Thought leadership on client acquisition

Princeton, NJ: September 14, 2017 - Today we delivered an Executive Briefing on 5 Trends Impacting Client Acquisition in Wealth Management in 2018. Sorry you couldn't make it! 
Key themes: The struggling economies of developed nations, unrelenting expectations around service and technology, and the need for transparent pricing models, go-market-strategies with the right mix of service, tech and navigation, and client type segmentation. To download the presentation, click the PDF below. For a personal narrative on the topic, write to Bill Walton at bwalton@billwaltonsalestraining.com. 


​I think we’re all surprised by the fact we are in late August. We lead full lives and the lives of our prospects are full as well. But coming out of the Labor Day holiday we will all be met with a need for a plan to close the year.  Now is the time to take stock of what’s worked, what hasn't and what we can all do differently to bring in a solid 2017. Here are 4 keys to accelerating your client acquisition efforts to finish strong:
 
Part 1: You and client acquisition – you are the indispensable resource!
To accelerate your pipeline, get prospects to see themselves in the relationship with you. Most probably they are working with another FA and they want to see if the effort is worth it to change. YOU ARE WORTH IT. Immerse yourself in the issues, challenges and aspirations of your best prospect types – make sure your messaging reflects them:

• You have four demands on your time: existing clients, prospecting for more, networking and compliance. Prospecting is always under attack from the other three.
• Find ways to create value that transcends your platform or the prospect’s portfolio. Your competition can do this well.  You are the differentiator.
• Sell the verb, not the noun. Prospects care more about the context of the why and what you do vs. your title.
• Great messaging answers 4 questions: 1-Who you work with, 2-the problems you solve/needs you address, 3-the impact you’re having and 4-a glimpse into your secret sauce for how you do it. 

Part 2: Create Greater Affinity – get closer than the incumbent!
When prospects sense that you understand their unique situation they share more. The more they share the greater the impact of your recommendations. Be “issue fluent” in the issues that matter most to your prospects. Improve your business acumen and let your COIs know of your focus and why:

• To mean more to prospects you need to know more.
• Focus on 3-5 client types that qualify and hold a personal interest for you (Physician Groups, CEOs, Franchisees, Newly Married Professional Couples).
• Know the dominant client types in your market area.
• Create “issue fluency” in these prospect areas. This gets you to equal business stature with your prospects.
• To go fast you need focus. Your COIs and other referral sources need to know who’s right as well. Declare who’s ideal and why.

Part 3 - Meetings and Interactions  - It’s your time too. Done waste it!
People have interesting relationships with their money and their pets. And they’re not always rational. Data shows the confidence level of prospects actually goes DOWN after a first meeting as the prospect of change and the skepticism of someone new doing better sets in.  Your first meting goal has got to be to secure the second meeting!

• In progressing with prospects, meetings will take on a different feel. 
• There are typically three types of meetings: 1-Coffee Talk, 2- Discovery and 3-Recommendation
• First meetings should be about mutual sharing: Second meetings should shape an idea and build urgency for action.
• Use prospect spoken words to align your solution. Prospects buy context.
• All meetings: Review the progress and suggest a next best step for all.

 
Bonus – Closing: Let prospects know how much you’ve done to their benefit!
By this time you’ve followed your playbook to get to this stage. But the prospect doesn't have a copy. Bring them back to the value you’ve both created over time.

• Ensure the prospect knows where they are in the process and how you both got there.  Bring them back to how it all got started.
• Communicate the value created during the process, dates of meetings held, mutual value established and the rational for your recommendation.  This can be your actual closing meeting agenda.
• Pledge your commitment and ask for theirs!

 
For more support for your client acquisition efforts this fall, visit www.billwaltonsalestraining.com or write to Bill Walton at bwalton@billwaltonsalestraining.com. 

