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June 20, 2022
Three Keywords to Have on Ideal Client Agendas
In real estate, it is location, location, location. In practice management, it is process, process, process. What is your process for ideal clients in a progress update meeting? How can you enhance your client’s experience at your meetings? What keywords do you use on your agendas? Instead of the word reviews, use a progress update.
Create an Agenda With Time Blocks
Creating agendas is what top financial professionals use to enhance their client experience to ensure that all areas of your client’s comprehensive financial and investment plan are covered and discussed. Do you add to the agenda hidden areas that may have been forgotten, such as estate planning, tax planning, wealth management, or other investment planning ideas? Do you put on the agenda possible time frames for these discussion points to keep the meeting on track? Time blocking key activities will help you and your ideal clients focus on the key areas to cover, and not get off focus in a meeting talking about something that can be done at a later meeting or time. Financial advisors who are focused on performance struggle during these challenging markets, while advisors who focus on goals-based planning conversations, first, and performance second, are delivering a better experience, and help people focus on what they want, not on what they want to avoid. Goals and planning and progress updates should be on the agenda.
Adding these three keywords to your agendas will help you implement key practice management processes into your business.
The Three Keywords Are:
1. Events
2. Communication
3. Feedback
These processes will help you build world-class communication strategies, gain valuable feedback and clone your best clients. Here is how these practice management processes work.
The First Keyword to Put on Agendas is Events
How would you like to be introduced by your clients to more ideal people? Imagine starting a meeting with your ideal client inviting you to an event or referring you to another ideal client? How do you think the rest of the meeting will go? Events are the way wealthy clients want to meet their potential financial advisor or new financial professional. Your clients are meeting financial advisors at events all the time. What events are you or your wealthy clients involved in? What is near and dear to their heart such as a charity or children’s event that you could be involved in? Top advisors target their ideal clients through strategic networking or introductions from their clients. Getting personally involved and personally introduced to those high-net-worth clients through strategic events will help you meet your next ideal client. Make it a process for your top clients by asking them what I call “ the golden question”.I like working with retired pilots like you. If I were to meet a group of retired pilots, where would I go to meet them and how would I meet them? Asking about their events will help you find and meet more ideal clients.
Get Involved
Wealthy people are out at events 3-4 nights of the week helping others, their community, and causes they are passionate about. Do you know what they are involved in? Ask ” Are there any events this year that you are involved in that are near and dear to your heart?’ Small events (less than 20 people or 10 couples) can be a great way to meet people through favorable introductions. Align your practice with your client's interests, and see what happens.
The second keyword is Communication
Ask your top clients how they want to communicate and find out their expectations (not creating expectations) when it comes to communication. Communication has dramatically changed over the past three years, does your client want a different experience when it comes to communication. Ask five clients “how” questions: How satisfied are you with our communication to you? How can we improve our communication with you (and your family )? How would you change our communication? One advisor, I worked with found over 100 hours of time in a calendar year by asking these questions. His clients wanted 2-hour reviews twice a year ( 4 hours per year) instead of quarterly reviews ( 8 hours per year), creating a win-win experience. The real answer to better communication is always in your questions. Research by Business Health Pty Ltd. In Australia, ( key-value drivers USA advisors) states that your best clients want up to 10 personalized touches ( communications) per year. Only 38% of advisors do 10 touches per year, and they earn up to 68% more than advisors who communicate less than 10 times per year. What is your process for 10 touches or communications per year to your best clients?
The third keyword is Feedback
Have you created a formal feedback process? According to Business Health Pty Ltd. In Australia, one of the most disappointing statistics of practice management is that only 15% of financial advisory practices in the US and Australia have sought feedback from their very best clients. ( www.businesshealth.com.au ) How you do feedback is up to you. However, put it on your agenda and make it part of your process. You can ask questions, send a detailed survey or questionnaire, or do a feedback forum with clients. But you must do some form of client feedback, ask key questions and make it a process for your top clients. Advisors who do feedback on a regular basis earn more than advisors who don’t ( up to 33% more) according to research by “Business Health Pty Ltd”. Your best opportunity to create a unique client experience is to ask for feedback and manage the discussion with the client. This is what I call a Financial advisor blind spot. You can not create and continually enhance an ideal client experience without constant feedback.
Confidential client satisfaction survey
The greatest asset and most important critics of an advisory firm are its clients. There is no better way to predict the future success or shortcomings of the business than by listening to what they have to say. However, our research consistently shows that most advisors have no formal process in place to ask what their clients think of the services provided. While most financial advisors and practice principals agree this is a key (and neglected) driver for their business, they are too busy managing the myriad of other day-to-day operational tasks to devote the necessary time and focus. If you would like an outsourced survey facility and your own confidential client survey, that allows you to see your business through the eyes of your clients, email me at grant@ghicks.com for our Confidential survey tool.
All advisers need to do is select the clients they want to include in their survey group and invite them to participate - we do the rest. Importantly, our approach ensures we never hold any client information and avoids all privacy issues. And, as the invitation to participate comes directly from the advisor, it also maximizes the chances it will be read and actioned. The findings from the survey are presented in a detailed report that outlines the client ratings in nine key performance areas along with the relevant benchmark standing. email me at grant@ghicks.com for our Confidential survey tool.
Keep the Agenda Simple
Keep the agenda simple. Have a bullet point list of items to discuss. Ask the client before you begin if there is anything else to add to the agenda, or consider sending it before the meeting. Then you can direct the meeting by starting at the top of the list or you can ask the client where they would like to begin. The big truth is that time is far more valuable than money. The agenda will make time together in your meeting more valuable. Now you get to implement three key practice management processes, communication, feedback, and meeting new ideal clients.
“If you aren’t fired with enthusiasm, you’ll be fired with enthusiasm.”
-Vince Lombard
How about your goals for your practice in 2022? Our Practice management checklist or fee audit checklist
While each financial advisor's practice may have a different approach, advisors need to understand where their practice needs help, and will they get the right help for the right part of their practice. What areas does your practice need help with? Get a copy of our updated 21-page “Comprehensive Practice Management Strategies checklist” by going to our website
https://www.advisorpracticemanagement.com/about-us or clicking here
https://practicemanagement.getresponsepages.com/
Fee audit checklist for ideal prospects, click here https://feeaudit.getresponsepages.com/
Become a “Future-ready Advisor” get our 21-page technology checklist here https://technologychecklist.getresponsepages.com/
Let’s Talk
Contact us to help get clarity around your goals on paper, and having the goals conversation by contacting grant at grant@ghicks.com or click on the link to set up a no-obligation 20-minute discussion https://my.timetrade.com/book/JMTNJ regardless if we work together, let’s have a chat and listen to your biggest practice management concerns to help you get clarity around your future business.
Grant Hicks, CIM, is President of Advisor Practice Management and co-author of “Guerrilla Marketing For Financial Advisors” 1st and 2nd edition. www.advisorpracticemanagement.com for speaking, workshops or coaching, contact Grant at grant@ghicks.com Grants combined financial advisor clients manage over 5 billion AUM, and earn over $50 million dollars combined!
Enthusiastically yours,
Grant Hicks, CIM, President
Advisor Practice Management
www.advisorpracticemanagement.com
Suite 1625-246 Stewart Green, SW
Calgary, Alberta T3H 3C8
Cell 403 970 8895
Email grant@ghicks.com
PS Where do you want to be in 3 years?
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