Tested In The Trenches
Ron Carson is one of the most successful wealth managers in the country and offers different “boot camps” for advisors. Ron has been a CFS for close to 20 years. One of our directors has known Mr. Carson for close to 25 years—he is a class act, and so is his business practice. This is one of our favorite books because Ron has taken the practice of wealth management to a whole new level. Below are excerpts from his highly-recommended book.
Financial services is a commodity business. You cannot differentiate yourself by generating better performance, delivering better financial plans, or having access to certain products. In a commodity business, you differentiate yourself through service, brand, and relationship.
Starbucks has developed a brand that for most people evokes positive feelings, emotions, and thoughts. By developing and delivering an experience for your clients, you’ll create an unassailable business that will go a long way toward helping you attract and retain high-quality clients.
We’re in a service and relationship business, and in that kind of business, people focus on the details. In order to get details right, we systemize everything. We have a system for scheduling client appointments. We have a system for following up with prospects. In all, we have hundreds of systems, and they’re all codified in our Systems Manual.
The Five Blueprinting Exercises
[1] Identify your values, or certain things are important to you—but are you living those values day in, day out?
[2] Finding your meaningful purpose in life—what are you “called” to do that will be remembered long after you’re gone?
[3] Creating a compelling vision for your future—how can you achieve success and significance if you don’t know what they look like?
[4] Developing personal and professional mission statements—once you know where you’re trying to go, wouldn’t it be easier to get there with a map?
[5] Setting goals that are certified as SMAC (specific, measurable, achievable, compatible)—wouldn’t it be helpful to track your progress along the way?
Compelling Vision Exercise [answer the following questions]
[a] My ideal working environment is…(location)…(surroundings)…
[b] The relationships I want to surround myself with are…
[c] I want to spend my days working on…
[d] If I weren’t so afraid, I would…
[e] My life will not be complete unless I…
[f] If I had only six months to live, I would…
[g] If I had all the money I ever needed, I would spend the rest of my life…
[h] I want people to remember me by saying I was…
[i] I feel alive and energetic after I have just…
[j] The community/world issue that I feel most strongly about is…
[k] I know it seems impossible, but my practice would dramatically improve if…
Summary:
- My compelling vision is to…
- Surround myself with…
- Life in…
- Spend my days…
- Accomplish…
Developing Your Personal Mission Statement
The Inventure Group spent many years talking to senior citizens and asking them what they would have done differently:
[1] They would have been more reflective…For many of them, it wasn’t until a crisis occurred that they really stepped back and took the time to review their life and gain perspective.
[2] Time is precious. They realized that as they got older, time seemed to go much, much faster. They wished that they would have spent more time to stop and smell the roses.
[3] They would have taken more risks.
[4] They would have made the effort to really understand what brought them fulfillment.
Developing Your Professional Mission Statement
[a] My company…(in one sentence, describe what your company does)
[b] We believe in…(e.g., asset allocation and diversification are the best ways to achieve financial security)
[c] We serve…(who benefits the most from your services and with whom you want to work)
[d] We exist…(give your clients a compelling reason to work with you)
[e] Clients can expect…(describe the services you offer—nobody wants to do business with you without knowing what to expect)
Set SMAC-Certified Goals
Goals are the mechanisms that delineate what you should be working on day in, day out to get where you want to go.
Make your goals specific, measurable, achievable, and compatible.
Commit your goals to paper.
Take massive action to get your goal-attainment process started.
Improve the odds of meeting your goals by enlisting the support of other people.
Lighten your load. Get rid of the “stuff” you don’t need both at home and at the office.
Systematize your goal-achievement process by developing rituals.
Our Systems Manual Is Set Up in Nine Categories:
[1] prospects and referrals
[2] new clients
[3] transfers
[4] trading
[5] client service
[6] updates
[7] client appreciation
[8] office procedures
[9] human resources
Proposal System for Communicating Your Process to Clients
Your proposal template should be a mix of standard language, graphs, and customized data that are unique to that prospect.
Other Sample Systems:
Prospects and referral follow-up system
Prospect and referral follow-up letter
Welcome-aboard card (new clients)
Account transfers
Annual survey overview and CSI index (nine questions)
Update client info sheet (after each meeting)
Client events
The six most important things to do tomorrow
Move Your Business from Commodity to Singularity
According to studies by anthropologist Robin Dunbar, humans are capable of having meaningful interaction with about 150 people.
How Do You Build Your Brand?
“Mr. Jones, when you hear the name of my firm, what do you think of?” If they give you that deer-in-the-headlights look, then you know you’ve got a problem.
How do you build this unassailable brand? Think of the acronym VIPER (vision, values, value, intimacy, personality, experience, respect).
People always pay for what is always in short supply: time, wisdom, and trust.
Eight Ways to Deepen Your Client Relationships
These include birthday call, greeting card (add a personalized note), flowers for spouse’s birthday, wedding anniversary, random acts of kindness, retirement party, special luncheon, and handwritten notes.
The late rock music promoter Bill Graham commented about the Grateful Dead: “They’re not the best at what they do; they’re the only ones who do what they do.”