People who manage to get a lot accomplished each day aren't superhuman, they've just mastered a few simple habits. Some may be easy to guess: Keep your desk organized and aim for around eight hours of sleep a night.
In this episode, Moment Masters Show Host Shakira M. Brown a.k.a. Small Biz Whisperer interviews Bill Walton, President of Bill Walton Sales Training, a national authority on client acquisition, who provides helpful strategies to help you rethink productivity in a way that will provide you with not only more efficiency but also a better sales strategy. Now who wouldn’t want that? Click here to listen and learn how!

momentmasters.podbean.com/e/bill-walton-productivity/

For sellers there’s always time to enjoy the lingering reverie of a sale gone well.   The perfect touch points, the internal sponsorship, the business value you personally brought to the sale are all parts of a great deal.  Who doesn't want more of that? But more and more of us are sitting scratching our heads trying to figure   out why a prospect isn’t converting, why an opportunity isn’t advancing. 
 
In competitive sales situations in wealth management, there’s a force out there to be reckoned with and it’s not about you or your firm. It’s not about the markets, and it’s certainly not about the lack of “wealth”.  So what’s happening? 
 
Financial professionals need to realize that anyone worth working with is likely engaging another advisor.  In a way you want that – you want a prospect that sees the value of advice and thought partnership.  More good news, many investors are mildly satisfied with their current advisor.
 
But it’s the negative perceptions around change that’s slowing the sales process down or stalling it altogether.  Some see too much effort in locating statements, consolidating accounts or learning a new platform and user interface. Others fear the time it will take to educate another advisor on their affairs.  Some just hate change. Period.  So we de-veloped a diagnostic for assessing and working with prospects based on their appetite for change. For simplicity’s sake (and for a little fun) we’ve labeled these change types   as five animals: The tiger, the eager beaver, the wise owl, the chicken and the alligator.
 
THE TIGER
This prospect is excited by new and innovative developments in investing. They see change as opportunity rather than a risk. They ask inquisitive and challenging questions based on their own research. 
Questions to assess if you’re working with a Tiger:

• What information do you like to have access to when making important financial decisions?
• How did you become so proficient in your knowledge of markets and investing?
• Where should your advisor to fit into your investment decision-making process?

Ways to work with the Tiger:

• They are ready to move quickly and have no interest in kick-offs or group events
• Build on their desire for change by being excited during your communications
• Send them agenda’s, reports and topical research before first meetings and follow-up
• Don’t tell them how your approach can help them – ask them, because they’ve done their               own research and like to show it off

 
POINT: These are great clients to work with. Keep them informed, keep your commitments, and maintain  a good information flow. They are low maintenance and will remain relatively loyal.
 
THE EAGER BEAVER
The eager beaver is excited by new and beneficial solutions and will eagerly be a proponent to their contacts. They’re often the first to adopt new ideas and will share their knowledge and insights with others.
Questions to assess if you’re working with an Eager Beaver:

• What gets you most excited about having a plan for your financial future?
• Can you share with me something new that you’ve added to your method of investing over the past year or two?
• What information, training, or resources would you like to be involved in over the life of your relationship with your advisor?

Ways to work with the Eager Beaver:

• They’re excited about being first to do something new and exciting – emphasize that they’ll be a thought leader among their peers
• Provide them with information and training – they’ll take advantage of all you offer
• Ask them for their endorsement and referrals to other prospect’s
• Have them stand up at your educational events and tell their story

 
POINT: Eager Beavers are your de facto salesforce so fully educate them on your process so they can accurately communicate it to others. Keep the idea flow rich.
 
THE WISE OWL
This prospect is willing to change with good reason. At the outset they see more risk than opportunity in change. They’re cautious about change and need time to think and deliberate.
Questions to assess if you’re working with a wise owl:

• What type of research do you like to do before making big decisions, ones with a significant financial implication?
• Who do you like to consult with when making such decisions? Do you have a thinking partner or two that you trust?
• What information, training, or resources would you like a firm to provide you over the life of their relationship with you?

Ways to work with the Owl:

• Stress the benefits of the process to the prospect
• Keep communication clear and straightforward
• Stay in constant but not oppressive communication-six to seven touches over 90 days
• Share success stories frequently
• Encourage their involvement with Eager Beavers (attend events or joint calls)
• Don’t push too quickly

 
POINT: This change type is highly analytical, which provides a great opportunity
to inform and educate. There is comfort in the details for this change type.
 
