A lot of foolish financial advisors have taken some advice to educate their clients. But that’s a waste of time because education does not change behavior. Need proof?
You know cheesecake is high in calories and fat. Do you still eat it?
You know you should exercise everyday for best health. Do you?
You know that smoking is [...]
Financial Advisor Clients – Don’t Educate Them
July 21st, 2010Your Point of View Doesn’t Count
July 21st, 2010Many financial advisors / insurance professionals forget the simple truth about Americans. They care only about one issue–what’s in it for me? To the degree you answer that question, you get rich. To the degree you stick to your point of view, you’ll miss opportunity after opportunity. Your point of view is worthless. The only [...]
Leads and Prospects–they both require it
January 30th, 2010At our company, we ask every financial advisor and insurance agent this question, “Have you ever made an investment in your business where you invested money up front such as in a seminar, telemarketers, a direct mail campaign or advertising where you had to commit the money up front? “ Fifty percent answer “no.” (More [...]
Insurance Prospecting Gone Wrong
January 29th, 2010It continually shocks us that so many people (insurance agents, stockbrokers, financial planners) are recruited into financial services with no sense of how to grow a large business. We think this is due to the short term orientation of the people or companies that recruit them. These new recruits may be looked at as merely [...]
Brokerville says You Should Never Prospect for Clients
May 21st, 2009Every manager has told you that prospecting is the life blood of your business. We say don’t do it. Prospecting is the activity of a sales laborer and not a sales professional. As a sales professional, your time is far too valuable for this clerical, time intensive activity.
Understand that prospecting is the monotonous activity of [...]
The Fuel to Double Your Business
March 23rd, 2009Most business owners think that to grow their business, it takes more money or more personnel. But maybe another ingredient is more important, the ingredient of trust in business.
As an illustration of the importance of trust in business, consider the financial crisis. It’s not a financial crisis or liquidity, it’s a crisis of trust. One [...]
When Financial Advisors Miss the Big Picture
March 20th, 2009It’s important to understand the big picture and how to make money as a financial advisor.
Your goal is to have face to face meetings with prospects who meet two criteria:
1. The prospect has money in their control (i.e. not tied up in a 401k)
2. The prospect is interested in opportunities to do better with their money
If you [...]
Investor Risk Profiles are Useless
February 7th, 2009Whenever you give investment recommendations, you assume an obligation to make sure that your selections are suitable for your clients. One factor that you probably consider is their tolerance for risk. How might clients react if their accounts lost 10%, 20%, or more? Would they understand that it was just a bump in the road [...]
Is your business down? It’s not about the market.
January 21st, 2009In the last 12 months, the world has changed a lot. Has your business changed or has your approach remained the same even when your prospects have different concerns? This is the Achilles heel of most financial advisors—as the world changes and prospects have different concerns, advisors continue to:
Sell the same things
Say the same things
Do [...]
