Recording a referral on a lead

The best moment to record a referral is when the enquiry arrives. The salesperson knows who sent the customer then; six months later, nobody will.

1. Add the lead as you always do, from Leads, the + in the top bar, or wherever it arrives.
2. Set Lead source to Partner, if your business uses lead sources.
3. In Referred by, at the end of the form, type the first letters of the partner and choose them.
4. Save.

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What happens next

• The lead shows Referred by in its Sales section, with the partner’s name as a link to their page.
• The partner’s page counts the lead under Referred, and lists it on their Leads tab.
• When the lead converts, the customer keeps the partner and the date of the referral. The deal made at the same time is credited to the partner too.

Filled in later

If nobody chose a partner when the lead came in, fill in Referred by on the lead afterwards: open it and set the box like any other. Once a partner is set, it can no longer be changed from the form. It is changed with the Change link beside it, which asks for a reason. See Changing who a record is credited to.

Use cases

• A call from a client who says an architect sent them: ask which one, and choose her before saving.
• A walk-in with an architect’s visiting card: the partner is the architect on the card.
• An enquiry from your website that mentions a designer’s name: choose the designer when you add the lead.

What will catch you out

• A partner who is not in the list cannot be chosen. Add them first, from Channel Partners, then come back to the lead.
• Choosing a partner may bring up the question in When two partners claim the same customer. That is not an error: somebody else already referred the same number or email.
• Leads that arrive by themselves (IndiaMART, Justdial, a website form) come in with nobody; fill in Referred by when you speak to them.