Distraction-Proof® Advisor Ideas

You have a lot of inside information about your clients. Are you maximizing it?
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I’m talking about showing them hospitality, not just service. Hospitality is when you know enough about that client, you have observed them enough, and you have heard from them enough that you know how to most effectively care for them, how to most effectively love on them. This is far more than just sending them a quarterly report or update. This is where you get involved in their circumstances, letting them see that you really know and care about what’s happening in their lives and stand ready to help.

I’ve really been enjoying this book from Danny Meyer called Setting the Table. Danny Meyer created Shake Shack and Union Square Café, and he talks a lot about hospitality, including some of the nuances between that versus service. He mentions, “Hospitality exists when you believe the other person is on your side. Hospitality is present when something happens for you.

I experienced a great example of this when I was the last speaker at a dinner event. We had finished the event, and everyone else had eaten. One of the servers came up to me as they started clearing up the ballroom, and she mentioned, “I put aside a plate of food for you. I’ve covered it in foil, and it’s just over there.” Then she joined her team and set about cleaning up the room.

At that stage, attendees wanted to talk with me about what I’d covered during my presentation as well as get photos with my Olympic medal. The line of people waiting to speak with me was a mile long.

About 15 minutes later, that server took the plate of food she had set aside out to the kitchen. When there were two or three people left in the line, she came back out and said, “I’ve put the plate of food out in the kitchen. The chef’s added some really cool stuff for dessert, as well. It looks like you’ll be about another 10 minutes here, so let’s give it 30 minutes, and I’ll send somebody up to your room with your food and with your dessert, after you’ve had time to freshen up. What room are you in?”

That’s hospitality! That’s when I could see somebody was seeing what was going on, seeing what I’m experiencing, and being an advocate for me.

How are you showing your clients hospitality? You have a load of information about them, but how are you practically and thoughtfully showing them you actually understand their circumstances and you are willing to be a helpful advocate, taking action for their good?

• Perhaps an elderly couple is coming to your office for a review. Might you be able to send a fancy Uber to pick them up, bring them to your office and then drop them home again?
• If a couple is going to be parking downstairs in your building’s garage, it would be great to have someone in the garage, ready to meet them, directing them to the spot that has been reserved for them and warmly greeting them: “Hey, we knew you were coming in today, and I’m glad you’ve arrived. Here’s your parking space. Let’s go on up to the third floor.”
• You could send them a small gift or a handwritten card on their wedding anniversary or on the anniversary of the date they started working with you.

To make sure you do this more effectively,

1. Observe and listen carefully.. Especially during that first conversation, listen for those little nuggets they’ll drop in the course of the conversation⁠—anniversary dates, birthdates, grandchildren’s names⁠—and take note of them.


2. Schedule an activity then and there⁠—something that will show them you remembered a date or event that is important to them. Don’t put it off, thinking you’ll remember and come back to it later. When you’re writing up your notes from your meeting, schedule specifically what you will do on your calendar.


3. Follow through. Remember how wonderful the occasion was with them and how impressed and delighted they’ll be when this little gift turns up or this reminder appears in their mailbox.

They’ll have you to thank for being so thoughtful, but most importantly, they’ll know they’re in the right place, working with someone who really genuinely cares about them and their circumstances.

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