Multiple studies of financial advisors show they are increasingly feeling pressured, and success is becoming harder to attain. Meanwhile, the high-net-worth market is proving to be optimal for a great many financial advisors.
The number of wealthy families is increasing at a tremendous pace, and the amount of wealth they control is greater than ever before. Most of the affluent rely on professionals to manage their investments. Also, the wealthy are able and willing to pay, and pay well, for high-quality investment and financial expertise.
Being able to access the wealthy on a preferential basis and expertly manage these relationships characterize the most accomplished financial advisors—those consistently earning $1 million or more annually. TFor such advisors, tere are four essential approaches to business development:
Master framing: From the astute use of rhetorical devices to ensuring discussions revolve around the high-net-worth personality of the affluent investor, the more successful financial advisors are aligning their services and products with what is sincerely important to affluent investors.
Maximizing client relationships: Revenues from existing affluent investor clients is often referred to as “low hanging fruit.” For example, exceptional profiling and the ability to leverage gained insights result in identifying new business opportunities and set the stage for constructive action.
Building strategic partnerships with centers of influence: The most powerful way to source new affluent investors is by getting referrals from other types of professionals who are working with the wealthy—centers of influence. Financial advisors can employ proven methodologies that result in a steady stream of new wealthy investor clients.
Becoming a thought leader: Most any financial advisor can become a thought leader, which is a professional recognized by the high-net-worth community, including other types of professionals and peers, as a leading authority. Moreover, financial advisors positioned as thought leaders are able to dramatically monetize their professional brands.
To get the best possible business development results with affluent investors, becoming a thought leader is absolutely necessary. Not only does being a thought leader have business coming to you over the transom, it empowers the other three essential approaches. For example, high-value thought leadership content is ab effective form of currency that can be used to motivate centers of influence to provide a constant flow of new affluent investors.
It is worthwhile to remember that just about any financial advisor can become a thought leader. This is especially the case nowadays as many services and platforms can provide extraordinary high-value content. Some of them also provide infrastructure that makes distribution quite easy and education to use the material in various operative and creative ways.
Separating the most successful financial advisors from the downwardly mobile majority is their ability to implement these four essential approaches for cultivating affluent investors. While all four are crucial to building a stellar financial advisory practice, becoming a thought leader is often at center stage.
Russ Alan Prince, president of R.A. Prince & Associates, is a consultant to family offices, the ultra-wealthy and select professionals.
