/ by Don Connelly / Managing the Relationship / 0 comments
Client complaints—it happens to the best of us. Some financial advisors go for years without receiving a client complaint. But it will happen, and when it does, it can seemingly come out of left field. Most client complaints are unexpected, which is why advisors must be able to quickly shift into rapid response gear or risk losing a client.
We’ve posted in the past about the importance of having a systematic communications strategy in developing solid, trusted, and enduring client relationships. As part of that strategy, advisors need a well-conceived, written process for responding to client complaints. The hope is that you will never need to use it, the same way pilots hope never to have to execute emergency landing procedures—but they know the procedure inside and out.
While losing a client’s trust is not nearly as consequential, it can be avoided, even strengthened, if you adhere to your own procedural checklist of best practices for effectively handling your next client complaint.
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A Guide to Securing Second Meetings with Prospects: Turning First Impressions into Lasting Partnerships
/ by Don Connelly / Best Practices / 0 comments
It’s no exaggeration to say that the initial meeting with a prospective client is a make-or-break moment that sets the tone for the relationship and determines whether it will continue in a second meeting. The initial meeting is a crucial dance between the advisor and a naturally skeptical prospect who wants to know why they should work with you.
In a crowded field of financial advisors, the initial meeting presents a critical opportunity to differentiate yourself. Prospects are likely to meet with multiple advisors. You must make the prospect feel they’re making the right choice in working with you and that they should expect an advisory experience with you that they can’t get from anyone else. That’s a tall order.
But if you’re organized, practiced, and have the end in mind—a second meeting with the prospect—you can make each initial meeting a success.
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How to Regain the Trust of a Client After a Disagreement
/ by Don Connelly / Managing the Relationship / 0 comments
Can you think of any relationship that has never experienced conflict—where two people with the best of intentions fail to see eye to eye on an issue? Such is the nature of relationships, even where there is a track record of trust. You expect it in a marriage and even among colleagues—so why not between a financial advisor and their client?
It happens more than you might think. Financial advisors are wired to be analytical, while clients are often driven by emotion, which sets the stage for many “reality vs. perception” standoffs.
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Your Best Practices Checklist for Resolving Client Complaints
/ by Don Connelly / Managing the Relationship / 0 comments
Client complaints—it happens to the best of us. Some financial advisors go for years without receiving a client complaint. But it will happen, and when it does, it can seemingly come out of left field. Most client complaints are unexpected, which is why advisors must be able to quickly shift into rapid response gear or risk losing a client.
We’ve posted in the past about the importance of having a systematic communications strategy in developing solid, trusted, and enduring client relationships. As part of that strategy, advisors need a well-conceived, written process for responding to client complaints. The hope is that you will never need to use it, the same way pilots hope never to have to execute emergency landing procedures—but they know the procedure inside and out.
While losing a client’s trust is not nearly as consequential, it can be avoided, even strengthened, if you adhere to your own procedural checklist of best practices for effectively handling your next client complaint.
Read more
5 Reasons Financial Advisor Webinars Fail
/ by Don Connelly / Marketing Yourself / 0 comments
During the pandemic, advisors seeking to gather and engage with targeted audiences had no choice but to take their show online. For those who studied and implemented the best practices of webinar marketing, the results have been excellent, producing waves of new prospects at a fraction of the cost of in-person seminars.
In this post-pandemic environment, webinars continue to be highly effective when done right. For people seeking financial information, attending online venues from the comfort of their homes or offices has become much more preferable than in-person seminars.
While putting on a webinar can be as easy as creating a PowerPoint, uploading it to a presentation platform, and making a link available, there is no guarantee of success. In fact, there are plenty of reasons why financial advisor webinars often fail. Here are five such reasons.
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First Meeting with a New Client—Preparation Checklist
/ by Don Connelly / Managing the Relationship / 0 comments
The first meeting with a new client should be a momentous event for both you and the client. For your client, it’s the first opportunity to validate their decision to select you as their advisor. For you, it’s the first opportunity to showcase your professionalism and reinforce your new client’s decision. You both hope this will be the beginning of a long and trusting relationship.
As you prepare for your first client meeting, it’s critical to remember that you are being carefully evaluated. Your new client is essentially taking a leap of faith in choosing you, and you must always strive to make them feel like they have made the right choice. With that in mind, your first meeting sets the tone for the entire relationship. Plan it with care.
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The File Note: How to Increase Your Closing Rates to 9 out of 10 in Life Insurance Sales
/ by Russell Collins / Connelly Corner, Presentation Skills / 0 comments
At the conclusion of my previous guest post – “Making Every Initial Meeting with a Prospect Successful” – I mentioned that if I could point to one thing that increased my closing rate to 9 out of 10, it was the file note. This in effect acted as a pre-presentation vehicle and I believe it motivated people to really look forward to our next meeting and my eventual recommendations.
Here’s how to start using the file note to increase your life insurance sales.
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5 Cold Calling Mistakes Financial Advisors Must Avoid to Improve Results
/ by Don Connelly / Prospecting / 0 comments
For many financial advisors, cold calling does not play a dominant part in their marketing plans. Many feel it can be replaced by other prospecting methods, such as email campaigns, social media networking, or trade shows. But would it surprise you to know that cold calling still generates better results than those other methods? When you ask advisors why they avoid cold calling, you often get responses like, “It’s not working for me,” or “It’s a waste of time,” or “no one wants to talk to me on the phone.”
No one ever said cold calling is easy. But if your efforts aren’t producing results, have you ever considered it’s not the method, but how you’re executing it that’s not working?
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8 Tips to Revive Your In-Person Seminar Marketing
/ by Don Connelly / Marketing Yourself / 0 comments
Financial advisors have long favored in-person seminars as an effective prospecting tool. That changed when the pandemic hit, forcing advisors to adapt, using online webinars and Zoom meetings. But, while online webinars have been helpful in broadening advisors’ reach, they haven’t necessarily led to more appointments for some Advisors—certainly not at the level of in-person seminars. If that is true for you too, with the pandemic receding, it may be time to get back to tried-and-true in-person seminars.
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How to Become Top of Mind with Your Clients and Prospects
/ by Don Connelly / Marketing Yourself / 0 comments
As a financial advisor, you can’t always be there when a client or prospect has a need. You can only hope that you’re the first person they think of when they want to discuss it or when one of your clients is asked to recommend an advisor. That’s where top-of-mind awareness comes in. If you can develop it effectively, your name is more likely to be the first to come to mind when they have a need.
Chances are, when you crave a cola, you think Coca Cola. That’s because Coke spends hundreds of millions of dollars on advertising to ensure you do. You want that same reflexive thought to occur with your clients and prospects, but you don’t have to blow out your budget to create similar top-of-mind awareness. The objective of a top-of-mind strategy is to be remembered, and you can accomplish that with five easy steps.
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Financial Advisors: What You Should Be Doing During the Holidays
/ by Don Connelly / Best Practices / 0 comments
First things first: Use the Holidays to spend time with friends and family. That’s what you want for your clients; That’s what I want for you. Recharge your batteries, and remember why you’re working so hard: To provide a better life for the people you love.
Besides: The immediate return on investment (ROI) of generic cold calling techniques tends to decline after Thanksgiving. Not that it doesn’t pay off eventually. I’m a hard-core prospector, and I hope you are, too. Smart prospecting always pays off in the long run. But it’ll take a little longer to pay off at the end of the year, because you’ll get a lot of people saying, “call me again after the Holidays.”
So, if you’re going to take some time off to be with the family, the Holidays are as good a time to do it as any!
Then, here are a few more holiday marketing ideas if you’re spending time at the office after all.
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