THE CHICKEN
Chicken’s are fearful and skeptical of change and will not change until it is proven and the majority of their peers have done so. The more you try to convince them, the more they will resist.
Questions to assess if you’re working with a chicken:

• When thinking about investing, whose opinion do you trust the most before making a decision?
• Can you think of a significant change that you’ve made in your life recently? How did you go about it?
• What value would you place on speaking with some of my existing clients who were in a similar situation to yours?

Ways to work with the Chicken:

• Provide them with consistent, repeated information about your platform and process
• Give them regular updates on progress
• Provide solid business AND personal reasons to make a change
• Provide opportunities for them to connect with Eager Beavers

 
POINT: If you have good research at your fingertips combined with solid testimonials, the Chicken can be a valuable prospect.
 
THE ALLIGATOR
This prospect is very alluring. They have asset levels that make them attractive and they are receptive to meeting. But their theory is, “If it isn’t broken, don’t fix it” and will work to refute your claims and the elements of your approach. Alligators despise change and will adopt only when it becomes the standard.
Questions to assess if you’re working with an alligator:

• What metrics or gut feeling do you use to determine if your investments are performing as you expect?
• Picking an advisor to work with is a big decision. How did you go about that process with the person you’re currently working with?
• What consequences would you like to avoid given your age and goals for retirement?

Ways to work with the Alligator:

• Alligators will look for ways disturb your approach and possibly distort the facts
• Don’t ignore their resistance, but consistently and repeatedly state the consequences of NOT changing
• Don’t spend time and energy trying to convince them of the merits of changing

 
POINT: You may be tempted to work with the Alligator, especially if he or she has sizable assets or engages in serious debate that feels like interest. Be aware that change means loss to the Alligator, and you may wind up spinning your wheels with a prospect that will never commit.
 
Have any other thoughts on change and its impact on closing? Send us a note at bwalton@billwaltonsalestraining.com.
 

Coffee talk meetings are a great way to meet potential prospects. There’s typically no obligation on anyone’s part and coffee most often happens in comfortable places. Done well, coffee talk meetings can pave the way to a fruitful relationship. Unfortunately too many business developers are not thinking “pie”.
 
I’m occaisionally guilty of saying “I’d really love to pick your brain” or “When we get together I want to hear about your most pressing challenges”.  I try not to make that    the platform for all discussions but even the best slip up from time to time! Now we all know meetings like this can be really helpful – for us. What also tends to happen is the curse of “the two extremes”. 
 
Extreme #1 - The seller totally surrenders the meeting to the prospect and scurries at the end to make a pitch or suggest a next step. It typically lacks context and faint pledges to email each other while jumping into cars never materialize.
 
Extreme #2 - On the other side of the spectrum is total domination – either pitching or questioning with little prospect engagement. These meetings feel good, but lack bite when attempting meaningful follow-up.
 
                   The best coffee talk meetings achieve the number one goal of any first meeting
                                                             – agreement to a second meeting.
 
Pie Concept
So to have more productive meetings, think pie – you get half, and the prospect gets half. Also realize that your prospect wants to walk away with an asset for their time investment. This can be learning something new, a contact that can help their business, or an insight they would’ve never received without meeting you. Use this asset concept when setting the purpose and value of your next meeting.
 
Those of you who get caught in Extreme #1 should realize that this is your time too. Come prepared to engage the prospect in their issues or universal issues that you think they'd enjoy engaging in.  For you Extreme #2 folks, work more curiosity into your conversations – think a smaller number of questions and push for clarity and intent. 
 
Here are some additional steps to ensure you get your share of the pie in your next coffee talk meeting.

