It would seem like a nice problem to have — too many clients. Unfortunately many reps have too many of the wrong type of clients.
It doesn't have to be this way, of course. We are in the midst of arguably the best affluent client acquisition environment of our lifetime. A variety of factors are making it thus: ample affluent dollars, client dissatisfaction with their current advisors and increasing financial complexity that favors sophisticated advisors.
In such a climate, you would expect that every financial advisor would be prospecting feverishly, yet only a small percentage are actually exerting that level of effort. Why is that? Is it because they are not sure what marketing methods to pursue? Maybe. Do they lack the requisite skills? Possibly. However, methods can be learned and skills can be developed. The real issue is not lack of opportunity, methods, or skills; it's mindset.
It's All in the…Well, You Know
The mind is your greatest sales tool. It's the only thing that can pull you away from playing numbers games, get you to stop complaining about the lack of opportunity and skills, and enable you to take bold steps forward. Imagine that you have committed to the following 12-month goals:
- Establish your ideal affluent client — $1 million in investable assets.
- Land 15 new ideal clients.
- Gather $20 million in new client assets.
- Increase revenue to $325,000.
In order for you to become obsessed with pursuing your goals, you must be able to transform these raw aspirations into something that stimulates your imagination, something that kicks your mind into high gear. For example, picture a great tangible reward at the end of the 12 months — a new entertainment center, perhaps, or a new car. Or, if such creature comforts do not move you, try imagining yourself being congratulated by your colleagues, family, friends and coach for your great achievement.
In terms of executing your plan, it might help to approach your ideal practice as you might the making of a movie. As the producer, first create the goal — the movie, if you will — in your mind. Then determine what is required to produce the movie and to direct each action scene (your daily activities). You are the star of this movie, playing your part with great feeling and imagination and creativity. The end product, your selected visualized image, will be the direct result of the creative genius within your human spirit.
Be the Ball
Visualization is a well-known mental exercise used by many athletes. Golfing great Jack Nicklaus perfected his game by visualizing every stroke of every round, in each tournament. He was so protective of this internal programming that when asked by a reporter to discuss his most difficult hole just prior to the 1986 Masters, Nicklaus abruptly terminated the interview. After making history by becoming the oldest golfer to win golf's most coveted tournament, he explained his uncharacteristic termination of that pre-tournament interview by saying, “I did not want to be on the 15th hole on the last day, and have any doubts in my mind. If I had discussed the difficulty of that hole, I would have increased my chances of focusing on the obstacles. I needed instead to focus on scoring to have a chance to win.”
Whether you are professional golfer or a professional rainmaker, the power unleashed by visualizing your goals is indisputable. By visualizing not only your goals, but also the successful completion of your fixed daily activities, you will be using your mind power in the manner of a Jack Nicklaus. You will be developing the mindset required of a rainmaker.
Writer's BIO: Matt Oechsli is author of Building a Successful 21st Century Financial Practice: Attracting, Servicing & Retaining Affluent Clients.
oechsli.com