A lot of people on this forum will tell you to lead with XYZ product, which to me is another way of saying "I don't know any more than the other guy what's going on, but I have some really cool products on which I earn a nice commission."  But that's just me.  I'm guessing this works for a good salesman with a naive customer.  But if what you're really selling is yourself, then it's pretty lame IMHO.

My advice:  think less about your script and more about your value proposition.  Why did you get into this business and how are you different?  Almost no one is happy with the advice they have received the past two (or ten) years. With that comes distrust of advisors in general.  You'd better be quick in getting to how you are different and why YOU can be trusted.  In this market, don't ask the prospect if they're unhappy; assume they are.  If it's a bad assumption, well, you probably weren't going to get that client anyway.

[quote=loneMADman]

A lot of people on this forum will tell you to lead with XYZ product, which to me is another way of saying "I don't know any more than the other guy what's going on, but I have some really cool products on which I earn a nice commission."  But that's just me.  I'm guessing this works for a good salesman with a naive customer.  But if what you're really selling is yourself, then it's pretty lame IMHO.

My advice:  think less about your script and more about your value proposition.  Why did you get into this business and how are you different?  Almost no one is happy with the advice they have received the past two (or ten) years. With that comes distrust of advisors in general.  You'd better be quick in getting to how you are different and why YOU can be trusted.  In this market, don't ask the prospect if they're unhappy; assume they are.  If it's a bad assumption, well, you probably weren't going to get that client anyway.

[/quote]

The advice offered by lone is about as bad as it gets. Sorry lone.

Let me clear this up. The reason so many advise to lead with a product is because it works. That is: real people making real phone calls to tens of thousands of real homes and businesses over the past 20 plus years. If another approach was more effective, believe me, these people  would be using that approach. The products aren't cool or unique and the customers are far from naive. And, many times the commissions aren't so nice as prices are cut to the bone to win the relationship. The advisors who use this business model are using these first transactions to scale the wall of trust and gain a seat at the table. Once seated at that table it's "Game On" as the advisor will eventually, at the client's pace, move in to capture all the client's assets. The advisor will use whatever products cool and otherwise, or services and WM programs to get that job done.

Even if all you do is build a book of transactional business, what's wrong with that? Usually, much more gets built, but going from only being able to place 1000 shares of a good opportunity to 50,000 or 100,000 shares isn't a bad way to make a living. In the end, however, the relationship turns in whatever direction you turn it. Want it to go fee? You take it there. Once the wall of trust is scaled you've got the client's attention. And, in the unlikely event the client turns you down, well you've still got a bond buyer or stock buyer as a client. It's all part of having a diverse book of business.

Selling yourself is part of any presentation, but honestly, if that's all you've got and you're leading with it, good luck at Chubby's Chevy Land because that's where you are headed. It's not that you are not worthy, just no one wants to hear it. You will fail before you can get traction.

[quote=BondGuy]

[quote=loneMADman]

A lot of people on this forum will tell you to lead with XYZ product, which to me is another way of saying "I don't know any more than the other guy what's going on, but I have some really cool products on which I earn a nice commission."  But that's just me.  I'm guessing this works for a good salesman with a naive customer.  But if what you're really selling is yourself, then it's pretty lame IMHO.

My advice:  think less about your script and more about your value proposition.  Why did you get into this business and how are you different?  Almost no one is happy with the advice they have received the past two (or ten) years. With that comes distrust of advisors in general.  You'd better be quick in getting to how you are different and why YOU can be trusted.  In this market, don't ask the prospect if they're unhappy; assume they are.  If it's a bad assumption, well, you probably weren't going to get that client anyway.

[/quote]

The advice offered by lone is about as bad as it gets. Sorry lone.

Let me clear this up. The reason so many advise to lead with a product is because it works. That is: real people making real phone calls to tens of thousands of real homes and businesses over the past 20 plus years. If another approach was more effective, believe me, these people  would be using that approach. The products aren't cool or unique and the customers are far from naive. And, many times the commissions aren't so nice as prices are cut to the bone to win the relationship. The advisors who use this business model are using these first transactions to scale the wall of trust and gain a seat at the table. Once seated at that table it's "Game On" as the advisor will eventually, at the client's pace, move in to capture all the client's assets. The advisor will use whatever products cool and otherwise, or services and WM programs to get that job done.

Even if all you do is build a book of transactional business, what's wrong with that? Usually, much more gets built, but going from only being able to place 1000 shares of a good opportunity to 50,000 or 100,000 shares isn't a bad way to make a living. In the end, however, the relationship turns in whatever direction you turn it. Want it to go fee? You take it there. Once the wall of trust is scaled you've got the client's attention. And, in the unlikely event the client turns you down, well you've still got a bond buyer or stock buyer as a client. It's all part of having a diverse book of business.

Selling yourself is part of any presentation, but honestly, if that's all you've got and you're leading with it, good luck at Chubby's Chevy Land because that's where you are headed. It's not that you are not worthy, just no one wants to hear it. You will fail before you can get traction.

