Top 10 Tips For Winning The Clients You Want

With over 20 years as a financial advisor, I’ve sadly seen many otherwise excellent advisors fail at the most important part of the job—attracting the ideal clients who would benefit from your help. I’ve fortunately been able to build a thriving financial planning practice filled with ideal clients, and we currently have a two-year waiting list for new clients.

By instituting these 10 tips, you will obtain clients you enjoy working with who appreciate the value of your service. Like me, you will end up starting a waiting list or growing a very large firm to take care of all who ask for your help.

Tip #1: Identify Your Ideal Client

This is the most important step in opening the floodgates. By clearly defining your ideal client and sharing that definition with the universe, they will flock to your door.

Make a list of the ideal characteristics of the people you want to work for and the types of behaviors that drive you crazy. For example, I like working with people who are ready to delegate, respond in a timely manner, and value our approach to comprehensive planning. The behaviors that drive me crazy include people wanting to piecemeal their planning to save money or not appreciating a collaborative approach. 

People you enjoy working with will make it easy for you to be passionate about your job, which translates into you delivering excellent work.

Tip #2: Use Client Engagement Standards

I’m a big fan of using business coaches. My first business coach, Tracy Beckes, taught me the value of client engagement standards. These spell out what we do for clients and what we need from them to do an exceptional job.

Our client engagement standards start with an overview of our values and goals in delivering our service. We then spell out our deliverables. For example, we state that we return all phone calls within a day and emails within two working days. That one statement was the crowning reason we recently signed a multimillion-dollar client, as her previous advisor was horrible at returning phone calls.

We end our client engagement standards with what we require from our clients. They must agree with our investment philosophy, return phone calls and emails in a timely fashion, and most of all, they must agree to be kind and respectful.

Tip #3: Say What You Do and Do What You Say

Good relationships take time. I like the analogy that we all give each other a jar with a few marbles, each representing trust. As we deliver on our promises, the client puts more marbles in our jar. At some point, if we are doing a good job, our jar will be full.

This is handy if we make a mistake or occasionally drop a ball. The client may pull a few marbles out of the jar, but if the error is rare and you handle it appropriately, they will begin putting marbles back.

How does this attract ideal clients? If you deliver timely service and follow through on your promises, you will never have to ask your clients for referrals.

Tip #4: Be a Financial Problem Solver

With investment management and financial planning becoming more commoditized, advisors must work smarter to show their value to clients. Where do clients run into problems with their finances? If you can identify their pain points and help them solve those problems, they will become clients for life and will continue to refer people your way.

Examples of ways to shine include analyzing big spending decisions, providing mortgage application assistance, shopping for insurance, and helping clients’ children with benefits selection when they get their first job. These one-off situations help fill the marble jar to engender further trust, and your clients will tell their friends how helpful you’ve been beyond the basics.

Tip #5: Be Authentic

People crave connection and easily sniff out a lack of authenticity. Authenticity attracts people who are like you and will be excited to work with you. Being truthful about who you are, what you are passionate about, and what you stand for fosters admiration and respect. People may disagree with your views, but they know you will be a straight shooter and help them through tough situations.

Tip #6: Be Active in Your Community

Networking to meet people you have nothing in common with is not a great way to get clients. Being involved in your community in ways that are important to you will introduce you to people with similar passions. When you participate in meaningful ways, people learn more about you and reach out for your services, especially if you’ve followed the other tips and have already created a great reputation for your firm.

Tip #7: Share Your Knowledge Freely

It sounds counterintuitive, but giving away some of your knowledge for free can open the door to potential clients wanting to engage you for your services. I’ve taught free OLLI courses at our local university, provided education to local civic organizations, and volunteered at free financial planning events.

When engaging in these activities, it is important to view the event as an opportunity to serve the community, not as a way to market for clients. When you help people without expecting any return, it eventually comes back to you in multiples.

Tip #8: Become Active in Your Professional Societies

Professional societies exist to help planners learn from each other and advocate for the profession politically and in the press. My involvement in organizations such as NAPFA and FPA shows our clients my dedication to my profession and builds credibility with the clients and the public.

Being involved in leadership in professional organizations also opens the opportunity for press exposure. Journalists continually look for new resources and frequently turn to professional societies to find good advisors who can help them with stories.

Tip #9: Learn How To Work With the Press

Now that you’ve done all the work to build an excellent practice and be of service to others, it helps to be out in the press so people can see you shine. I was fortunate to undergo “press training” when I was on the NAPFA Board. I learned how journalists work and the best way to contribute to their work.

Journalists are on deadline, so respond promptly. My office lets me know immediately if a journalist calls. If I’m in a meeting, they tell the journalist that I will return the call as soon as I finish the meeting, or they set a time for me to call back.

Be prepared and know your topic. As you prepare for the call, keep a few succinct and memorable quotes in mind. If you don’t know something, tell them you don’t know the answer and that you’ll get back to them. Never bluff.

Tip #10: Start A Waiting List

People like being part of an exclusive tribe. Once you find you are a bit too busy, start a waiting list. We tell potential clients that our most important job is taking care of current clients, so we only onboard a couple of new clients at once. They love hearing about our dedication to great service and will happily go on a waiting list.

These tips are contrarian to the usual approach of traditional marketing, and they work. The best part? Other than an investment of time, these tips are free and will elevate your practice above the rest. When ideal potential clients look your way, you’ll stand above the crowd and never have to worry about marketing again.

The Bottom Line

Financial planning is a rewarding profession with high job satisfaction, but it takes multiple skills to become successful and attract the kind of clients you want. Good communication and technical knowledge are just a start. Business management and marketing skills are also important to long-term success.