Distraction-Proof® Advisor Ideas

 

Doing what you said you’d do doesn’t always feel as good as you think it should.
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Earlier this week an advisor told me about meeting with a lovely couple, but she said knew where the problem was going to be. When she mentioned that she charges $2500 for a financial plan, they balked at that, said thank you, and then left. She said she was initially disappointed, but then later, when she thought about it, she was actually really proud of herself that she didn’t drop her price. She really loved these people, but she held fast to the fee of $2500 for the financial plan. She put the offer out there and then was rejected.

As financial advisors, we love helping people, and no one signs up for rejection. However, we’re facing rejection constantly when we’re talking with prospects and we let them know how we work and expect them to work with us. Understandably, it never feels great when people say thanks, but no thanks. This advisor I was speaking with stuck to her guns. She would’ve loved working with these people, but she said she knew the $2500 price for the plan was going to be an issue. However, she put it out there anyway. It didn’t feel great hearing no, but an hour later, she was feeling great because, she said, “I stuck with my standards. I had decided to charge $2500 from January 1 this year, and I held to that. There is a set number of people I want to work with, and they’re out there, and they will pay that price.”

I want to encourage you I want to encourage you to charge for financial planning and to stick with the price point you set. Certainly, none of us likes rejection: it doesn’t feel great. There are many articles and videos out there saying, “Just deal with it and move on!” but being rejected hurts. None of us like to hear, “no, thank you.” This advisor had put her price out there, and she’d been rejected. But, a short time later she knew she had done the right thing by sticking to her fee and letting the prospects walk away.

Have some analogies ready to use to help illustrate the value of financial planning. For example, as I mentioned to this advisor, if you are working with a building company, using an in-house architect, they’re going to charge you a line-item fee for that building plan because that blueprint is valuable. Everything going forward is going to be predicated upon this plan; every decision made regarding the foundation to external cladding is going to be brought back to that plan. So there’s tremendous value in that plan. You can use that blueprint analogy going forward to let people know the financial plan is actually very valuable and it will continually guide your future decisions.

So to do this most effectively,

1. Use an analogy. Use a word picture to help prospects them understand why they should want a plan.


2. Explain the value of the plan. Just like having a building blueprint, it’s going to be act as a master guide for you both to continually refer to so the right materials are put in place to end up with a sturdy, reliable structure.


3. Set your fees and stick to them. If you’ve demonstrated the value of a plan, they should be willing to pay you for it.

You’re going to meet people who seem like they would be wonderful people to work with, but who will balk at your price point, and that’s fine because all you’re looking for is those people who do appreciate your expertise, recognize the value of the plan, will pay you for it and set up a wonderful relationship going forward.

I look forward to bringing you another Distraction-Proof Advisor Idea next week.