give referrals because they are concrned about their privacy and how the referral will take place, Cates says.

Explain to clients that you will never discuss their personal financial situation with the referral, he says. Also, let clients know that you will work with them to find the best way to introduce yourself to the referral. For example, it could be through a phone call, an introductory information package or an in-person meeting — whichever the client prefers.

5. Put it in writing
Remind clients about referrals in your communication and marketing materials.

Use a post-script in a newsletter, email or a website as a “gentle reminder” to clients that you receive referrals, MacPherson says.

Just make sure that it’s only a reminder and not a formal request for a referral, says Cates. Any direct request for a referral should be done in person.

6. Be consistent
Once you establish your referral strategy, stick with it.

Mention referrals at every review meeting and phone call and in all communication and marketing materials, MacPherson says.

Don’t worry about bothering clients, he says. If you ask in a professional manner, they will perceive it as a gentle reminder, not an annoying sales pitch.

IE