A weekly series by Sean Winter, CFA
Beyond referrals
Referrals are a sign the work is good, and they will keep coming. But you cannot plan a firm around them. Every Friday, one problem that professional and financial services firms run into when they try to win clients beyond referrals, and one thing to do about it this week.
The series, in order
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1
Why referrals slow down, and why referral firms never learn to sell
Referrals build good firms. Here is why they slow, what it hides about your sales, and how to build a second stream before you need it.
Friday 23 October 2026 · 5 min read -
2
Next Friday
A new issue every Friday. Get it by email so you do not miss one.
Why this series
Most of the firms we work with were built on referrals. That is a good sign: the work is good and clients say so. But referrals slow down as the partners get busier and the network ages with them, and a firm that has only ever converted warm introductions has rarely had to sell to a buyer who does not know it yet.
A second stream keeps the firm growing when the referrals slow. Each issue takes one problem on that road, from getting seen by the right people to the first meeting and the follow-up, and ends with one thing you can do this week.
The topics come from our sales calls, our own numbers and readers' replies. Reply to any issue with the problem you want covered.
Earlier pieces on the same theme
Sean Winter
Sean is a CFA charterholder with 20+ years in finance and professional services. He founded AscendAI to turn executive LinkedIn profiles into a predictable pipeline of C-suite meetings for professional and financial services firms across EMEA.