I get a ton of my work through word of mouth and referrals. I would say at least 80% of my clients have come to me through someone else. When this happens both parties already have a sense of trust, the last thing I would want to do is burn that. It would take weeks, if not months, to earn that back. I would also caution using people off of the websites that refer jobs. If I were a member of one of those sites, I would have to pay to get a job. That's not how I want to earn a living. I just don't want to get a job that I had to pay a third party a fee for the lead. I have to say this attitude has worked extremely well for us without it even being a thing. I love the work I do and my clients seem pretty happy as well, or they wouldn't refer us. Of course there have been a couple of mishaps along the way, but so many other factors go in to working relationships that I am extremely happy with the outcomes over the years.