Advisor Perspectives welcomes guest contributions. The views presented here do not necessarily represent those of Advisor Perspectives.
Are you an experiencing a decline in the acquisition of new clients?
It could be that your sales process is based on a fundamentally flawed idea, and that correcting that idea is the one thing you haven’t considered to give you the breakthrough you’re looking for.
At the heart of the traditional advisor sales model is the idea of attempting to build a relationship with your prospect before the sale.
The thinking goes like this:
For your prospect to hire you, they first need to like you.
Before they can like you, they need to get to know you and you need to get to know them.
It’s not usual to hit it off in the first meeting, “chemistry” being created. But then you need repeated contact and value-added steps to “nurture” the relationship until they’re ready to hire you.
It is logical, and it used to work really well.
On paper, that logic is common sense.
But there is a flaw when you apply it to real life:
Your prospect doesn’t need to like you to trust you.
The idea that relationships generate business is true. But it’s on the decline because real relationships take a very long time to develop. Stop attempting building relationships pre-sale; there just isn’t enough time.
How can you have a “business relationship” with someone if you haven’t done any business with them yet?
Let me suggest to you a more robust logic and thought process:
For your prospect to hire you, they need to have a problem that you can solve.
Before they can contemplate having you solve them, they need to be aware of the impact of not solving their problem.
If you focus on clarifying and thoroughly “x-raying” their problem (instead of attempting to build a relationship), they can trust you without knowing you, liking you, or even understanding how you’re going to solve it (just like they would their doctor).
Through this problem-based (not relationship-based) approach, you can build trust and onboard a new prospect in one single meeting.
The trust required here is totally different to the kind of “know-and-like” trust most people use in their everyday social interactions (which, if we’re honest, is often surface-level).
The reason why most advisors struggle to convert prospects in general is because they’ve assumed that selling works the same way.
But it doesn’t.
Being a nice and friendly person does not create the feeling of a relationship, which hopefully leads to doing business.
It’s about being trusted to solve a problem, and reaching an agreement to do business immediately, which can lead to an ongoing relationship after the sale.
You can’t do this unless you are perceived as a trusted authority.
Trusted authorities build business relationships.
But they do it after the sale (when it becomes effortless), not before.
To learn more about how think like a trusted authority, order your complimentary book and consultation below.
Ari Galper is the world’s number one authority on trust-based selling and is the most sought-after high-net worth/lead generation expert for financial advisors. His newest book, “Trusted Authority” has become an instant best-seller among financial advisors worldwide – you can get a Free copy of Ari’s book here and, when you click the “YES” button in the order form, you’ll also receive a complimentary “plug up the holes” lead generation consultation. Ari has been featured in CEO Magazine, Forbes, INC Magazine and the Australian Financial Review. He is considered a contrarian in the financial services industry and in his book, everything you learned about selling will be turned upside down. No more chasing, no pressure, no closing.
A message from Advisor Perspectives and VettaFi: To learn more about this and other topics, check out our most recent white papers.
More 529/College Planning Topics >
Advisor Perspectives welcomes guest contributions. The views presented here do not necessarily represent those of Advisor Perspectives.