[/quote]

Very well stated. Especially as a new rep, if they try to present themselves as a "wealth" manager, good golly are they in for a tough hall. People like you and me have decades of experiences, and could win that fight in a heartbeat. On the other hand, if a rep simply offers a product that said client is already interested in, there isn't much objection. After many years, I concluded that in order for me to really succeed, I'd need to confirm the underpinnings of every great business relationship.... Like/Trust/Knowledge. I prefer to do that over time, instead of ram it down their throat at the first meeting, and get them to sign off on my version of "all your money into my wealth management plan".

BondGuy, I'm sure you'll agree, that sadly, most firms today teach new reps sales tactics that either don't work well, or are designed exclusively to enrich the firm.

[quote=loneMADman]

A lot of people on this forum will tell you to lead with XYZ product, which to me is another way of saying "I don't know any more than the other guy what's going on, but I have some really cool products on which I earn a nice commission."  But that's just me.  I'm guessing this works for a good salesman with a naive customer.  But if what you're really selling is yourself, then it's pretty lame IMHO.

My advice:  think less about your script and more about your value proposition.  Why did you get into this business and how are you different?  Almost no one is happy with the advice they have received the past two (or ten) years. With that comes distrust of advisors in general.  You'd better be quick in getting to how you are different and why YOU can be trusted.  In this market, don't ask the prospect if they're unhappy; assume they are.  If it's a bad assumption, well, you probably weren't going to get that client anyway.

[/quote]

I'm sitting here, and wondering what would happen if you stumbled into one of my A or B book clients. The reason why my clients do biz with me in a big way, is because they like me, trust me, and find me knowledgeable (surprisingly, results are low on the list). That took many years for me to establish with the client. In the last 10 yrs, I've lost maybe 3-4 really big accounts. Two of them were lost because my firm was going bankrupt, but imagine that 250 100k+ clients stuck with me even though our firm which was headquartered in my urban area was in the news ALL DAY LONG. One or two accounts were lost due to personality conflicts. The only customer/clients that I lost in any meaningful number, were households that were less than 25k, with almost each one going off to Ed Jones. Knowing the accounts for years, I really should have just thanked the Ed Jones rep for taking away some of my Financial Social Work relations. 

Getting the A or B book clients of another rep, is much harder than you might think. Where I think the "gold" really is, is taking the C book that is worth far more than the currently assigned rep realizes. Money in motion would also be my focus if I started all over again. BondGuy's approach also benefits a starting rep in another majorly important way for a new rep. You open accounts and gather assets much faster than doing advanced financial planning. If all you focused on for 2 years was opening good households, you'd have every household you'd ever need after that nasty phone pounding stretch. Afterwards, you'd simply cultivate that relationship pool and gather more and more assets. Then, after that 2-3 yrs stretch, you just kick back and manage the relations. Anyways, lots of ways to skin the cat, and I actually have known several other successful reps that have taken the planning approach as a lead.  

Nick M:

Are you perfectly happy with the financial advice you've been getting over the past couple of years?

Can you see the wisdom at least getting a second opinion at this point?

+ There are multiple schools of thought on which tactic works best.  Lead with product, lead with service.  The truth is the guys above are full of shit.  Both work.  Both work well.  If you do it alot and have confidence in what you are doing.

Big - How about you post a list of this A & B clients and we'll see what I can do with them.

JumpMan Thanks You are the only one who has come up with a script. Is there anything else I should know from that chapter? 

[quote=JumpMan]

Nick M:

Are you perfectly happy with the financial advice you've been getting over the past couple of years?

Can you see the wisdom at least getting a second opinion at this point?

+ There are multiple schools of thought on which tactic works best.  Lead with product, lead with service.  The truth is the guys above are full of shit.  Both work.  Both work well.  If you do it alot and have confidence in what you are doing.

[/quote]

Are you suggesting that BondGuy and I are full of it? Both of us have at least provided significant details to our chain of thought. You on the other hand, quote two lines from one of the cheeziest authors of the financial industry. I'd guess that BG and I probably got 50 yrs into this biz. How about you?

And, if you read my comments, you'll see that I admit that the planning prospector during my career has been done successfully. Not as often, and not without significant career risk, but there are a few I've come across that defied the odds. Each of them was borderline or actually the definition of "brilliant".   

Gentlemen PLEASE

I was asking for the script from Nick Murray's book. The book is on backorder and I was womdering if anyone could or would put the complete script  frtom the book and any other information on this chatroom blog.

Thank you for your courtesy in advance.

back order from where? Go to his website, only place to get it ....

[quote=rogerballs]

JumpMan Thanks You are the only one who has come up with a script. Is there anything else I should know from that chapter? 

[/quote]

You can lead'em to water, but...

Roger,

For the record, what you and jump have posted aren't scripts, they are rebuttals. Not that they couldn't work. As a rookie you would be wise to look at what some others have posted and incorporate that advice. I work in an office with rookies opening huge accounts via cold calling.  None of them opens with "How dissatisfied are you?"  ( the actual question you are asking) Why? Because the follow up line " I'm an investment genius with 30 seconds of experience" usually doesn't cut it with serious investors. Read that and understand, once the prospect gets ahold of your bio you're gone. No serious investor is going to give a rookie his portfolio to manage . And, as Big pointed out, the hot button, for those with long term relationships, lies outside the performance spectrum. Usually, way outside. Due respect paid to Nick and his advice to hit the performance button to get in the door and then deselect performance as a measure for account management.

