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The lifetime value of our clients is not just how you may serve them over a lifetime, it’s also who they can introduce you to over the lifetime of the relationship.
By not going deeper with your client relationships, you may be missing opportunities to:
- Serve your clients more completely.
- Get introductions to quality prospects.
Don’t Work with Your Clients in a Vacuum
- FACT: money intersects all aspects of one’s life.
- FACT: most clients make financial decisions that impact others.
- FACT: most clients are impacted by the financial decisions of others.
CONCLUSION: You can not be the best financial advisor, planner, guide, or consultant to your clients if you don’t take the above facts into consideration.
Context is Critical
The more context you have about your prospects and clients, the more valuable you are to them. The more valuable you are to them, the more loyal they become and the more referable you become.
Build an Inventory of Opportunity
A beautiful byproduct of your purposeful efforts to get to know your prospects and clients better – to serve them better – you will also build an inventory of opportunities for introductions.
Meaning, you will learn about others in their life who should probably know about the work that you do. And, at the right time, you can ask your clients for introductions to those people.
3 Goldmines for You to Explore
1. Their Family Network
Some advisors only explore these relationships when the client brings them up or they come up by chance in conversation.
I recommend that you become more purposeful here. Ask them, “Who in your life is likely to be impacted by the financial decisions you make?” This question is about more than just the beneficiaries of their life insurance or estate. For example, who might be impacted if you or a spouse needs long-term care?
One advisor I interviewed recently asks his clients, “Other than your children, is there anyone else in your life for whom you might have financial responsibility?” He often learns of siblings who have children with special needs and all sorts of other situations that allow him to help his clients make better financial decisions and that often leads to new clients to serve.
2. Their Community Network
Learn if your prospects and clients are involved in any sort of community service or philanthropic activities. Discover the level of their involvement.
Are there financial decisions related to this activity that might benefit from your knowledge and wisdom? (Maybe life insurance with an organization as the beneficiary?)
Can you deepen your relationship with your client by attending one of these organizations’ events? Might you speak to this organization or get introduced to some of its key members?
3. Their Business/Work Network
As with their community involvement, the same goes for their business and work relationships.
For example, if your client is a small business owner, is he or she involved in their trade or professional association? How involved? Leadership role – past or current?
Is there an opportunity for introductions to individuals or to make a presentation?
I have often coached advisors to look into attending their clients’ business (and community) events with them. Imagine walking through a business event with your client and having him/her introduce you as their financial advisor. Very powerful and effective.
Ideas are worthless without action. What new actions or forgotten actions might you start taking as a result of this article? Get started today. Let me know what happens.
Related: 5 Things You Must Do To Prepare for a Referral Meeting