Sailfin mollies are beautiful creatures with metallic colors. The males are blue-green with orange and black fins. The female sailfin mollies are have bluish grey fins. These fish are characterized by their long and high dorsal fins.

Aquarium conditions: Sailfin mollies enjoy warm water. The temperature should be between 73 and 82 degrees Fahrenheit with a pH between 7.5 and 8.2. You should have many plants in the aquarium because these bizarre fish enjoy plant life. You should also regularly add salt to the water to promote the growth algae because these are omnivorous creatures.

Feeding: These bizarre fish will eat live bait, but enjoy vegetables as well. You can add some zucchini, peas or spinach to their tanks. You can leave algae in the tank because the sailfin mollies will eat it.

African lungfish are another group of bizarre fish people might want to own. They are generally bottom dwellers and in their natural habitat, feed on animals from the bottom of the sea such as mussels, small fish and worms. When you first buy your African lungfish, it may just be a few inches to a foot long. These fish can grow up to 10 feet, so make sure you have a big enough tank.

Aquarium conditions: These fish like quiet and dim areas. They are commonly found in the Zaire River basin, so try to emulate that type of environment. The water should be around 75 degrees and have fresh mud in the tank. It can thrive in different water conditions, but try to keep it constant. Keep fish that need the same environment with the African lungfish for optimal results.

Feeding: These fish tend to prey on other small animals. You should feed it worms or lean meats. You can also give it beef heart.

Piranhas aren’t everyone’s favorite fish. They are well known for biting its prey with its razor sharp teeth. They are an interesting fish to own, though, if you are looking for bizarre fish. If you are just starting out in the fish world, don’t get piranhas. They might bite your hand if you are not careful. Also, try not to have too many other fish with your piranha. They can be very aggressive fish and territorial.

Aquarium conditions: Piranhas are found in the Amazon and need to have warm water to thrive. Keep the tank around 80 degrees Fahrenheit. You need a heater and a thermometer to keep track of the water. Be careful not to overheat the tank because if it gets too hot it can result in oxygen deprivation. The other thing about piranhas is that you need to clean the tank often. These bizarre fish are messy. You need a good filter to keep the water from getting toxic.

Feeding: Piranhas will eat just about anything. It’s important to give the piranhas a varied diet. Most frozen fish foods are good for piranhas. They also eat vegetables. You should try to give piranhas different foods to eat to try to make their contained environment feel as much as the natural environment as possible. Piranhas only need to be fed once a day.

When you break one, you’re saying to your clients and to your employees and to everyone you associate with that you don’t respect them and that you’re not dependable.

The bottom line is this: If you don’t show people respect and dependability, they’re not going to refer you.

The referral process

Implement a number of simple but effective processes into your daily routine.

For example:

* For service businesses, send clients pre-confirmation letters before the job via mail or e-mail.

* Educate clients with a complimentary consumer awareness guide or other literature.

* Do an inspection or evaluation presentation for the client that discovers their needs and conveys the value you will be delivering to address those needs.

* Be attentive and “present” when communicating with a client (i.e. turn your cell phone off).

* Share testimonials and other “evidence of success” to help build trust.

At the end of the job or sale, after you’ve educated your clients, you’ve provided a great service/product and they’re happy, this is the perfect time to ask for a referral.

Educate clients as to why they should give you referrals. If you don’t ask them and let them know the way you build your business is through referrals, don’t expect them to really think about it for you.

You’ve got to plant a seed in their mind.

This can be done through something as easy as a referral tracking form that gives them an opportunity to list friends or family who may be in need of your company’s services or products.

This could also be sent as an e-mail message that can be easily forwarded to others (nothing is easier than hitting the “send to all” button on their address book to forward your information).

Follow up with all newly referred prospects promptly.

Anytime you are given the name and contact information of someone who may be interested in your service or product, it’s your responsibility to turn that referral into a sale.

Offer a referral reward

You need to thank and reward those who refer you.

If you are receiving referrals and you’re not doing anything at this point to get referrals, they’re just telling people about you because they’re happy with your company.

Imagine what would happen if you not only started going out of your way to thank them for sending you business, but you also started rewarding them with gifts or perks.

Reward systems work very well with your employees too, so don’t forget to thank them when they come back with a completed customer referral tracking form.

One gift to consider is rewarding clients with cash. Cash works. It does not have to be a large amount.

Hundreds of service providers all over the world use small cash rewards as a token of appreciation and to entice people to give them referrals.

It’s much more cost-effective to give small cash rewards for a referral than to pay for expensive advertising or other forms of promotions.

One benefit to rewarding cash versus a “10 percent off your next purchase” coupon is that it is non-conditional. It’s instant gratification. The client doesn’t have to buy something from you again in the future.

As an alternative to cash, you could also give a bonus such as a free additional service, small free gift, or gift certificates to a local restaurant or movie theater.

You are trying to get it in the client’s mind to remember you as a spectacular company to tell others about.

People have busy lives, so if you don’t actively thank them and let them know you appreciate their referrals (and reward them) they’re not going to be thinking about your company for long after the sale is completed.

Give clients a reason to remember you.

Client champions = business goldmine

Go out of your way to identify the people in your database who refer you most often, and then treat those people like gold.

They are your unpaid sales force, and often can outperform your paid sales force.

You can maximize the enthusiasm of your happiest referring “champions” through special recognition and events.

You can give public thanks to your champions in your newsletter, or posted in your lobby.

You can have client appreciation dinners and invite your champions for a free meal. You can have a referral contest, with each referral leading to a ticket in a drawing for some big prize, such as a dinner for two at an upscale restaurant, a weekend get-away or a cruise.

Some champions will have a network of people to share your praises to because they may own their own company and have clients to refer you to.

Other business owners are ideal partners to create endorsement relationships.

Paying to mail a letter of endorsement from this happy client to their own list of clients can lead to numerous referrals, especially if you extend them an offer because they are referred by this client.

This allows the business owner to give his/her clients a special offer, and with you paying for the mailing, they get to do something nice for their list that does not cost them a dime.

You may also offer them a referral percentage for any sales that occur from the mailing.