OTOH calling them with a product makes your level of experience moot. Today, I was calling prospects with a BAB yielding 7.3%. Did anyone ask how long i'd been in the business? Nope, didn't come up. Did any show interest? Yup! Did any become qualified prospects? Yup again!  Did I sell the bond to any of these prospects? Nope! That's bad ju-ju.  Did i sell that bond to anyone? Yup! I sold 150k with 2pts to a client I opened last November. That account opened for about 70k. Today, before I added the new bond, the account was worth 1.2 million. And, here's the best part: Instead of just paying for the trade the client said she was sending me another $500k. So, that's another 350k to invest, on top of the bond today. Whoohoo!!!! is this a great business or what?  

Or, you can do it your way. I know you were just looking for a few more rebuttal lines. Good luck!!!!!

BondGuy, Congratulations on the great day! "Or, you can do it your way. I know you were just looking for a few more rebuttal lines." what is this ?

The "script" lines you've been offered are questions usually asked as part of a rebuttal with prospects who have rejected your original proffer. They are usually not in themselves a complete script.

I actually like the idea of leading with those types of questions. The problem is, as a newbie, you've got nothing to fall back on. A serious investor is going to ask "Whatchagotkid?" And, you've got nothing. By challenging the performance of their current advisor you are putting yourself in a box. You are putting a performance record you don't have out there front and center. 

Follow me here: you didn't screw anyone in the market collapse of 08-09. However, your predecessors did. The only reason you are hired is because those ahead of you by a few years were swept out of the training program  by the market collapse. The very collapse you are referring to in your opening script. And, here you are, a never hurt anyone noobie peddling the same crap that got most of the class of 07 and 08  their walking papers. The people you need as clients are smart enough to figure that out. Thus, I wouldn't shine a light on it.

[quote=BigFirepower] 

Getting the A or B book clients of another rep, is much harder than you might think. Where I think the "gold" really is, is taking the C book that is worth far more than the currently assigned rep realizes. Money in motion would also be my focus if I started all over again. BondGuy's approach also benefits a starting rep in another majorly important way for a new rep. You open accounts and gather assets much faster than doing advanced financial planning. If all you focused on for 2 years was opening good households, you'd have every household you'd ever need after that nasty phone pounding stretch. Afterwards, you'd simply cultivate that relationship pool and gather more and more assets. Then, after that 2-3 yrs stretch, you just kick back and manage the relations. Anyways, lots of ways to skin the cat, and I actually have known several other successful reps that have taken the planning approach as a lead.  

[/quote]

This is quite true.  I rarely (never) get an "A" client from any of the better wirehouse advisors in my area.  Why?  because they take good care of them.  What DO I get?  B and C clients of those advisors, that are not giving them the time of day, or haven't bothered to follow up with them, and don't realize they have sizeable assets outside.  I also get "A" clients from crappy advisors (the annuity whore$ that just play games to maximize gross - I could tell some stories...). 

Where have most of my big clients come from?  Doorknocking.  Just kidding.  Most have come from executives that had money spread out so many places (their 401K, pension balances, insurance agent, a no-load company, and maybe some at a wirehouse), that nobody took them seriously.  Once you roll it all together, now you're talking about serious money.  A large portion is typically in the 401K and/or the pension. 

My take is that stealing money from other advisors is tough if it is already a large account.  The best money is made when it's in motion (retiring, layoff, leave job, divorce, sell business, etc.).

I can honestly say that some of my "C" clients would probably leave if they found a compelling alternative.  I have ignored many of them.  It's tough to pay attention to them when they have $15K, nothing else to invest ever, and you are working on $750K cases and trying to give your A clients great service.  That's one of the crummy things about this business.  You truly outgrow some of your clients (from an advice standpoint).  Even though you may still have them in a good mix of investments, your lack of communication translates into them being ignored.

Hey you guys don't forget to register your scripts with the NASD.

Softy just came out of his mom's basement. Must be dehydrated.

BondGuy, Thank you for your reply. I have been an advisor since 1986. The "CRAP" I am peddling in 2008 was up over 5% and since 11/05- 4/10 I am up a whopping 75% with a drawdown of -8.3%. I want the prospect to  say, " Whatchagotkid?" I can say, here is my record and how I handled 2008. Let's see how your advisor did.

By the way I am a technical guy who has a process that uses ETF's only.

Thank you for the dialogue and your advice.

Roger - That's good to hear. I'm reviewing that old saying about making assumptions as I assumed you were a trainee looking for direction. In your case, of course, go for it!!!!!

And, I'm thrilled to hear that there are actually advisors out there who are doing something to protect clients rather than blindly leaving them on the tracks to get run down by the next Black Swan event! 

I will now sit down and shut up!

Let us know how it goes.

Thank you for your input and I will let you know my progress. Are you in FLA? Also what super regional are you with, if you could share? You can email me at [email protected] your contact info would love to talk.