Built on Referrals

Referral Score: builtonreferrals.com/referralscore.Today, we are tackling a common struggle for relationship-based professionals: the cringe-inducing feeling of self-promotion. If you naturally prefer asking questions over talking about yourself, forced self-promotion can feel completely out of alignment. But what if you could market your business effectively without ever having to beat your own chest? This episode reveals a brilliant workaround: promoting yourself by becoming the ultimate connector and promoting other people.If you are tired of feeling like you are constantly building a statue of yourself and want a more authentic way to grow, you are in the right place.What You Will DiscoverThe Self-Promotion Trap: Why talking about yourself feels awkward for relationship-builders.The Hidden Demand: Why the fact that your clients are already asking you for recommendations—like plumbers, accountants, or roofers—is your biggest untapped marketing asset.The Preemptive Pivot: How to stop waiting to be asked and proactively offer a curated list of providers to instantly boost your value.The Homeowner Concierge Strategy: Creative ways to use your professional network to stand out at open houses, in listing presentations, and during client onboarding.Content Creation Made Easy: How to stop stressing over what to post by interviewing your 35 to 70 professional partners and turning their expertise into your digital content.Get Your Referral ScoreAre you capturing the referral opportunities that are already within reach, or are you letting them slip through the cracks? Take two minutes.At builtonreferrals.com/referralscore, you'll get a referral score out of 100. Quick steps to improve and we'll send you a copy of the upstream model, both a digital copy and an audio version. Go to builtonreferrals.com/referralscore.

Following up on our previous conversation about the dangers of outsourcing your connections to robots, today we are tackling the right way to use technology. If you knew everything about a prospect before walking into a room, you could add unique, hyper-relevant value from the very first handshake. But doing that kind of deep research manually takes hours. This episode reveals how to practically apply AI to do your back-office prep, so you can be a rockstar in the front office.If you are ready to stop winging your meetings and want to show up as the most insightful person in the room, you are in the right place.What You Will DiscoverThe Pre-Meeting AI Hack: How to use the "Ask Gemini" feature right inside your Chrome browser to instantly gather deep intelligence on a prospect's career and industry.The Wells Fargo Playbook: A real-life breakdown of how to use AI to position yourself perfectly with high-level executives, turning a potentially intimidating meeting into a strategic partnership.Winging It vs. Winning It: Why showing up just to "chit-chat" and pass out business cards is where average people play—and how to instantly elevate your conversations with targeted relevance.Social Media Intelligence: How to point AI at a prospective client's Instagram or LinkedIn profile to generate highly specific, actionable ideas for them before you even say hello.From Tool to Team: Why you need to stop acting like an AI user and step into the role of an AI manager to amplify your human relationships.Get Your Referral ScoreAre you capturing the opportunities already within your reach, or are they slipping through the cracks? Take two minutes to find out where your business currently stands.Get your score out of 100, receive quick steps to improve, and grab a free digital and audio copy of my book, The Upstream Model. Test your business here: https://builtonreferrals.com/referralscore/

Today, we are tackling a modern dilemma: how do you integrate AI into a relationship-based business without destroying the very trust you’ve built? There are endless shiny new tools promising to automate your client interactions, but outsourcing human connection is a fast track to losing it. This episode serves as a reality check on when to leverage AI and when to keep things profoundly human.If you want to use technology to enhance your relationships rather than replace them, you are in the right place.What You Will DiscoverThings vs. People: Why you should automate your back-office tasks to be efficient, but never try to be "efficient" with your front-office relationships.The Robot Call Reality Check: A cautionary tale of what happens when you try to use an AI agent to gather personal client data like birthdays and anniversaries.The Ultimate AI Filter: The one critical question you need to ask yourself before implementing any new bell, whistle, or shiny AI object into your business.The Spouse Analogy: Why outsourcing your relationship-building to a robot is just as disastrous in business as it would be in a marriage.Modern Tools, Timeless Core: How to build a modern business that uses cutting-edge technology to make you more insightful, present, and valuable when you are face-to-face with your clients.Get Your Referral ScoreAre you capturing the opportunities already within your reach, or are they slipping through the cracks? Take two minutes to find out where your business currently stands.Get your score out of 100, receive quick steps to improve, and grab a free digital and audio copy of my book, The Upstream Model. Test your business here:https://builtonreferrals.com/referralscore/Episode Timestamps:00:00 AI and Relationships00:12 The AI Call Story00:46 Efficient Not With People01:56 Why Robot Calls Fail03:04 Referral Score Break03:39 Modern Tools Timeless Core04:16 Back Office vs Front Office04:58 Run Every Tool Filter05:33 Spouse Analogy Reality Check05:57 People First Closing06:15 Final Sign Off

