Getting New Clients Through Social Relationships: A Declining Model?
So many advisors have been taught, that to effectively acquire new clients, they need to tap into their social networks – “low hanging fruit” as told by peers and mentors.
They find themselves approaching friends and relatives, attending social events at the local chambers of commerce, country clubs, golf courses, and engaging in conversations over coffee or a meal, patiently waiting for an “in” to start talking about what they can do for them as an advisor.
It’s an awkward moment attempting to insert yourself into the conversation with something to the effect of: “I could take a look at your finances if you’d like”.
That’s the moment the person you’re socializing with senses your real agenda, triggering in the back of their mind: “Is he just being friendly with me to try and get my business?”.
At that moment, what seems like “low hanging fruit”, suddenly becomes the most difficult, hard-to-reach fruit, at the top of the tree.
Coming across as having an ulterior motive, using the social relationship as a lead generation strategy, can often break trust faster than it took to create the relationship in the first place.
Crossing social norms into business norms is fraught with “pot holes”, yet relationship-based selling can be fruitful if you’re perfectly happy with an extended and very long sales cycle that is often unpredictable.
The theory goes, the more relationships you create within your network, the higher likelihood of landing a new client – which is fine, if playing the “numbers game” is your thing – when ultimately, you’d be happy with just one or two new clients per month.
The key to unlocking this predicament, is not to confuse social contexts with business contexts.
To solve this dilemma, you’ll need to be open to a new client acquisition model that starts with a business context, not a social context.
Your doctor doesn’t require you to meet him or her in a social context before your initial consultation.
Nor would you want him to.
His process of diagnosing your issues, and helping you understand them more than you did before you met, is how his value is established, as a trusted authority.
Attempting to insert your knowledge and advice, as subtle as it might be, about what you do in a social context, can break the expectations of that social setting, not allowing you to establish your authority positioning.
A peer-to-peer lead generation strategy was a wonderful model before the advisor industry became commoditized.
Now, any prospect you meet, with substantial net worth, most likely has an advisor.
Attempting to shift them from their current advisor to you, is going to require you to first shift your own thinking, to become a trusted authority (not a trusted advisor, they’re completely different).
A trusted advisor if what you become, after the sale.
A trusted authority is what you must become, before the sale.
To learn more about this unique and contrarian trusted authority approach to selling, order your complimentary book and schedule your confidential consultation below.
If you're an ambitious advisor, with a defiant streak (following the crowd isn't your thing), who is overly reliant on referrals, with limited time and resources, but willing to grow and challenge your own thinking -- and you'd be happy with 1 – 2 new high-net-worth clients per month...
Get Your Free Book & Free "Get New Clients" Sales & Lead Generation Consultation ASAP!
Order the new book “Trusted Authority” below and get a free “Get New Clients” sales & lead generation consultation (value $995.00).
In this ground-breaking new book, you’ll discover:
- How to create a flow of high-quality leads in the next 90-days by becoming the Trusted Authority in your market
- How to differentiate yourself from other advisors so that your ideal client says “He/she is the one for me…”
- How to re-position yourself to create inbound demand for your ideal clients only becoming a “category-of-one”
- How to create a “by-appointment-only” business so you stop lowering your authority by "chasing” leads
- How to onboard new clients in one single meeting or zoom conversation… yes this is possible!
Meet The Author
Ari Galper is the world’s number one authority on trust-based selling and is one the most sought-after sales conversion experts for Financial Advisors.
He is the creator of Unlock The Game®, a completely new revolutionary sales approach that overturns the notion of selling as we know it today.
Ari has been featured in CEO Magazine, SkyNews, Forbes, INC Magazine and Financial Advisor Magazine – and has been a featured speaker at the Financial Planning Association’s national conference.
His newest book, “Trusted Authority”, has become an instant best-seller among Financial Advisors worldwide.
With clients in over 35 countries, his global sales systems have become the most successful Trust-Based Selling systems of our time.
In a day and age where technology rules the selling world, for many growth-oriented advisors, deep trust has taken a “back seat” to the sales process.
Ari’s personal insights on how to build trust between buyers and sellers continue to break new ground in the financial services industry.
Ari has been on a mission for the last two decades to change the financial services world through trust.
Through his sold-out talks all over the world and his in-house trainings for high-producing advisors, Ari has become the global ambassador to businesses all over the world.
He regularly connects with global business icons and leaders of industries seeking his counsel on how to infuse trust in their organisations and across their teams.
Ari is a true “disruptor” in the financial services industry. He has been endorsed by legendary sales mentors like Brian Tracy who said: “Ari Galper’s trust-based selling approach is the greatest sales breakthrough in the last 20 years”.
Ari’s sales growth consulting firm has a growing waiting list of financial advisors wanting access to his unique Trusted Authority lead generation models and sales conversion strategy advice.
Ari is also the author of “Lessons From Toby”, a special book about his son Toby who has Down’s Syndrome, who has made a major impact on Ari’s approach to teaching authenticity and trust in his Trust-Based Selling approach.