For many advisors, an initial meeting with a prospect is somewhat like a track meet.
As soon as the meeting begins, a “gun sound” goes off in your head and it’s a race against the clock to squeeze in as much information about you and your firm as possible.
After all, if they’re going to hire you, aren’t you supposed to talk about: what you do, how long you’ve been in business, and what you specialize in?.
Once that’s done and they know everything about you, you’re then allowed to relax and breathe a bit easier — as you may have been taught over the years.
As the meeting progresses, you hear them tell you about a particular financial challenge they’re facing.
Immediately, a light bulb goes off and you recall a similar situation with a previous client — shouldn’t you talk about that, too?
You politely interject and tell the story of how you worked on this same problem before with great results, so they have nothing to worry about.
Then you notice you’re coming down to the home stretch – the race is almost complete and it’s time to ask for their business.
In your mind, you’ve made it clear to them that you’re the one for the job.
What may feel like the “home stretch” for you, may feel like the race has just begun for your prospect.
Unfortunately for you, your prospect doesn’t quite see it your way and says: “I need more time to think about it.”
After all the effort you’ve put in to proving your value, was it not enough to get them onboard?
This is a common issue among advisors, as the entire industry has been conditioned to believe it’s your job to engage, present, educate and share ideas — which means, you talking!
The fact that you’re speaking, and they’re listening, gives you a false sense of control and “temporary” authority.
The reality is, in a commoditized world, your credibility and value is already assumed and is no longer a deciding factor in your prospects decision to hire you.
They see your LinkedIn profile, your website, and your credentials, which to them — appears to look the same as other advisors.
What they’re thinking in the back of their mind, over and over is: “Do I trust him? Do I trust him? Do I trust him?”.
To build real trust with your prospects, you have to be comfortable with silence.
While speaking about what you do is an attempt to show your value, it can also break the trust you need for them to feel vulnerable enough to tell you the truth about their deepest issues – so they can feel heard and understood by you.
To differentiate yourself, you need to shift your mindset and give yourself permission to stop talking about you: your firm, your credentials, your resume, and your previous clients.
Instead, you need to shift from “financial advisor” to “financial doctor” — to see yourself as the doctor diagnosing your patient and viewing the meeting as an opportunity for them to share their situation with you and connect at a very deep level.
With the space you’ve created, then they can begin to view you as the Trusted Authority to confide in and feel comfortable asking you for help, on their own.
With this new trust-based selling model, you no longer have to expend unnecessary energy selling yourself.
If you’d like to become a trusted authority in your market, and learn more about trust-based selling, order your complimentary book and consultation below.