Today, we are tackling a crucial question: is a referral-based model actually the right fit for you? There is a lot of noise out there pushing transactional, lead-based strategies as the only way to grow. While attention certainly matters, trust moves you much further and faster. This episode is designed as a litmus test to help you discover if your professional DNA is wired for long-term relationships and compounding growth.If you are tired of renting attention and want to own your growth engine, you are in the right place.What You Will DiscoverAttention vs. Trust: Why capturing eyeballs means nothing without the credibility to back it up.The Power of Borrowed Trust: The massive difference between starting from zero with a cold lead and transferring belief through a warm introduction.Four Key Growth Signs: Clear indicators that your business should be driven by relationships instead of expensive ads.Modernizing Word-of-Mouth: How to use the right systems and technology to make referrals proactive rather than passive.Scaling Beyond Your Sphere: Strategies to leverage ecosystems of professional partners, not just your immediate friends and family.Get Your Referral ScoreAre you capturing the opportunities already within your reach, or are they slipping through the cracks? Take two minutes to find out where your business currently stands.Get your score out of 100, receive quick steps to improve, and grab a free digital and audio copy of my book, The Upstream Model. Test your business here: builtonreferrals.com/referralscoreEpisode Timestamps00:00 - Is a referral business right for your DNA?02:49 - The Attention Economy vs. The Trust Economy04:23 - Test your business with the Referral Score06:29 - Leads vs. Referrals: Why borrowed trust wins09:21 - Modern systems for a timeless foundation11:21 - Four clear signs you need a referral strategy17:09 - Building a resilient, compound growth engine19:15 - Does earning trust actually take too long?21:05 - Growing a scalable network beyond your immediate sphere22:42 - Final recap and episode close

Welcome to the Built On Referrals podcast! I’m your host, Justin Stoddart, and I am absolutely thrilled to share this brand-new project with you.Whether you’re joining me from my nine years hosting the Think Bigger Real Estate Podcast, you've read my book The Upstream Model, or you’re brand new to my world—thank you for being here. I am extremely excited about what we are going to build together.What is Built On Referrals?I believe very strongly that it’s not enough to just have a successful business; you also need to have a significant life. The best way to achieve both—and to positively impact the most people, especially those at home—is through a relationship-based business built on trust and reputation.While doing business based on relationships might seem "old-fashioned," it is still the most tried and true method out there. Especially in a world full of noise and fake trends, being someone people can genuinely trust matters more than ever.But we aren't going backward—we are building forward. This podcast is all about taking that timeless foundation and equipping it for the modern, fast-moving world. We’ll be diving deep into:Trust & Value: How to genuinely connect with clients and referral sources.Relationship Strategy: Maintaining and deepening connections in a digital age.Modern Tools: The technology, trends, and referral ecosystems shaping client expectations today.Who is this for?This show is purpose-built for professionals who primarily serve homeowners—including real estate agents, estate planners, and financial professionals. However, if you are in any relationship-driven business, you will find massive value here to help you build something durable, modern, and worth talking about.What to Expect:Bite-Sized Tactics (Weekly): Short, 5- to 10-minute solo episodes designed for you to digest quickly and put into action immediately.Bonus Expert Spotlights (Monthly): Deep dive interviews with industry professionals who have mastered a specific skill you need to know about.Hit subscribe and get ready to receive value like you've never experienced before. It’s time to build a modern business on a timeless foundation. Let's go!