The Closing Blog: Moving the Peanut up the Hill - Part one of a two part series

Pipeline lag
So here we are in the second quarter of 2018. If your numbers are on track – excellent!  I was always a big fan of frontloading my sales year so I’m sure there’s a lot of you out there that aren’t satisfied. So here’s an entry that might help boost your close rates a bit. According to research from our last book, Taming the Four Headed Dragon, division and complex managers reported that less than 30% of advisors were closing prospects on an outcome. Likely fearing rejection or appearing too pushy, they’re letting too many opportunities sit on the pipeline with no defined path to next.
 
It’s all in how you create “fit”
Prospects know that any wealth management firm still standing is capable. But clients aren't buying on value proposition and history. They are buying based on fit. When there’s fit, prospects are likely to take action. When there’s fit, they share more. And when prospect’s share more, you receive a salesperson’s greatest gift– the client’s spoken words.
 
Use the CPS™ model to close on “fit”
A reliable way to sell around fit is to design prospect conversations around a specific client type with an associated set of problems that your firm’s solutions can address. We created a framework for closing on fit and it's called CPS™ – Client Type-Problem-Solution. By engaging in conversations grounded in who they are, their dissatisfaction with the current state (or goals not yet met), you create fit for an eventual recommendation because there’s context in the dialogue.  Here are a few examples of how you can achieve greater fit based on some of client types our clients are engaging: ​

Messaging Example – Using CPS™ for Fit
So that's the theory on CPS. Here is some sample language to consider when designing your next conversation with a new prospect: 

“Mr. and Mrs. Tyson thanks for meeting with me today. I was thinking about our last conversation about your honeymoon and your excitement for your future together – congratulations again.  We work with many newly married couples that for the first time are thinking about comingling finances and planning for a future beyond just them.” [CLIENT TYPE]

“These clients think they have it covered with the numerous retirement accounts between them. But what we are finding is that many of these couples’ holdings are not asset allocated and thus hedged against market downturns or focused on a future goal like college or a second home.” [PROBLEM]

“So we help couples in your situations in a few ways. We ease them into the concept of combined finances by talking about joint goals and the timeframes for them. We tap into their investor personality and determine where each party might to retain some independence with their investments. I had a couple recently agree to start an IRA together with a few target dates mutual funds. They were pleased to able to take a step forward together while retaining some flexibility for each other.” [SOLUTION FIT]

Look for part two of the series as we talk about structuring the closing meeting. To learn more about our approach to closing, download a free chapter on closing from our book Taming the Four Headed Dragon.