1. Asses a client type category that you think your prospect falls into such as a Rental Car CFO, top producing commercial Real Estate Executive or Brand Director for large Pharma. This can help you get some fluency in the specific trends these folks encounter.
2. Introductions: Try it’s nice to “see you” vs. nice to “meet you” It implies more intimacy and projects confidence.
3. Check timing: ask if your contact still has the full hour that was pledged. You want to make sure you can bring your conversation to a good segue if time gets cut short.
4. Ask these three “journey” questions during your meeting for light discovery (and be ready with your answers!):
   1. What’s been your journey? (Gets at the prospects view of their path)
   2. Where are you now? (Gets the prospect to divulge the current state)
   3. Where are you going? (Gets at goals, and potentially some dissatisfaction in the current state)
5. Take notes selectively. In your notebook, draw four rectangular boxes one over another on one page. As you hear a key point, fill in the box. Remember this is a connection meeting, not a court case.
6. Based on your journey question answers, offer to help in your own special way of authentic generosity.
7. Context is king - if your meeting is scheduled for an hour – protect the last 10 minutes like gold.     Use this time to play back and clarify key points and suggest a next meeting.
8. Have one specific ask. This should be tied to what you thought the client type (prospect) could realistically help you achieve. Link the ask to the value of the current conversation and extend that    to a second meeting.
9. Craft a hand-written thank you as soon as you can. Bullet your playback points as  a tee-up to meeting #2.
10. A few days later, send an email follow-up that looks something like this:

 
“Hi Ellen, it was great seeing you this past Tuesday and thanks for being so generous with your time.        We covered a lot of ground together but wanted to follow up on some of the things we both thought     were important:

• This is the video of my Chamber talk on messaging
• A Whitepaper on what the best are doing around prospecting in wealth management
• A link to my blog post on social media that I told you about. Nice tie to your team’s challenges.

 
Thanks also for your help in connecting me to Steve over at TKD Securities. I know we said that we’d connect at the end of the month - here are some additional dates and times for us to reconnect on the prospecting topic. Please feel free to pick one that works or suggest another.
 

• June 6 – after 12p
• June 7 – all day
• June 13 – before 3pm

 
Thanks again, Ellen. I look forward to seeing you soon." 

If no response in two weeks, send a calendar invite with the same message  above around timing flexibility. This assumes that you made firm and purposeful connections in the coffee talk meeting and the next meeting was implied and agreed upon.  

What are your best coffee talk tips? Send me an email at bwalton@billwaltonsalestraining                or join/post your thoughts in the Client Acquisition Group on LinkedIn. 

A few years ago we conducted a research study into the barriers to effective prospecting. The usual suspects revealed their heads as they always do – “no time”, “I don't want to appear too salesy”, “most of my business comes from referral”.  While these may be true on occasion, two interesting nuggets also came from this study on “barriers”:

• I’m not really sure who I should be targeting
• I don't really have a great story to tell

Here are some tips on messaging that have been helping our clients connect a little faster: 

​Seek Client Input
The best companies know what their customers value in their service, and figure out how to deliver on that consistently. For new prospects, more needs to be said around why customers and clients work with you and the impact you’re having. Prospects want to “see themselves” in the relationship with a provider. Let them know why they might be interested and what it could look like.
 
Sell Comfort
So much of what you are selling is not the nuts and bolts of your solution, but the comfort that it’s the right time and investment for it. Customers hate to be wrong with their limited capital. Sell what’s right with stories of where you’ve been successful before. Ask a prospect to describe their ideal scene and continue to align your message with that.
 
Make it part of who YOU are (Within the realm of compliance of course)
Great messaging comes when you’re not thinking about it. For sellers, it’s about finding a connection to a business problem for a certain client or customer type and aligning your solution to that. Messaging also supports the reason for your solutions’ existence (the why), and the impact that it’s having. Don’t forget to explain the special process, or technology that enables that value.
 
Client Type focus vs. Niche
A relevant and timely message speaks to a client type, the problems or aspirations they share, and relevant solutions that align. When building a conversation, start with a conversation starter that primes a path for how you help customers, the problems you solve, the impact you’re having and that a special process or technique is behind it.
 
Download our messaging best practices tip sheet below: 
​

SALES / EMAIL MARKETING / SOCIAL MEDIA INTERN
 
Description
Bill Walton Sales Training, a nationally known sales training and coaching firm are looking for a qualified intern to join our sales/marketing team. Our firm provides cutting edge sales training and tools to companies in the Fortune 500 that need to articulate and deliver clear value.  The firm seeks an intern who can help with email marketing and social media campaigns to support the firm’s vision in the marketplace. The position begins January 9th 2017 and will run through the end of May 2017.  You are expected to work 15 hours a week and will be paid $15/hour.
 
