October 30, 2023

How can you move up-market faster as a financial advisor?

 How can you move up market faster as a financial advisor?

Elite financial advisors discover that the next market up from them presents tremendous opportunities for growth for their practice. For example, I was working with and advisory team who dealt with a one million-dollar minimum. Once they discovered how to move up-market, they changed their focus. What is the next level for you as a financial advisor? 

How do I move up market?

First define who your current market is and who your ideal clients are by writing down one number. What is the ideal revenue you wanted to generate on an annual basis from an ideal client? Let's say it's $10,000 per year. How do you go from a $10,000 client to a $20,000 or $30,000 client? This is what I mean by moving upmarket. While there are numerous strategies I'm going to give you three ways that you can move up the market.

Number one is you have to deliver more value. Does someone with $2 million expect twice as much as someone with $1 million? No, but they do expect more. Your job is to figure out how much more value you can deliver. Answer this question. What is the value add that you are going to deliver to your best clients in the next 12 months? To become more valuable, you have to deliver more. 

Number two to move up market is to change your language. Turn ideal clients into ideal families. I'm not talking about getting more kids as clients. I'm talking about your best clients siblings and parents. Let's say you have a client in their mid-50saying you $10,000 per year. They may have one or two siblings who can also pay you $10,000 per year. Also, their parents may still be around and can pay $10,000 to $20,000 per year. You went from a $10,000 ideal client into a $40,000 ideal family. See the opportunity to move up-market? How many ideal clients can you turn into ideal families?

Number three strategy to move up-market is to change your marketing strategies. Your job is to find out what are the best strategies to acquire ideal wealthy families and how you can implement them successfully to move up-market. But here is the problem. You don't have enough time to implement any of these strategies because you're at full capacity now. How can you create more capacity in your practice to move up-market?

Where do I start when I want to move up-market? 

I start with financial advisors by figuring out what their top 5 clients currently pay them. For example, if you have a top client paying you $36000 per year or approximately $3000 per month , what are you providing in a tangible and intangible way for $36000 per year of value? 

Tangibles 

Comprehensive planning and advice 

A comprehensive plan in Writing 

Comprehensive wealth management 

Comprehensive legacy and estate planning

Feedback on what they value the most for you and your team?  

What else? Create a list of services or check out my fee audit to guide you https://feeaudit.getresponsepages.com/ 

Intangibles

Peace of mind 

Confidence 

Clarity 

Less stress

Simplification 

Compete financial life organized 

What are your “Conversations of value?”  

How does this move me up-market? 

Moving up market is not just marketing, but represents massive value to the people and firms who work in this space. I can tell you I see a lot of financial advisors who have a few clients in this space who treat these best clients differently but do NOT spend all of their time there because these clients seem harder to find, demand more customization and take more time. Until the financial advisor frees up their time ( through different capacity strategies such as segmentation, teaming and more )and decides to commit to this market, they never move up market. They stay in their comfort zone. Are you in your comfort zone or do you want to move up market?  

Where do you want to be in three years (2026) ? 

Our Practice Management resources - Comprehensive Practice Management checklist

https://practicemanagement.getresponsepages.com/

Sample: Comprehensive Financial Advisor Practice Management benchmarking report

Key data and KPI's, over 30 Key Performance indicators. Do want a sample benchmarking report to help you understand how to get the edge on your practice and your competition? 

 https://benchmark.getresponsepages.com/ 

Updated 2023 Technology Checklist for Financial Advisors  

This checklist is five years' worth of research on the best processes elite financial advisors and their teams implement to acquire and service ideal clients while running an efficient practice.   

https://technology-checklist.getresponsepages.com/ 

We are here to serve your practice, let’s talk

Contact us to help get clarity around your goals on paper, and have 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 editions. 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

PO Box 382 Lantzville BC V0R 2H0
Cell 403 970 8895
Email grant@ghicks.com  to book a meeting click here https://my.timetrade.com/book/JMTNJ  

PS Where do you want your financial practice to be at the end of 2025? AUM, Revenue, and time off? 

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