Peter Mancell
Mel Brooks once said “Hope for the best. Expect the worse. Life is a play. We’re unrehearsed.”
While I agree with the first part – hoping for the best and expecting the worst, there’s no excuse to be unrehearsed if you regard ‘the worst’ as a possibility.
And it’s that philosophy that leads me to the question – when it comes to a client meeting will you be proactive or reactive?
Communicating effectively
A client meeting is booked. It might be a review. The client might be a long-term client, but they catch you off guard by raising some irritations – real or perceived. This can be a real problem if you go into every client meeting expecting bouquets. Less so if you’ve thoroughly prepared in case there is brickbat waiting.
If you deem your service as excellent and consider you provide value to your client, you should have no problem articulating what you’ve done. You should also be able to spell out how you’ve created value for a client over multiple time frames. It’s not hard to remind yourself when your financial planning software should have a history of tasks to refresh your memory specifically relating to every client.
Being thoroughly versed in the value you’ve created should be your number one priority before any meeting. Being flat-footed or wishy-washy will only lead to doubts in a client’s mind. And remember, people talk. If you’re not thoroughly communicating and leaving an impression of value, you’re susceptible to losing your client through some unintentional BBQ marketing. The client of another financial planner who has better articulated themselves may communicate their value during a social gathering.
Know your numbers
When it’s a question of investment returns it’s not hard to have a client’s returns available. Similarly their relevant benchmark on hand for comparison. Yet you shouldn’t expect to sit there and glibly quote them and that be the end of it.
For clients who’ve made withdrawals along the journey, you really need to be prepared for perceived concerns. One of the biggest can come in the form of a stagnant portfolio balance. These clients may recall the figure they walked in the door with and compare it to the similar figure their portfolio represents now and wonder what you’ve done for them.
What they can ignore are those multiple withdrawals they’ve made over that timeframe. They often forget how quickly those withdrawals add up. These withdrawals need to form a part of every meeting’s communication strategy.
A client understanding their initial investment of $150,000 a decade ago has remained stable despite them having withdrawn $100,000 across that time reflects proactive communication. A client wondering why they still only have $150,000 after a decade and you having to remind them they’ve withdrawn $100,000 across that time is reactive communication.
Correcting misconceptions before they occur means you’re a long way towards happier clients and being on the right side of some client BBQ marketing yourself.
Peter is the managing director of FYG Planners. He is a Certified Financial Planner (CFP) who started in the financial services industry in 1981. A specialist in business development, Peter’s role primarily focuses on providing strategic planning advice to FYG Planners on its future direction, improving the technical skill base of the group, identifying business growth opportunities and services that can be developed for use by FYG Planners Advisers. Peter is also the founder of Mancell Financial Group, one of only six CEFEX certified fiduciary financial advisors in Australia.
Via: No More Practice
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