Archive for the ‘Financial Planners’ Category

Let me tell you negative talk get’s you NOWHERE.  This tends to be an issue more with Female Financial Advisors than their male counterparts.  Women LOVE to beat them self up, they struggle to give themselves credit for success, they either call it luck or dismiss it all together (trust me I struggle with it too.) But sometimes I have to put the kibosh on this attitude.  When asked what went well female advisors are quick to tell me what didn’t go well, what they didn’t get done or how they completed a task but didn’t do it right!!  Do you hear what’s happening here?

Granted we all enjoy a little venting time and to hold our own little pity party, I’m ok with that as long as it is short lived (like 60 seconds) and we can then move on to other issues that are more positive and constructive.

Last week I was on a call with a female advisor, she was complaining about her assistant going on and on about how she doesn’t do things right, how she seems to take little to no initiative and every time I had a suggestions there was resistance or a reason why it wouldn’t work.  So I finally said “You have two choices:

1. Make this work and spend more time and energy training, coaching and monitoring her activities or;
2. Ask for a new assistant

That’s it, if you want to succeed you must make one of those two choices, no more whining or complaining.”   Next thing you know she emailed and said she talked with her manager and they assigned her a new assistant.

Sometimes our desire to vent and complain is just a tactic or excuse to not move forward.  Sometimes we like it when we can blame our lack of growth on external issues and this deficiency becomes a comfort zone.  In almost every case especially with women our only barrier to success is ourselves.  Get out of your own way, stop the negative talk and watch what can happen to your business growth.

There is never a better time to reach out to everyone you know to present your value while ADDING value.  Don’t for one minute think that all your friends’ acquaintances and family members really know what you do.  Everyone who has money invested in the markets is scared right now; scared about their financial future, scared about the future of America , our foundation has never been so unstable.

Odds are you are doing a great job with your clients; they are well positioned based on a balanced asset allocation and good diversification. Some of you may have moved some moneys to cash or have a portion of your client’s assets in bonds or an annuity where it is safe from the volatility, don’t think everyone is getting the same value and service from their advisor.

Get on the phones today and call EVERYONE.  Let them know that you are there for them if they are concerned or want a second opinion; you don’t have to sell yourself, not now.  All you have to do is offer your opinion and engage in conversation, find out how they are faring with these markets and come ready with 3 really good open ended questions.

Here is a sample script that may help:

“Hi Mary it’s Adri at ABC Wealth Management, I’ll tell you the reason I’m calling I know there are a lot of people that are concerned about their investments right now and not all are getting the advise and value they should from their financial advisor. After speaking with all my clients I realized I needed to reach out to everyone I know just to make sure they are ok.

These are tough markets how are you and John handling it:

What is your biggest concern?

Which of your assets are in a safe place?

How is your advisor helping you?

I just want you to know I am here, I would feel terrible if anyone I knew made some tragic decisions and I never reached out to help them. “

At this point you will know whether to either offer them to come in and you will review their situation or to let them know you are glad they are in good hands and wish them well.

There is nothing more fun than watching a group of financial advisors take experiences from life and craft them into a compelling story. That’s exactly what happened this past week during my Keys to the Ladies Room presentation.

In order to connect with the female audience you must be ready to answer the question “Why do you care about me?” Most women will assume that the only reason you want her to become your client is so that you can generate more commissions. Obviously that is a component to what we do but that does not have to be the complete truth nor the primary motivator.

If you plan to enhance your relationship with existing female clients and or want to attract more female clients you must share your story that shows why you care about women. In today’s presentation we had so many fabulous stories;

• Pat had a Mother who at 36 buried her husband and delivered her 6th child all on the same day.
• Sean visited his Grandmother he loved and saw her spend her remaining years in a state run facility only to find out that with some advance planning she could have lived her remaining years in comfort and dignity.
• Lisa shared her own experience going through a divorce. As a result her desire to become more financially confident resulted in her becoming an advisor and helping other women manage life transitions.
• Carmen lost her husband at a young age and with no investment experience or financial advise she blew the insurance money on furniture, today it would have been worth $2,000,000.

As each advisor shared their story they learned how to remove all of the unnecessary information, creating a more streamlined message that made a powerful impact.

By the end of the day each advisor had an opportunity to share their final story and what we heard was amazing. The transformation in just a few hours was almost unbelievable.

They all did a fabulous job articulating why they are passionate and sincerely interested in working with the female client, now they just have to use it.

As a financial advisor all of your prospecting efforts culminate in one final meeting. In this meeting you have the opportunity to present your solutions and motivate the prospect to become your client. When so much is at stake why do financial advisors spend so little time preparing for these appointments?

Last week I worked with one of my advisors by helping her prep for a closing appointment.  After spending a full hour on this process I realized in their desire to close the business many advisors often overlook the critical steps that can ultimately tip the scales in their favor.

The Appointment process can be broken down into 5 important steps:

1.    Review your findings: While prepping for the presentations write out everything you have learned and then review these findings at the beginning of the appointment. Not only does this give you a chance to get positive affirmations from the prospect but both you and the prospect will feel more confident that you truly understand their needs and concerns.

2.    Share your concerns: Based on those findings now is your opportunity to express the challenges, risks and concerns you have with their current situation. Again it’s important to get feedback from the client that they too understand these concerns before moving on.

3.    Present your solutions: NOW you can present your solutions and as you do constantly refer back to how these solutions address specific issues and concerns. It’s your job to tie all the pieces of this presentation together.

4.    Get confirmation: This is a great time to ask open ended questions. Open ended questions put the onus on the prospect and will give you more insight as to possible objections.

• What do you like about this strategy?
• How do you see this strategy solving your issues and concerns?
• What part of this strategy do you not

5.    Ask for what you want: Before you begin the presentation be very clear on what you want, open the account, transfer all the assets in, get a commitment on a product or plan. Be clear as to what you want and know how you intend to ask for it. At this point it is important to ask closed ended questions, you now are looking for a yes/no answer. If you get a yes you are on your way, if you get a no go back to step 4 and ask more open ended questions such as:

• What is preventing you from moving forward?
• What is getting in the way of us doing business together?
• What can I do to earn your business?

In addition as you prep for your appointment, make a list of all the questions the prospect may ask, do some brainstorming beforehand and go to the meeting prepared to answer any of the questions on your list. By doing this prep work first you will go into the meeting with greater confidence and your clarity and conviction alone will enhance your ability to get a commitment and the business.

Over the past few months Hannah had been doing a bang up job at attracting affluent prospects. Her seminars were creating a buzz and she was finally reeling in new prospects with millions, the problem? She couldn’t close the business.

We spent one whole coaching session focused on her ability to get the prospect to commit to doing business with her and everything we did came down to one simple statement: Ask for what you want.

As we reviewed each prospect I asked Haannah, “What do you want from this prospect?” as with most advisors she gave me lots of details without ever answering the question. I again asked “Hannah, what do you want from this client?” She then shared what she thought he should do, again I shook my head and asked “What do you want from him Hannah?” She finally blurted out “I want him to open an account with me.” I told her then ask for what you want.

That afternoon, the same day as our coaching call Hannah emailed me and told me that she got the account and it was a million more than she expected. She said she had a nice conversation with the prospect and finally said “Jim, can I open an account for you?” and he said YES. The rest is history.

How simple the process is when you know what you want, all you have to do is ask.

Take a look at your top 5 prospects and ask yourself:

What do you want from that prospect and how can I ask for what I want…. then do it.