How to justify your Advice Fees

Have you ever struggled with justifying your advice fees?

I got an email by a financial planner that said:

“Steve, my biggest challenge involves confidence & justifying the investment clients would make in me…” Planner Max, Singapore

So many financial planners struggle with doubt & anxiety around their advice fees, pricing, and asking to be paid like a professional for their advice. Today, I want to give you a shot in the arm to inoculate yourself from this fear, & show you the 3-step formula I use so you never have to “justify” your fees again.

First, a quickie on justification as it relates to selling your advice.

FORGET ABOUT YOU!
If you have knowledge, skills & expertise that can make a difference, then get off your nerves completely, and get into advice. Be proud of it!

IT’S ABOUT THEM.
You’re not there to prove yourself. You’re there to help a person get the results they want.

They’ve got a problem they can’t solve as fast as they want, and you can help them. Just remember they are the one with the need here. Not you!

So you’re not there to “justify” anything. Justification is focused on you, not your prospect. It’s a defensive position, and there’s nothing to defend. You don’t convert (and therefore transform) your clients’ situation by justifying yourself.

You engage the client by showing them how to get what they want and making a no-brainer offer to do it today…. An offer where your value far outweighs your fee.

… So let me share a 3-Step formula I learned from my coach – Taki More that makes prospects understand the value you bring them, and gladly pay whatever you ask.

It goes:
1- Relate
2- Educate
3- Translate

And it works in marketing just as well as it does face to face with a prospect…

RELATE | Connect with your prospects by focusing on their problems & goals. The impact on their financial situation and how that impacts them personally & emotionally.

EDUCATE | Teach them what they need to know about what they don’t know and what’s holding them back, what to look for, what to look out for, and your system for solving it.

TRANSLATE | Translate the value of the problem or solution into one of the 3 main currencies (Money, Time or Effort).

If your prospect has a big – $100,000 problem and you offer a $10,000 solution…, your advice just became a
no-brainer.

Q: What’s your prospects’ big $100,000 problem?