Bird dog (person)

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A bird dog is a person, in various business contexts, who earns fees for research that results in finding business opportunities for the fee payer.

• A referral fee, or "bird dog fee", is sometimes used in business. If Jake hires a company to perform some type of service and then recommends the company to Chester, who then hires the company and gives Jake as a reference, the company may give Jake a bird dog fee as a bonus for "retrieving" a new customer.
• "Bird dog" can also be referenced to the real estate market, which is a person who locates properties for investors or silent partners. In many U.S. states this practice is illegal unless the person receiving the fee has a valid real estate license. A person may be subject to fines or even jail time.
• A regional baseball scout. "Bird dogs" are generally not team employees but instead are members of a network of contacts established by a full-time area scout, and earn fees by suggesting youth players worth watching to the team.