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As an advisor, it can be challenging to separate yourself from the services you provide.
Nowhere is this more pronounced than at the beginning of your sales process.
For decades, the standard sales approach has been to control the conversation with your knowledge and expertise, in an attempt to prove show your value.
When you hear their concerns, you instinct is often to counter them with examples of how you’ve solved similar issues in the past.
If you see they have questions about a certain topic, you make an effort to explain the answer in a way that shows your competence.
This is what’s known as “the expert sale”.
The idea being, you’re the product your prospect is buying, and their decision to hire you depends on how well you communicate your skills and expertise.
In the past, before the world became commoditized, this process worked.
It was easy to onboard prospects because it was obvious you knew more than they did about how to solve their problem.
While you still have an advantage in that area, the world we live in now is far different.
Today, the expert approach, which involves you talking about yourself and what you do, often leads to indecisiveness, defensiveness, and “ghosting” from prospects who were likely a good fit.
In order to understand this new phenomenon, it’s important to take a step back, and view things from your potential client’s point of view.
At the click of a button, they’re now able to access more information than ever before.
Your counterparts have flooded the market with blogs, articles, and videos explaining the “one unique solution” that will solve all of their issues.
While this advice satisfies a temporary urge to know more, they quickly become overwhelmed.
Unable to decide whose guidance is correct, they view everyone as a commodity.
What’s worse, advice is now seen as persuasion -- a sales tactic used to get them to think a certain way just so they buy you.
This disconnect between the intention of your sales process, and how it’s perceived, stumps many advisors who believe they just need more time to display their value.
When you choose to lead the conversation by talking about your experience and solutions, you break the most precious asset in today’s environment -- their trust.
In your prospect's mind, even though they may not consciously be aware of it, they aren’t buying access to an expert.
They’re buying a feeling that you understand their deepest issues, concerns, and desires, without an agenda to move them forward.
They will happily listen to your advice, once they know you truly care more about them, more than getting a paid client.
To escape commoditization and indecisiveness, let go of proving yourself as an expert, and instead -- be a trusted authority.
A trusted authority listens more than they speak, and makes a point to unpack their prospects' problems to build a connection and foundation of trust before offering advice.
It’s the clarity that comes from finally understanding their situation from a 360-degree perspective, and knowing you were the one to help them see things clearly, that leads to them naturally wanting to work with you.
When you shift your approach, you’ll instantly see the difference in how your potential clients respond to you and how quickly they’ll ask for your help without resistance or defensiveness.
If you’d like to know more about the trust-based selling framework, and how you can become a trusted authority in your market, order your complimentary books and consultation below.
Related: “They Just Weren’t a Fit” – The Excuse Holding You Back
Get Ari’s 6 best-selling books for FREE here and you’ll also receive a Complimentary Sales and Lead Generation Consultation (value $995.00). Ari Galper is the world’s number one authority on trust-based selling and is the most sought-after high-net-worth new client acquisition expert for financial advisors. His latest books "Are You Chasing Ghosts", "Trusted Authority" and "Trust In A Split Second" have become instant best-sellers among financial advisors worldwide, get your free books here.