Position Yourself as a Wealth Advisor
The sweet spot is those with $500,000+ in investable assets. A wealth advisor “quarterbacks” a client’s entire financial situation. This means that through your firm (either personally, via a staff person, or an outside relationship), you can offer retirement planning, investments, insurance, tax, and estate planning.
Once Your Wealth Team Is Assembled
There are at least five ways to get the word out: (1) send a letter or e-mail, (2) let clients know what’s available when you meet with them for reviews, (3) mention the new services when you make your monthly and quarterly touch-base calls, (4) send a press release to the local media, and (5) have a client event with your other professionals as guest speakers.
The Power of First Impressions
Roger Ailes, a business executive and media consultant to President Reagan, says we have only seven seconds to make a good first impression. Based on our experience, in the first three seconds, you can form an impression about how someone looks—how someone is groomed and how someone smiles (or doesn’t smile). In the next four seconds, you can hear the individual speak, feel how the person shakes hands, and gauge his level of confidence and sophistication.
Here Are Five Steps to Make That First Impression of You a Positive One:
[1] Dress for success.
[2] Show your pearly whites.
[3] Project confidence (don’t slouch; keep a straight line from your ears down to your ankles).
[4] Meet eye to eye.
[5] Speak authoritatively.
Improving the Impression of All Your Points of Contact
Pretend that you are a prospect and then drive into the parking lot of your office. Start walking to your office door. Be observant and make notes about any positive or negative impressions you have as you approach your office. Is the landscape professional? Is the paint fresh? Is there garbage on the ground? Is the door hard to open?
Make your way inside the building and then stop in your office’s reception area. Look at the floor, walls, furniture, lighting, and the “feel” of the area. Next, walk through your entire office and visually inspect everything.
Dress Code
Dr. Magee, a research psychologist, surveyed 500 firms between 1997 and 1998 and found companies that adopted casual dress codes experienced the following: an increase in tardiness, absenteeism, and early departures; an increase in foul language and inappropriate conversation; an increase in provocative actions; a decrease in polite, mannerly behavior; a decrease in productivity and overall quality of work; and a decrease in commitment and company loyalty.
Reach Out and Touch Your Clients and Prospects
An account is reactive. It’s when your client calls you to discuss something you should already know about. A relationship is proactive. Call your client about something before they’ve had the opportunity to ask you about it or even before they knew they had the need. You’re anticipating their needs, staying on top of the situation, and exceeding their expectations.
Ask Great Questions
[1] Background
a. Tell me about your background. Where are you from? How did you get into your present career?
b. As you look back on your life, what role has money played in it? Have you worked with a financial advisor in the past, and if so, what kind of experience did you have?
c. What are some of the important things that have happened in your life that will help me put together a better plan for you?
[2] Values
a. What are a few things you value most in life?
b. What event or occurrence in your life significantly moved you?
c. What did you teach your children about the value of money?
[3] Vision
a. If money were not an issue, what would your ideal lifestyle be? Where would you live? With whom would you surround yourself?
b. If you had all the money you ever needed, what would give you purpose and motivate you throughout the day?
c. How do you define success?
[4] Legacy
a. What would you like to accomplish while you still can?
b. What impact would you like your estate to have after you’re gone?
c. If you could pass on one secret for life for all future generations, what would that secret be?
[5] Objectives
a. What’s the number 1 issue you’d like help with right now?
b. Are you more concerned about growing your assets or protecting what you already have?
c. What has to happen over the next few years for you to feel our relationship has been successful?
The Power of Storytelling
Stories simplify complex ideas. Stories are multidimensional. Stories last long after they are told. Stories reach the heart in a way facts and figures cannot.
Prospects don’t want to be sold. They want to buy. Stories unify the two halves of the brain so prospects can feel they have enough facts to satisfy their logical needs and enough feelings to satisfy their emotional needs.
As you develop your stories, consider incorporating some or all of the following pieces:
- Set the stage for the story.
- Vividly describe who’s involved in the story.
- Describe the obstacle or conflict in the story.
- Overcome the obstacle or conflict.
- Make your point.
To become a better storyteller, read The Story Factor by Annette Simmons (Perseus Books, 2002).
Client Survey
On a scale of 1 to 10 (1 being low and 10 being high), please rate the following:
[1] Does our team promptly return your phone calls? Rating: ___
How important is this to you? Rating: ___
[2] Are your questions answered to your satisfaction by our team? Rating: ___
How important is this to you? Rating: ___
[3] Are the annual updates you receive easy to understand? Rating: ___
How important is this to you?
[4] Rate your overall level of service from Carson Wealth. Rating: ___
How important is this to you? Rating: ___
[5] Our goal is to provide you with the best service you have ever experienced. Are we currently doing that? Yes ___ No ___
If you answered no, what can we do to improve? _______________________
Is there anything you would like us to change or improve?
What differentiates Carson Wealth Management Group from other financial planning firms you’ve worked with?
An Advisory Council
An effective, yet seldom used, communication idea is to set up an advisory council with your top clients (half of the day with casual lunch and end with cocktails and dinner).
[1] Limit the size to six to eight members.
[2] Consider limiting each member’s term to 24 months.
[3] Have a diverse mix of members.
[4] Make your key employees members of the council.
