Your Financial Planning Businesses – Easy or Hard?

At the end of a client engagement meeting or a presentation to a group of prospects (workshop, seminar, private client briefing, corporate super member presentation….), you can ask for applause or you can ask for money.

It’s very difficult to do both, so choose wisely.

When I was 14, I heard a Fremantle busker yell to the crowd at the end of his act:

‘Don’t Clap, Throw Money‘

This last 7 days, I’ve seen 2 examples where financial planners have lost clients because they asked for feedback and if the prospect was happy with the meeting instead of getting a commitment to act there and then. They promised to do a heap of preliminary work and quotes and projections and scenarios and come back with a ‘draft strategy’ or a ‘proposal’ for the prospect to then consider proceeding with….

I THINK IT’S A MISTAKE, FOR 3 REASONS;

1. MINDSET – Think about it – A draft proposal puts people in the mindset of a critic. Critics don’t buy, they judge. Do you want them focused on your technical skills, or on getting their needs met by engaging you?
2. CONFUSION – The old Indian saying is right: ‘Man who chases 2 rabbits, catches none’. Having an initial meeting and then having to ‘re-impress’ is confusing. Give people one single job, not split focus.
3. UTILITY – Most of your prospects are unqualified to give you feedback on your draft proposal anyway…. What inevitably happens is that they choose on price or cost or get opinions from other sources.

Please don’t take this the wrong way… I love the applause as much as anyone, and I always want to know how to improve. But it’s all about purpose, and knowing why you’re there.

If you’re there to engage with the right prospects, deliver a rocking presentation, add enormous value and transform your prospects life…, then stay on purpose.

When you’re done, you don’t want their opinion… You want their commitment!!

I’ve can tell you from experience that my sales were lowest when my prospects were happy at the end of a meeting and feeling good about themselves.

Then I started to make certain that they had clearly told me about all the details around the things that they are Frustrated by, what the Fear most, their biggest Wants and their most desired Aspirations (it’s what we call the ‘4 Forces), and after explaining my value proposition and why it’s a no-brainer to do their financial planning work with me – I hand them the service agreement, authority to proceed and deposit form to collect the 20% before we do any work….!

There’s no room for applause, and my prospects have a minute’s silence to either fill in the form, or leave.

If you want to, add in a feedback call the next day, or send a feedback form later, that’s fine but make sure you use it to start a conversation. Begin with feedback, and move to value for them at the end.

The busker was right. ‘Don’t clap, throw money‘

Give them an application form, lose the smile and get feedback later.