It seems every builder and remodeler has one common goal when it comes to getting work: getting most, if not all their leads from referrals.

Most find other lead generation techniques spotty, but client referrals can give a contractor more than a fighting chance at being the sole bidder, not to mention starting off 'pre-sold' to the client.

Dan Kolbert, president of Dan Kolbert Building and Renovations, takes this a step further and ensures he gets as many referrals as possible by asking his clients 4 simple questions.

"The ideal situation," says Dan, "is when leads call you, and they want you to do the job, and you alone ... and the best way to do that is to get good referrals."

Dan continues, "I'd say, nine times out of ten, when somebody calls us they're pretty sure they want to do the job and they're pretty sure they want us to do the job ."

Odds any contractor would love to see, right? So, how does Dan suggest you can get the same results as him?

"Go back and interview some of your old clients," Dad says.

"Ask, 'What am I doing well? What am I not doing well?' " he continues. "Find out why they're not referring you, that is if you feel you should be getting more referrals from them.

"Be blunt -- tell them you're trying to improve your business. Most people are happy to help if you ask them, [especially] if you say you're going to help me and you're not just trying to get something from them."

What I found interesting from Dan's questions is they are virtually the same questions I've suggested other builders and remodelers use to 'fire-up' their referrals.

We also suggested two other questions to round out the group: "What did I do that surprised you?" and "What did I give you that you didn't really expect to be part of my services?"

Dan continues, "I know some people do this is written form. That is, when the job is over, they leave a written questionnaire behind, or they wait a month and send a written questionnaire."

The power of this is not only valuable feedback for your business -- that is, what should you be improving based on your clients point of view ... not yours -- it also prepares you to ask the 'killer' referral question:

The secret to Dan's success (remember: 9 out of 10 calls Dan receives are leads who are "ready-to-go") is two-fold:

Most builders and remodelers don't ask for feedback, or they don't ask in the proper manner. Using Dan's questions above, he solicits specific advice, rather than the general (and mostly useless) "you did good work."

Dan wants to know exactly and specifically what he did well, so he can continue to do it, and what needs improvement, so he can improve it.

Similarly, most contractors, if they do ask for referrals, ask at the wrong time ... and with the wrong 'set up.' They'll typically say something akin to "tell your friends about us" or just sit back and hope their clients will be magically inspired to start campaigning on your behalf exactly when you need a few new clients.

That's working on their schedule. Dan works on his schedule.

By soliciting his clients' feedback, he has them at the height of their recognition of his service. This is the best time to ask for referrals, when your clients are raving to themselves (and to you) about your work.

As Dan admits, "Sales is my weak point, and I don't put a lot of energy into it. As I said, we are able to get most of our work through referrals, so I've got a very high close rate, and, as such, I don't have to put a lot of energy into sales."

Dan continues, "I've never had anybody complain because the job site was too clean, and I've never had anybody complain because I checked in with them too frequently after the job was over."

By focusing on a proper referral system, rather than the 'hope-and-pray-they'll-tell-others-about-me' method, while simultaneously ensuring his work is 'referral-worthy', Dan avoids the one chink in on a lot of contractor's armour: their ability to sell their service.

And this is exactly why most builders and remodelers' dream of a referral-based business -- they'd rather spend more time building the project then selling it, and referrals are one of the best ways to accomplish that.

So make use of Dan's questions, and take control of your referrals, your leads, and your sales today.

Go to www.SuccessfulHomeBuilders.com today and you can listen for FREE how one builder/remodeler eliminated time-wasting free estimates from his business -- for good!