Change provides a great opportunity to put yourself top-of-mind.
As advisors, when we’re in the midst of changes taking place, either within our own firm or industry changes, we can get so focused on those particular events that we can overlook a great opportunity to either communicate them to Centers of Influence whom we’re currently working with or especially communicate them to Centers of Influence we’d like to be working with.Here’s what I mean: if you have, for instance, a new hire – if you bring on a junior advisor or bring on a paraplanner or add somebody to your firm – this is a great opportunity to both communicate to existing Centers of Influence what’s going on but also to communicate with potential Centers of Influence whom you’d love to work with. It shows both groups that as a firm, you’re growing. This is a great way to publicize, humbly, the fact that you’re growing, that business is going well, that you’re addressing the needs of existing clients and also to let them know now you’ve also increased capacity. So, again, if you’re bringing on that junior advisor you want to let them know, “Our business continues growing, and in accordance with that, we’re happy (or proud) to announce that we’ve brought on Joe Smith, blah, blah, blah,” or “…Cindy Smith as a paraplanner…” or whatever it might be.You can do the same when something is changing within our industry. So, for instance, with the announcement of the SECURE Act, as of January first this year, there are significant changes that are affecting retirement accounts, that are affecting clients from a tax issue perspective. Again, this is a great way to inform existing Centers of Influence as well as show Centers of Influence like CPAs and estate attorneys that you’re not only up to date with what’s going on, but understand it and can communicate it to them effectively. These are people who know they need to know all that’s going, particularly with the SECURE Act, and have clientele that they’re speaking with who have similar issues to clientele whom you’re working with.So use this as a great opportunity to get to them. Put together a little piece (obviously get it through compliance) and get it out to them, and then even give them a follow-up email or phone call.
- When changes occur, consider how to make an announcement that will reflect positively on you.
- Write that announcement to existing COIs or potential COIs, but do it from their perspective, as far as how it’s going to help them and how you’re going to better serve them. So, if you have a new hire, [focus on] how you’ve increased capacity to better serve their clients. Or, with a new item within our industry happening like the SECURE Act, what it might mean for their clients and how they might like to communicate it to their clients. Have it coming from their perspective – make that easy for them get their heads around relative to “what’s in it for me?”
- Send it out by hard copy. Don’t email it out where it’s going to get lost in their crush of daily emails. Send it out hard copy and then follow it up maybe with an email two weeks later to make sure they received it. Let them know if there have been any updates but also ask them if they want a further explanation of what’s going on and maybe even have a coffee and just have you update them as to what this really means for the populace out there, both for your clients and possibly for their clients as well.
- This is a great way to stay top of mind with Centers of Influence, but especially with those Centers of Influence whom you’d love to be doing business with.