Selling with Belief

Why do you sell the products that you do? When you meet a prospective client, how do you see them?

Do you look at them and think, “Gee, I think he might need what I am selling. I hope he does.” When they raise and objection, do you think, “Oh well, guess I’ll try someone else.”

Or do you feel, “I’m happy I met this person. He needs me, he just doesn’t know it yet.”. When they raise an objection, do you feel, “Great! Another opportunity to prove how much he needs me!”

Most are of the former type. Very few are of the latter. Who do you think is more successful? Better yet, who do you want to be?

Need vs. Value

You have to be careful providing people what they need. At a certain point, meeting needs requires a certain level of you imposing your thoughts on another person.  Sometimes this works, such as when a person actually has a need that they are completely unaware of, like the need for life insurance. But many times, you make judgments about where they are and where they should go, and how they should get there. Best case is you are perceived as mildly helpful. Worst case, you are seen as arrogant. more about you that them.

On the other hand, focusing your effort of discovering what they value puts you in their world, and follows the path of least resistance to get them to a better place for them. I’ve seen the interaction between and advisor who values a simple and straight-forward approach with a wholesaler who believes everyone has to look at the complexity and learn certain things before acting. Clash of value and need, and never ends pretty.

Take a look at how you approach people you are trying to help. think about what they might need, find out what they value, and close the gap between them.

Sour Grapes

We all know the fable from Aesop. Crow has grapes. Fox wants grapes. Crow won’t give them over, no matter how fox uses his guile to get them. Fox declares the grapes are sour and leaves (probably muttering things under his breath).

I remember this as a cautionary tale from the crow’s perspective – that people tend to diminish the value of something you have that they can’t (this interpretation has been supported by every elementary school teacher I had).

I’ve realised this is too simple. We need to see it from the perspective of the fox, and become better by doing so.

The fox felt he wanted the grapes, and that entitled him to them. When he didn’t get them, he diminished their value in his mind, and tried to do so in the mind of the crow as well. He settled on cynicism. What if he thought of it in a different way?

What if the fox asked the crow how he might find grapes like those that he could reach? What if he tried to figure out some type of trade with the crow for something the bird would value? what if he simply accepted that the grapes were not his to have, and he focussed his attention and energy pursuing something that he was more likely the obtain?

As an advisor, what do you do when a sale does not happen, or a very valuable prospect does not want to do business with you? Do you essentially call ‘sour grapes’?

Referable, introduce-able, remarkable

As advisors, you likely seek to add new clients to your practice.

It is great to get referrals. Clients who are willing to share the names of friends and colleagues who may find value in what you do is great. But it still results in making a contact that is only one step above a cold call. (‘Bob speaks highly of you, and thought we should chat’ – some call this a ‘warm call’. I consider it ‘tepid’ at best.)

Better is the introduction, where a client is physically there when you meet the potential client. This is great when it happens spontaneously at a party or event, but many times it still requires you to prompt the introduction.

Best is when a client talks about you to other people in a way that makes potential clients want to contact you. How do you get to this point? If you want people to remark about you and what you do, you need to be remarkable.

Do things for your clients that go above and beyond, that show you are someone who cares about clients beyond the premiums they pay or the contributions they make to their accounts. Give your clients a compelling story to tell others, and they will.

Belief

You are an expert and designing and implementing financial plans. You use the best products to make the plans work for your clients.

And they still don’t buy. Why?

It is likely a question of belief – a question of the underlying ‘why’. And I am not talking about, “This policy provides tax-effective growth with unparalleled protection.” That is a ‘what’.

I am also not talking about, “We use a comprehensive process to design a unique financial plan.” That is a ‘how’.

People do things that ‘fit’ with their beliefs. What they believe dictates how they think, which in turn dictates how they act. It is not about you trying to figure out every client’s unique ‘why’. You have your own ‘why’, what you fundamentally believe to be true and important. Be true to your own why, start out by letting everyone you meet know about it, and you will begin to attract clients who share your why, clients who believe what your believe. After that, the how (the process you use to move from belief to logical thought), and the what (the tools you use to turn thought into reality) are easy.