Have you been hit with the referral bug?

In Australia at the moment everyone seems to have caught the Referral Key bug.  I think we might be a bit behind the US on this, since when I googled it there were results from 2009 coming up – duh!

For those readers who are like me and my friends "down under" and haven't heard of it it's a referral website.  Basically you sign up to it for free and invite your friends to also sign up.  The idea is to incentivise people to refer work to you – you can choose how much cash they get per referal, some people have $1000!  People can also rate your services.

This to me seems a bit odd.  I mean, if I know that x needs y and I know someone who is good then I will refer them without the cash incentive.  I guess my dilemma will come when I know someone who I could refer to who won't give me anything, and another who will give me $200…. then what?

Don't you think that your personal reputation is worth more than $200?

What happens if the person you refer them to does a bad job?  I'll tell you – they will come back and moan at you = decrease in credibility

Here's my tips on referring

Only refer to people who you know will do a good job, otherwise you look bad
I tend to check first that they want referrals – if they are too busy that looks bad as well
Own up if you are getting a kick back – it's a bit like the affiliate links you use online
If you know the person who needs help is a nightmare to work with and you wouldn't wish them on your worst enemy then check with the potential company before you give the person their details!

I would love to know what your thoughts are on Referral Key… do you use it?  Should I keep using it?  Have you had any results good or bad?  Tell me in the comments below…

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