getting referrals Archives - Don Connelly & Associates

Best Referral Sources for Financial Advisors

/ by Don Connelly / Prospecting / 0 comments

Any financial advisor who’s been in business for more than a minute knows the best way to grow a practice is through referrals. We’re taught from the very beginning that the best source of quality referrals is from clients. Advisors who focus on differentiating themselves by delivering exceptional, highly personalized services to their clients are often rewarded with referrals.

But clients aren’t the only source of referrals. Many highly successful advisors create a comprehensive referral marketing strategy that taps multiple sources. While building a fruitful referral network can take time and effort, it is the one sure way to establish a steady stream of qualified prospects.

Here are five of the best referral sources financial advisors can develop.

How to Get More Unsolicited Referrals from Clients

/ by Don Connelly / Prospecting / 0 comments

Ask any successful advisor what the key to their success is, and they’ll tell you—referrals. You can’t grow a profitable practice without a steady stream of referrals. When you ask for and receive a referral, it’s an indication that you impressed your client enough to act on your request. But what if you didn’t have to ask for referrals? What if your clients were so impressed with you that they took the time to share their experience with someone without you having to ask?

You know what that feels like if it’s happened to you. But, for many advisors, it happens so rarely that it’s a major shock when it does. So, how do you make it happen consistently enough to make it an expectation?

5 Reasons Advisors Need a Well-Conceived, Systematic Communications Strategy

/ by Don Connelly / Managing the Relationship / 0 comments

Financial advisors are reaching a pivotal moment that will shape their future. An increasingly competitive landscape, fee compression, the commoditization of advice, and increasing client expectations make client satisfaction, retention, and referrals more essential than ever. As advisors struggle to differentiate themselves in a sea of sameness, I always reach back to the time-tested solution: good communication.

If you have been following my blog for a while, you’re familiar with my core belief that communication is vital to developing solid and enduring relationships. You simply can’t form trusted relationships without good communication.

Most clients don’t feel engaged with their Advisor

5 Risks You Run If You Grow Your Practice Too Fast

/ by Don Connelly / Best Practices / 0 comments

It’s natural to strive to grow your business, but too rapid a growth can bring with it a host of problems. By taking on too many clients and ‘running before you can walk’ you might damage your practice in the long run.

“The fuel of persistence is patience, the ability to tolerate delays while persisting.”

Elite advisors all share an important trait – that of patience. It doesn’t matter how good you are at your job. If you don’t see that success requires time and effort, you will remain at a mediocre level.

Here are five consequences of attempting to grow your practice too fast.

Why You Need a Referral Strategy and How to Develop One

/ by Don Connelly / Prospecting / 3 comments

Many advisors are uncomfortable asking clients outright for referrals, finding it hard to strike a balance between being aboveboard about wanting to acquire new business and being pushy or needy.

If that sounds like you, then you need to change your mindset because there are only three ways to gather new clients: From existing clients, people you know who are not yet clients, and people you don’t know yet. The best way by far to find new clients is via referrals.

Use Your Clients as Your Sales Force

/ by Don Connelly / Prospecting / 0 comments

Use clients as your sales force - welcome to Don Connelly 247

A few years ago I got a question from Ryan who was wondering if I could give him some tips on how to increase the word of mouth that his clients give on his behalf and perhaps help to bring in more referrals.

Listen to the recording of my conversation with Ryan or read the transcript below to learn what I suggest he does and how he can use his clients as his sales force.

An Idea on Getting Referrals and Thanking Clients

/ by Don Connelly / Managing the Relationship, Prospecting / 0 comments

I have a friend who every year has a dinner for those clients who gave him a referral that became a new account during the year.

Watch the video below or read the transcript to learn the details about the referral dinner concept.

Three Major Challenges Financial Advisors Face when Acquiring Clients

/ by Don Connelly / Marketing Yourself / 0 comments

Pinpointing the main challenges Financial Advisors face in their daily work is a challenge in itself, considering there are so many. But here are three of the most often cited pain points – with a few tips on how to address them.

#1. Getting referrals

If like a lot of other advisors, you often find it difficult to ask for referrals it’s because asking for referrals is essentially like asking for help to grow your business. And having to ask for someone’s help feels like admitting that your business is deficient in some way. Asking for referrals also means facing up to your fear of rejection.