Marketing professional services is hard, mainly because they are intangible. We are not selling a car which you can test drive, a computer I can demonstrate, a perfume you can smell, a CD you can hear, a wine you can taste.
Now, sooner or later, we often sell a pension or Isa. However by the time we get to the product sale, what we are actually doing is saying that this is the most suitable way for a person to make provision for his financial future, to maintain his desired lifestyle, to afford the things he wants to buy and do, at that point in his life when he is no longer earning the income that he does now.
In asserting that this is the most suitable way for our client to make such provision, we are actually applying knowledge of the differences between pensions and other options. This includes technical skill, to differentiate between the various pension options that a client might have open to him, personal experience of how it feels to know that you are making such provision and that plans are in place, and practical experience to explain how different people feel about the balance between tax efficiency and lack of accessibility.
In the world of professional services we are selling our specialist knowledge, technical skills, experience and real-life application of learning. More than this though, as with other professional services, we are providing peace of mind.
This is quite different from a product sale. We can probably all agree that the meerkats do not have all the answers – comprehensive and effective professional financial advice cannot be commoditised into lists of products which can be searched and sorted by price.
This is the starting point for making professional connections.
Does your solicitor think that buying a will-writing pack in WH Smith is the right thing to do? Does your accountant think that the Which? TaxCalc program makes him redundant?
Like financial advisers have said when asked about comparison sites: “They are all right as far as they go, but you could do so much more if you asked someone like me to look at your situation.”
In his book Influence: The Psychology of Persuasion, Robert Cialdini said the “weapons of influence” were:
* Reciprocation – give something and it is likely that the other person will happily give something back.
* Commitment and consistency – invite a commitment to a small transaction, and the desire for consistency will bring people back for further transactions.
* Social Proof – it is easier to take a course of action when you see others doing it.
* Liking – we prefer to agree to the requests of people we like.
* Authority – we all have a deep-seated sense of duty to those with relevant expert knowledge.
* Scarcity – people are more motivated by what they may lose out on than what they might gain in a relationship or transaction.
The book gives many examples of how this works and indeed how to spot when these ‘weapons’ are being used unfairly or for dishonourable purposes.
But think about this. We invite our clients to a first ‘at our cost’, or no-obligation, meeting. A small time commitment which we hope might lead to a larger one.
Expertise
In that meeting we forge links, build the relationship and ensure the clients like us. We also use that meeting to demonstrate our relevant knowledge and expertise and invite our potential client to follow our advice.
We use case studies to show the practical outcomes of taking our advice including tax saved, costs reduced, returns improved and objectives met. We also use case studies, often with photographs, to demonstrate what other clients did in similar situations.
What is the business of referrals, if not the give and take of reciprocation?
This is what professional advisers do too so this can be made the starting point for building professional connections. In fact, why not start with your own solicitor and your own accountant?
You know how they work. They know what you do. Perhaps ask whether clients can be referred to them before mentioning them referring their clients. What sort of clients are they looking for? What sort of work do they prefer?
This information can be used to dig a little deeper and find out if they would appreciate a service for their clients which would add value for their clients.
Two professional advisers working together should reinforce each other’s value to the client. In this way, professional connections done well ensure that one client is acquired for two businesses and retained for a long period of time, ensuring that future work is generated within that relationship and kept within your businesses, potentially for generations.
However it could be worth remembering:
* It may be a long time since the client got advice himself.
* His experience may not have been good. Remember Equitable Life?
* He may only have experienced a transactional process and does not know what good financial planning and investment advice look like.
He needs to be shown what advisers do. Perhaps he can be talked through a sample financial plan, investment report, or annual review?
Better still to invite him to go through the financial planning process, at no charge, so he can experience the skill for himself.
Newsletters, market updates and client communications could also be sent. They can be included on the mailing list, whatever their decision about working with the firm, with their permission of course.
He may need time and space to become comfortable that the adviser firm really is professional and good for their clients.
Another way would be inviting him to attend client seminars for networking, or to speak on his specialist subject, one likely to be of interest to clients. This would show the firm’s access to clients who could just as easily be referred in the other direction and makes the adviser a valuable person to stay in touch with.
There is one problem though. Unless the professional connection becomes your client, services are being sold to the wrong person.
Supportive
When professional connections really understand what the other does, cross-referring clients in a mutually supportive, symbiotic relationship, it is exciting. But if the connection does not see the point of all that financial planning nonsense, when all he wants is a pension or investment recommendation, financial advisers will need to be pragmatic.
They should let the solicitor refer a client for transactional advice. But that should not stop the firm doing what it does best – using the referral and building the relationship.
Professional advisers are first and foremost trusted advisers, which is why referrals are so powerful and highly prized. It takes time to build trust with clients. It also takes time to build trust between fellow professional advisers.
The influencing power of reciprocation and scarcity suggests linking up with a small number of relevant professional connections.
The key will be having the strategy set out, being prepared to be flexible and spend time on the relationship. And making sure you have the ability to help them too.
Gillian Cardy is managing director of the IFA Centre
