Helping Prospects Become Clients

Have you ever had a really good prospect (or just a prospect for that matter!) who you know could and should have become your client, but for some reason remained a prospect for someone else? If so, did you ask yourself what were the things that you didn’t do to help that prospect come on board as your client?

In order to maximise the number of times that you convert a quality prospect into a long term client, I believe you need to really understand what your primary role is as a person’s financial planner. When I ask advisers in my workshops which single word would best describe their primary role for their client as their financial planner, the most common responses I get are “Coach”, “Educator”, “Adviser” & “Helper”, all of which are understandable and they certainly form a part of what we do for our clients.

the single word that best describes our primary role for our clients is facilitator

But from my very early days in the business, I was always quite clear on what my primary role was for my clients, and that was to make it as easy as possible for my clients to make the right decisions for their financial future (see Chrisism#23), and these decisions were seldom ‘rocket science’. Therefore, I believe that the single word that best describes our primary role for our clients is facilitator, which is derived from the Latin word “facile” which means easy.

So what are some of the things we can do to make it as easy as possible to come on board and stay on board as a client:

Tip 1

Be aware of the language we are using – especially early in the piece. As an example, right at the start of the first meeting, when we are outlining what the prospect can expect as a client, do you say ‘If you become a client, this is what you can expect’, ‘Assuming you become a client, this is what you can expect’ or ‘When you become a client, this is what you can expect’? ‘If’ and ‘Assuming’ both plant in the client’s head ‘I may not become a client’, whereas ‘When you become a client’ plants in the client’s head ‘I am going to become a client’. I ask you, which makes it easier for them to become a client?

Tip 2

Get the client’s ‘buy in’ to the concepts of a long-term business relationship and the importance of regularity and continuity of service

Tip 3

Be proactive during the underwriting process – this will cement and add layers to your relationship with the client.

Tip 4

Have a face to face meeting with a new client after the documents are issued.

If you would like more information on these strategies and how to integrate them into your advice process as well as a bucketful of other “lightbulb moments” around your client engagement skills, then you need to come along to my Client Acquisition & Engagement Skills Workshop in your capital city in March. For details, click on the link below.

Chris Unwin is a financial adviser of 37 years standing and has been a specialist risk adviser for the last 22 years. His training and consulting business has operated for 12 years and it specialises in helping advisers across the full spectrum of experience with their client engagement skills, both in the risk advice specific space as well as in the more generic soft skills space.

…And if anyone would like to receive Chris Unwin’s Chrisisms on a fortnightly basis, just email him with your details, including the state in which you reside.

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