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Robert Frost has a famous poem called ‘The Road Not Taken’ in which he describes a fork in a road in the woods and how one side is clearly more traveled than the other and yet he chose the one that was less traveled and has no regrets (my paraphrase). This, believe it or not, is very applicable to getting more #referrals from #centersofinfluence (COI).
We all know that referrals from COI’s are key to success, right behind the number one source of predictable referrals from our satisfied clients. The problem is that, in many cases at the basic level, COI’s are one of the most competitive relationships we have as financial advisors/planners.
I am thinking of the big two: CPA’s and attorneys.
You have to refer to these professionals as a part of your process and it can be frustrating to (a) get any referrals back and (b) when you get a good relationship started with one be able to protect that referral source from the hordes of competitors. Remember, there are more of YOU than of THEM.
Before I dive deeper into why you will want to focus less on the traditional two and go farther afield let me state for the record that if you can get one of those top referral partners to be productive…keep nurturing that relationship!
Why don’t I have my clients focus on CPA’s and attorneys as primary COI’s? Simple answer: they get most of their clients from professionals just like you.
Get it? When you go to these traditional referral sources and expect them to give you current clients of theirs you are actually asking them to betray other professionals that gave them those clients. This is why most CPA’s and attorneys are, at best, lukewarm referral sources. Stop asking them and expecting them to give you clients that other people gave to them.
For clients of mine we dive much deeper into how to get more referrals from those sources, but today I want to talk about something that is even better and likely to produce quicker: non-traditional COI’s
What are we looking for?
- Position
- Reputation
- Influence
- Willingness
The best COI’s have all the above. They are in position to refer you directly into your target market (you have one right?). They are possessed of a reputation in the community/profession that makes them credible and trustworthy. They have influence with others and are willing to use that influence to benefit you if you are in a position of trust with them.
What are some examples? Well it depends upon your target market. For now let's assume you are a fellow CEPA (Certified Exit Planning Advisor) with me and an active member of the Exit Planning Institute looking to help business owners create value and profit now and better options/multiples at a future exit.
What you need to do is examine the many professionals/business owners that naturally intersect with your target market and have all four of the above qualities.
First action item: Examine your current network to see who you might have that you already have a relationship with. Always start with ‘current inventory’ as you have already paid (at least in part) the sunk cost of building trust. Remember: it is always easier to take a current relationship and ‘tune it up’ than to begin from scratch.
Next action item: Where are the gaps? What professions are you missing? Remember, that business owners have homes and personal lives as well. There will always be influential people on the residential and commercial side of their lives…you just need to figure out which of them are actually in position to refer.
Here are some examples of professionals you might look for:
- Commercial Insurance - these professionals can have lots of business owner clients that they are very influential with
- Commercial Realtor - less volume than the insurance, but still vital
- Commercial Fleet Sales - these are the folks that get you into the service companies
- Cyber Security Consultant - increasingly vital and influential
- Credit Card Processing (independent) - want to work with millionaires? These people (independent ones) have dozens of them in their client base and have access
- High end personal trainer - they got time and they have influence
Those are just some of the dozens of opportunities for you to build a massive and profitable group of COI’s. The key is to step off of the well travelled road of traditional COI’s and look a bit farther afield. Trust me when I tell you that at almost 30 years of experience in this game…the next level is in the non-traditional COI’s.
Related: Are You Worth Meeting?