Final answer:
Negative referrals can have a great impact on a company's sales. A bad experience that I had as a source of a negative referral for a restaurant could have been prevented by doing more research and making a more informed referral.
Step-by-step explanation:
Negative referrals can indeed have a significant impact on a company's sales. It is important for salespeople to understand the factors that can make a referral negative and how to prevent it.
One instance where I was the source of a bad referral was when I recommended a restaurant to a friend. The experience was negative because the restaurant had poor customer service, the food quality was subpar, and the prices were high. This led to my friend having a bad experience, resulting in a negative referral.
To prevent this, as a salesperson, I would have done more research on the restaurant before making the referral. I would have taken into consideration factors such as customer reviews, the restaurant's reputation, and even tried the food myself. This would have helped me make a more informed and positive referral, avoiding a negative impact on the company's sales.