What you will learn
This job will provide valuable insights in the world of business-to-business selling and relationship management, with an emphasis on digital relationship building.  You will have input over how best to disseminate our message and with what medium to a discriminating Fortune 500 business audience. You    will also learn valuable insights into the world of training and development and its impact on results and corporate cultures.
 
Responsibilities

• Assist in the creation of email campaigns, blog posts, and social media communication, etc.
• Assist in the management and maintenance of an email database
• Assist with the export and import of contact information for key prospect segments
• Assist with execution of local speaking engagements, training programs and marketing events
• Assist with the production and delivery of training materials
• Perform analysis of email marketing and social media campaigns (click throughs, etc.)
• Enter contact information into contact management systems (Microsoft Outlook)
• Provide support to social media efforts
• Maintain tracking report of traditional and social media activity
• Working with outside designers on email creation/creative assets
• Proofreading emails to ensure accuracy on desktop and mobile
• Fulfilling inquiries related to prospect engagement

 
Requirements
Company is looking for an undergraduate student in the Greater Princeton, NJ area who is majoring in    Sales, Marketing or Digital Media. This person should have excellent verbal and written communication skills, with extensive knowledge of Web and social media. Outlook, PowerPoint, Word and Excel experience is a must. You must be a 3rd or 4th year undergraduate majoring in Marketing or a related discipline.  Ability to work effectively and independently is critical.  Must have a min 3.00 GPA in your major or equivalent; a 3.5 GPA is preferred.   All your information will be kept confidential according to EEO guidelines. 
 
Majors
Marketing, Sales, Advertising, Computer Science, Digital Media Arts, Communication – New Media

Contact:
​Bill Walton, 917-439-3271

Bill Walton's Core Four training programs boost productivity for Financial Advisors &  Wholesalers:
 
Bill Walton Sales Training has created a suite of programs as a product of its 15-year history of supporting Financial Advisors and the Distribution organizations that support them. Grounded in adult learning principles with a “how to” approach, Walton offers four hard-hitting programs that advisors can self implement, and wholesalers can coach to.  The Core Four are also delivered as an engaging keynote presentation.
 
Telling Your Story:  Value Prop Mixology
Prospects respond to how an advisor describes situations they can personally relate to.  Helping prospects see themselves in the relationship engenders trust and staves off procrastination. So why aren’t advisor value props better?  Too many advisors fail to state why their clients work with them, and why specifically the prospect would be interested. Prospects want to hear an advisor’s credibility and issue fluency – this workshop helps advisors communicate that through three levels of messaging: a 12-word tagline, a 45-second elevator pitch and a 2-minute value proposition that answers the “why should I work with you?” question.
 
A Giving Hand is Always Full: A Roadmap to Lasting COI Relationships
Centers of Influence want what you want – more business. But what COIs want from advisors and their partners can be something entirely different. Credible networking sources are looking to make a valuable impact on their contacts by providing a trusted resource.  And that is you. This program addresses the common categories of COIs, their sources of value, and specific relationship building tactics financial professionals can adopt to attract them.  Participants learn how to trade on the insights they provide vs. simply asking for referrals.  
 
Taking the Stress out of Asking for the Business
Closing effectiveness is declining. Bill Walton Sales Training’s recent survey of sales managers revealed that in 75% of prospect interactions, their people were not requesting commitment. In the same survey -nearly 90% of opportunities are not closing as forecasted. Participants are given a process that leverages a last call/next call rolling engagement model that orients every interaction around a client type and solvable problem. Financial Professionals will learn to present solutions with context – using the spoken words of prospects to ask for the business.    
 
Personal Effectiveness: A Financial Professional’s Survival Kit™ 
Bill Walton has been coaching financial advisors for over 15 years. While smart, credentialed and well meaning, not all advisors have an inner drive to seize all opportunity all of the time. Often what’s needed is a process for getting the right work done right. In this tools-driven program, financial professionals learn to create their Perfect Week, to adopt a time-slot strategy for their outreach, and take a “Big 6” approach to what’s realistic to accomplish in one business day. This program allows for best practice share and peer coaching.  

For more information: bwalton@billwaltonsalestraining.com or call 917-439-3271