simple truths for investors Archives - Page 2 of 5

How to Build Your Story-Benefit Matrix

/ by Don Connelly / Storytelling, analogies and power phrases / 0 comments

Last week I blogged about a useful sales tool called a story-benefit matrix, and why you should develop one for your practice. Just going through the process is beneficial: It forces you to think through a number of different ways your prospective client will benefit by working with you – and gives you an opportunity to help tell an illustrative story that will cement that case.

It’s basic “soft-skills” at work.

But it’s helpful to understand how to build one yourself, so let me help you with that.

Reasons Clients Need a Financial Advisor – Overcoming the Do-It-Yourself Objection

/ by Don Connelly / Investing Wisdom / 0 comments

We’ve all encountered them: The prospect or client who wants to go it alone. They want to manage their own portfolio.

Well, here’s one approach you can use:

First, ask the question, “Can I share something with you?” (I like this phrase because it’s non-confrontational. It doesn’t activate the prospect’s ego, leading to an argument you can’t win. It neutralizes it.

Then you can show them the latest DALBAR study.

It doesn’t matter much what year you use. The results for individual DIY investors are almost always dismal: According to the 2019 DALBAR Quantitative Analysis of Investor Behavior, the typical do-it-yourselfer achieved an annual real return of just 1.71%.

Compared with the S&P 500, do-it-yourself investors lagged the S&P 500 by huge margins:

• 4.35 percentage points, annualized, over five years;
• 3.46 percentage points, annualized, over 10 years;

The reason: Bad market timing decisions. People pile into the market at the wrong times, and then they panic and sell at the wrong times.

Why? Because people are irrational, and are hardwired to make sub-optimal decisions.

4 Things You Can Only Achieve with Effective Communication Skills

/ by Don Connelly / Best Practices / 0 comments

Effective communication skills are essential if you are to achieve successful outcomes for your business. Here are 4 relationship goals you should be striving for, along with the requisite soft skills you must possess if you are to realize them.

How to Help Clients Make Good Decisions

/ by Don Connelly / Managing the Relationship / 0 comments

Your job is as much about managing relationships as it is about managing money. You need to establish close ties with your clients so you can become a positive influence in their lives over the long term. Unless you can steer your clients into making good decisions you not only risk losing them as clients – but you are doing them a disfavor – because you are allowing them to make potentially disastrous financial decisions.

Here are a few things you can do to influence your clients’ decisions positively.

Three Types of Prospects Most Likely to Object and How to Win Them Over

/ by Don Connelly / Prospecting / 0 comments

During your career, you will meet with prospects who are ready with a reason not to invest. It’s up to you to recognize what camp they fall into objection-wise, so you can counter with the right response. Make it your aim to deal with their objections before you give your presentation.

Here are three types of prospects – and objections – to look out for.

There Are Three Main Ways to Gather New Clients

/ by Don Connelly / Prospecting / 0 comments

There are three main ways to gather new clients and grow your business. To excel, you should put your effort into mastering all three of them.

1. Acquiring new clients from existing clients
Referrals are by far and away the best way to gather new clients. And the only way you can earn referrals is by becoming referable – which will only happen once your clients feel you’re delivering them a 5-star service.

Clients won’t refer you until you become part of their inner circle, when you become someone they like and trust on both a personal and professional level.

Self-sabotage – 10 Behaviors to Avoid

/ by Don Connelly / Best Practices / 0 comments

Self-sabotaging behaviors can create problems, interfere with goals and ultimately put your career at risk. Without even realizing it you could be a victim of self-sabotage. Be honest and identify the traits that are holding you back so you can make the positive changes required to move forward.

Here are ten ways you could be self-sabotaging – along with some recommendations on how to do things better.

4 Misconceptions about Market Volatility Your Clients Need to Be Aware of

/ by Don Connelly / Investing Wisdom / 0 comments

As a financial advisor it’s your responsibility to get your clients to stick to their financial plan for the long term. This means you’ll need to change any pre-conceived notions they may have about market volatility. In particular, you need to get across that volatility does not equate to risk or loss.

Here are some common misconceptions about market volatility your clients may have and how to address them.

6 Analogies to Use When Convincing Clients to Stick to The Plan

/ by Don Connelly / Storytelling, analogies and power phrases / 0 comments

Stories and analogies are great ways to capture a client’s attention and get them to see things from a different perspective. When used correctly they’re highly useful tools to help persuade clients to act in the way you want them to. Analogies are especially effective because clients come to understand what you’re saying by drawing their own conclusions.

Here are six great analogies to help your clients see that they should stick to the plan.

5 Things That Could Ruin Your Clients’ Trust in You – in Seconds

/ by Don Connelly / Managing the Relationship / 0 comments

It can take many years before clients come to know you and trust you, and during this time you’ll need to work hard to win them over. In order to earn their trust, you’ll need to demonstrate exemplary behavior and deliver a service that goes above and beyond.

But that’s not where it ends. It may have taken you years to build up trust but it takes just seconds to break it down. Just one slip and all that hard-won trust is gone forever. Make sure this doesn’t happen to you by avoiding the following behaviors.

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