When Financial Advisors Miss the Big Picture
by bobrichards ~ March 20th, 2009. Filed under: business growth.It’s important to understand the big picture and how to make money as a financial advisor.
Your goal is to have face to face meetings with prospects who meet two criteria:
1. The prospect has money in their control (i.e. not tied up in a 401k)
2. The prospect is interested in opportunities to do better with their money
If you have any additional criteria, you will lose money as an advisor. For example, if you have a third criteria that the prospect have interest in annuities because you sell annuities, this will cost you a lot of sales because there is NO PROSPECT who cares about annuities. Prospects care about their objectives such as
1. Safety of principal
2. Tax relief
3. Liquidity
IT’S YOUR JOB TO SHOW PROSPECTS HOW THEIR OBJECTIVES ARE CONSISTENT WITH YOUR PRODUCTS AND SERVICES. THEY DON’T COME TO YOU INTERESTED IN ANNUITIES OR MANAGED ACCOUNTS OR ANYTHING ELSE OTHER THAN THEIR OBJECTIVES.
Most advisors miss this concept and rather than focusing on the maximum number of appointments with prospects who meet the two criteria above, the advisor will call the prospect to determine their interest in annuities, managed money, life insurance , etc. But such a call makes it obvious to the prospect that your interest is in YOUR PRODUCTS AND SERVICE and not their objectives. That’s why you don’t get the number of appointments you should.
Let’s provide an example. We run a lot of ads on the Internet to find consumers interested in financial topics. The ad which got the all time best response was for a booklet about ways to increase social security income. This is a HOT TOPIC for seniors. But every advisor told us “I don’t want those leads. I can’t make any money talking to people about social security.”
This is unfortunately a near sighted view that keeps most advisors poor. Many of these prospects meet the two criteria above but because the advisor is SO FOCUSED ON THEIR OWN AGENDA, THEIR OWN PRODUCTS AND SERVICES, they will never have an appointment with viable prospects who could become good clients.
Focus on the big picture–meet with people you can help and don’t focus on your products and services. They are merely tools to help people accomplish their objectives, tools that don’t need to be discussed until the last 10% of your conversation.
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July 29th, 2009 at 11:14 pm
Financial advisors have a tendency to forget who stands at the base of the economy - common people in need of social security, people who need to know how to plan their economies. That’s why this crisis blew up. People can’t plan their future anymore and nobody seems to care.
September 17th, 2009 at 9:35 pm
You are right! So many miss the big picture and waste precious time and resources. The objective-focused model is what we use in our internet marketing plans. Managing a marketing campaign by objectives is the only way to go. Always remember that customers are focused on What’s In It For Me (WIIFM). Answer that, and you are in the door. Otherwise, you get shut out.
Thanks for the nice article!
October 30th, 2009 at 12:45 pm
I think people tend to stick to what they know and are most comfortable doing when they are makerting. We are working with a company that have always gone after only very high net worth clients. That has made them a success and they have done very well, but they really don’t know how to woo a different type of client.
When the recession kicked in their funds under management dropped, taking them further away from their goals and meaning they had reached a plateaux.
Marketing to new types of clients often needs new processes and new thought patterns. The company in question have partnered with another company more experienced in marketing to the masses. They really didn’t need a partnership, but I think this illustrates the mentality of some financial advisers and how they can get focused on their niche.
Thanks for the article. Really interesting!
October 31st, 2009 at 3:53 am
Very interesting post. Social Security is a hot topic and has been that way for several years. There is a definite market for entrepreneurs to hit in that area.
November 13th, 2009 at 12:34 am
Working with customers on an ongoing basis, giving support and advice even when it doesn’t lead to a sale, is the best way a financial advisor can do well in the long term.
Spend time to build that rapore and trust factor with them and they will beat a path to your door rather than you going to find them.
Don’t just concentrate on the sales. Concentrate on the service and the sales will follow - for years to come too!
January 17th, 2010 at 12:51 am
You are spot-on! I have experienced this exact situation in my NY Divorce practice when being the liaison between my clients and their financial advisers. Knowing a thing or two about investment strategy I often catch financial advisers making decisions that are in their best interest rather than my divorce clients’ best interest. I am their advocate so I am under a duty to confront such incongruities. Thank you for pointing out some of these issues! People can certainly benefit from this information.
February 5th, 2010 at 12:19 pm
Good and excellent financial advisor should remember :
1.Learn new things and stratages all the same,always be a professional one.
2.Remember the source of your money,try your best to help others professionally.
February 10th, 2010 at 2:24 pm
Your blog is very impressive and this is an excellent article. As you have pointed out wisely the main things that are missed out by financial advisors, I think if the entrepreneurs are taught to think out of the box and coming up with new ideas in utilizing the resources and marketing plans properly, there is a weak point to get lost of track