The operating system for introducer-led growth
RQ helps professional firms send, manage, and prove referrals — with built-in compliance, clear tracking, and real visibility across the firm.
What is introducer-led growth?
Category: General
Introducer-led growth is a business development strategy where a professional services firm grows its revenue primarily through structured referral relationships with other firms. Rather than relying on advertising, cold outreach, or inbound marketing to win new clients, the firm builds a network of trusted introducers — other professionals who refer their clients when they need a service the firm provides. For example, an accountancy firm might receive client introductions from financial advisers, solicitors, and mortgage brokers. A financial advice firm might receive introductions from accountants and estate planners. A law firm might receive introductions from accountants, IFAs, and property agents. This is not a new concept — professional firms have always grown through referrals. What has changed is the expectation from regulators and clients that these relationships are managed transparently, with proper consent, disclosure, and record-keeping. Introducer-led growth works because the referral comes with built-in trust. When a client's accountant recommends a financial adviser, the client is far more likely to engage than if the adviser approached them directly. Conversion rates from professional referrals are typically much higher than from other marketing channels. The challenge is that many firms manage these relationships informally, which limits their ability to scale the approach and creates compliance risk. RQ was built to help firms turn introducer-led growth from an informal, ad-hoc process into a structured, measurable, and compliant strategy. The term describes both a growth model and a mindset: treating referral relationships as a core business development channel, not an afterthought.