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As a financial advisor, you are in a high-trust, relationship-driven profession. Your success is determined by how well you develop and maintain your client relationships. Your referrals are in proportion to the quality of your relationships and how effective you are at empowering others to refer you.
People will measure their relationship with you when it really counts. My question for you to dwell on while I share a recent personal story is this: What sets you apart when it really counts?
I recently suffered a great loss in the passing of my 14-year-old canine companion, Karlie. She had been my office dog since day one, sleeping under my desk or directly in my doorway. Every day, she listened in on client calls and promised to keep everything in confidence. She delivered the mail for the office and protected her family from the harms of the world (cats, dogs, rabbits, deer, mail lady, UPS, FedEx, Amazon … you name it). She knew when to squeak her toys and when not to, to avoid being a distraction during office hours. Karlie was an incredibly intelligent girl and the energy in her presence is deeply missed.
In the days that followed, my and my partner’s attention needed to turn to our other office dog, Tucker. He is 13 and has been blind since age four due to a rare auto-immune disease. Tucker has not known life without Karlie. She became his guide dog and showed him that life was still very good despite not being able to see. Tucker now needed our undivided attention to help him cope with this intense loss in his life. We reached out to our vet to get some meds to help Tucker settle his stomach, but we needed some extra guidance.
We remembered that our #1 pet resource Chewy.com offered free 20-minute vet consultations. So, we scheduled an appointment and found ourselves speaking to Dr. Courtnee M. It didn’t take long before we wished this woman we had just met could be our regular vet. She was compassionate, caring, empathetic and warm-hearted. She helped us realize how great a job we were doing for Tucker already and gave us numerous ideas to help with his nutrition and medications. We never felt rushed or had the feeling of being an imposition. We left that call feeling a sense of calm, relief and enhanced confidence that Tucker would soon be thriving again. Dr. Courtnee sent a follow-up email that summarized our conversation and included numerous articles as additional resources.
The next day, while having lunch, we get a knock at the door. Someone had sent us a beautiful bouquet of flowers for the passing of Karlie. To our amazement, it had been sent by Dr. Courtnee at Chewy.com and included the message, “We’re so sorry to hear of your loss and our hearts go out to you. We know this time is tough and we’re always here if you need anything. Love, Courtnee from Chewy” I can guarantee that Chewy.com now has a lifetime customer. And this story has been shared across our social media platforms on behalf of Chewy as well. It’s been a week and we still have not even received a card from our own vet.
That relationship is now being measured.
The level of kindness we experienced from Chewy.com was far beyond what we ever expected. We were compelled to send them a note of appreciation. Their customer service representative, Mira, responded like this:
I am so incredibly sorry to hear about the passing of your beloved Karlie. Thank you so much for taking the time to share your wonderful experience with us about Dr. Courtnee. It warms all of our hearts to know that we were able to help out in this difficult time and put a smile on your face even if just for a moment.
There are no words to ease the sorrow from the loss of your special friend, but let time heal the pain and love heal the heart. Friends enter and leave our lives, but the impressions they make on our hearts stay with us forever. We hope that you find comfort from all the wonderful memories, knowing that you provided a loving home.
We know it can help to talk to other folks who can relate so always feel free to reach out. Please know that as part of our Chewy family, we're here for you in any way we can be. I realize that may sound strange coming from a company, but we absolutely mean it. We're here for you now and we'll be here in the months and years ahead. If there is anything else we can do to help, please don’t hesitate to ask.
Warm regards and deepest condolences, Mira H. Customer Service Chewy
I ask you again: What sets you apart when it really matters?
Do you care enough to go above and beyond when it counts so that your clients truly feel how much they matter to you? Our financial advisor reached out to us several times from her cruise vacation during the week leading up to Karlie’s passing to check in and to see how Karlie was doing. She also sent a very moving card that included a pamphlet on how to cope with the grief of losing a canine family member. Our relationship with her is on very solid ground and has been since we started working with her 10 years ago.
A relationship proves itself when it counts. Ensure that your relationships get the proof they deserve…. when it really counts.
Michelle R. Donovan owns Productivity Uncorked LLC where they help financial advisors to be more productive and more profitable. Michelle’s books have become Wall Street Journal best-sellers, Amazon best-sellers and published in seven languages. Set a time to chat with Michelle, email Michelle at [email protected] and/or connect with her on LinkedIn.
Read more articles by Michelle R. Donovan
Advisor Perspectives welcomes guest contributions. The views presented here do not necessarily represent those of Advisor Perspectives.
