actively prospecting Archives - Don Connelly & Associates

For Financial Advisors, the Road to Success Begins with Solid Prospecting Habits

February 6, 2023 / by Don Connelly / Prospecting / 0 comments

For financial advisors, there’s nothing like the thrill of signing a new client. But it doesn’t take very long in the business to realize that, without prospecting, those thrills can be few and far between. While signing new clients is the opportunity all advisors relish, they must first create those opportunities, which can only be done through continuous prospecting.

Most advisors consider prospecting to be the most challenging aspect of their work. The challenge for many is doing it consistently and effectively enough to produce sufficient opportunities. For some advisors, prospecting is an afterthought, only becoming necessary when their pipeline dries up. But with the typical lead-to-prospect conversion process lasting as many as six months, that could mean weeks or months before signing a new client.

Successful advisors know that the key to sustainable growth is a constantly replenished pipeline through persistent prospecting. The only way that happens is by building solid prospecting habits.

Here are the essential success habits advisors must develop to become effective and consistent prospectors.

Nothing Happens without an Appointment

January 3, 2022 / by Don Connelly / Prospecting / 0 comments

Would you like to have $50,000,000 in assets under management? How about a $100,000,000? How about $500,000,000? It’s simple. It’s not easy, but it is simple. Go get an appointment. It all starts with getting an appointment. Nothing happens without an appointment in this business. Go on the appointment, get your nose bloody, come back and get another appointment. Then get another one. Then get another one. Building a career is a series of many steps. Success is not part time. Get in the habit of getting appointments.

Watch this video or read the transcript to learn how to get in the habit of getting appointments.

3 Types of Prospects Financial Advisors Should Pursue and How to Connect with Them

March 15, 2021 / by Don Connelly / Prospecting / 0 comments

3 Types of Prospects Every Financial Advisor Should Pursue and How to Connect with Them

All financial advisors know that prospecting is the lifeblood of their business. Filling the funnel with a constant flow of qualified leads has long been the biggest challenge facing advisors, regardless of how long they’ve been in the business. Scores of books and articles have been written on “the best” prospecting tips and techniques. Yet, many advisors continue to suffer from the “spinning your wheels” syndrome, feeling as if their efforts keep dredging up the same results—poor-quality prospects or prospects who have neither the incentive nor financial capacity to take action.

Sure, prospecting is and always has been driven by the “law of numbers,” but who says you can’t tilt the numbers in your favor. You’d be foolish not to try. Even if you’ve identified a target market based on an ideal client profile, it’s still a numbers game. However, if you truly understand the type of prospect you’re looking for, you may be able to drastically reduce the number of rocks you need to turnover.

5 Steps to Create and Sustain a Winner’s Mindset

November 30, 2020 / by Don Connelly / Best Practices / 0 comments

I’ve already written about self-sabotaging behaviors, and how to avoid them. But today, I’d like to address the flip side of the coin: How you can actively develop and maintain a winner’s mindset.

I’ve known many hugely successful advisors in my time. And they all have certain traits in common:

– They take a proactive approach to time management;
– They don’t make excuses for themselves. Instead, they take on and eliminate or bypass obstacles;
– They surround themselves with positive influences and accountability partners;
– They constantly expose themselves to positive messages and ideas.
– They get help when they need it.

So here are five things you can do to help develop that winner’s mindset – and sustain it over time.

Being a Financial Advisor in Uncertain Times – What You Need to Know

November 2, 2020 / by Don Connelly / Best Practices / 0 comments

As I write this in mid-October, 2020, the stock market is sitting right at an all-time high. But there’s still an ongoing pandemic – and a presidential election looming. Either of these things can cause big short-term swings in stock prices.

That means things are pretty risky at the moment. In the short-term, anyway.

As financial advisors, we have to help our clients understand that risk, and help them manage their money so they can accomplish their financial goals, but also so they can sleep at night in the meantime.

Those of you who have been around since before 2008 know this process well. For those of you who are just getting started, here’s what you need to know.

6 Marketing Ideas for Financial Advisors Adapting to a Post-COVID World

October 12, 2020 / by Don Connelly / Marketing Yourself / 0 comments

The recent COVID diagnosis of President Trump, the First Lady, and a number of other White House staff should be a wake-up call to all of us. Don’t get cocky, and don’t get lazy. While it’s not as lethal as many of us feared in February and March, it’s still a very contagious virus.

So, it’s going to be a while before we can go pressing flesh in person like so many advisors have done for generations. Gone are the Chamber meet-and-greets and going door-to-door doing face-to-face prospecting with business owners.

But people still have financial needs, and we’ve got to find ways to reach them. Don’t get call shy! Now more than ever, people need to hear from us!

That means most of us need to be upgrading and modernizing our marketing approach in the Era of COVID.

Advice for New Financial Advisors – 8 Things Veteran Advisors Wish They Knew When They First Started Out

April 20, 2020 / by Don Connelly / Best Practices / 0 comments

“Experience is the best teacher. But only a fool learns by no other.”

This is a slight misquotation of Benjamin Franklin. But the idea is sound: We all can and should learn from the mistakes and experiences of those who came before us.

And advisors are certainly making mistakes! Somewhere between 70 and 90 percent of financial advisor trainees are out of the business by their fourth year. And too many of those who survive aren’t thriving.

So we asked some veteran financial advisors what they wished they knew when they first started out in this business, or what they would do differently if they could start over. There was a lot of variation in the details, but most of them had these themes in common.

11 Must-Have First-Year Financial Advisor Goals

March 23, 2020 / by Don Connelly / Best Practices / 0 comments

It’s tough making it through your first year in the financial advisor business. It’s going to be even tougher without some specific goals to give you focus. If you set goals though, you’ll have some framework for deciding how to manage your time and money.

Your first=year financial advisor goals should be as specific as possible – so you know when you’ve achieved them. And write them down: People who write down their goals are 33% more successful at attaining them than people who keep their goals in their heads.

Here are some of the most important objectives for your first year as a financial advisor.

4 Fears Prospecting Can Eliminate for You

January 1, 2018 / by Don Connelly / Prospecting / 0 comments

Prospecting is the backbone of your business. Nothing happens until you get yourself in front of potential clients – which is why the most successful advisors are generally those who regularly prospect right through their careers.

The more you prospect, the more proficient you will become and the more business you will secure. The act of prospecting also empowers you and helps you to overcome your fears.

Here are four such fears that prospecting can eliminate for you.

Put in The Effort if You Want to Become The Most Sought-after Financial Advisor in Town

April 24, 2017 / by Don Connelly / Best Practices / 0 comments

To become a truly elite financial advisor you need to have an incredible work ethic. If you’re new to the business, you will need to spend most of your time actively prospecting and looking for clients. It could take years to build a solid client base – but when you have built up the right clientele, you will be rewarded with a pool of people who are happy and willing to provide you with referrals.

To achieve this enviable position, continually visualize yourself as a first-class advisor. Program that picture into your subconscious mind. Then work harder than any other advisor, perfect your soft skills, earn referrals and make this dream a reality.