2015 MDRT Annual Meeting e-handout Material. The Five Myths You Tell Yourself about Getting Referrals and the Real Truth

Transcription

1 2015 MDRT Annual Meeting e-handout Material Title: Speaker: The Five Myths You Tell Yourself about Getting Referrals and the Real Truth Dan Allison Presentation Date: Tuesday, June 16, :00-11:30 a.m. And Tuesday, June 16, :30 5:00 p.m. The Million Dollar Round Table (MDRT) does not guarantee the accuracy of tax and legal matters and is not liable for errors and omissions. You are urged to check with tax and legal professionals in your state, province or country. MDRT also suggests you consult local insurance and security regulations and your company s compliance department pertaining to the use of any new sales materials with your clients. The information contained in this handout is unedited and errors, omissions and misspellings may exist. Content may be altered during the delivery of this presentation Million Dollar Round Table Million Dollar Round Table 325 West Touhy Ave. Park Ridge, IL USA

2 Dan Allison The Five Myths You Tell Yourself about Getting Referrals and the Real Truth Three Objectives for Relationship Driven Business Ensure that clients never leave me for the competition (feedback) Ensure that clients use all of the services available to them (cross sell/educate) Learn how to have a referral relationship with clients where appropriate Why We Conducted Focus Groups Why did you select this advisor? How does your advisor exceed your expectations? How does your advisor fall short of meeting your expectations? If you are satisfied and trust your advisor, why don t you refer your advisor more frequently? 1

3 Why Don t You Refer Your Advisor? 1. I ve Never Been Asked 2. I Don t Understand Who My Advisor Wants to Work With 3. I Don t Know How to Explain What They Do 4. I Don t Know How to Make the Introduction 5. I am too private. 6. The risk I take if the relationship does not work out. 7. I haven t had a referable experience. 1) They have to value their experience enough that they would refer. -Do you have a method of getting feedback from your best clients? -What do they value about your service? -What can you improve to make their experience referable? -How do they feel about referral? 2) They have to fully understand your services and all of your products. -Do you have quality clients who don t understand all of the things that you do? -Do they stereo-type you based on one service? -Has your business evolved, or have you made changes to your business, since many of your client relationships incepted? 2

4 3) They have to know that your firm is growing and who an ideal client is. -50% of your best clients may be unaware that you are growing. -Can your best clients describe an ideal client? -Have you talked to your best clients about who you would like to bring on as a client? 4) They don t know what to say to make the introduction. -Do you and your clients have a plan for getting in front of their referrals? -Do your clients know what to say to set up a meeting? -Do you even know when they meet people who are quality prospects? 5) You have to know how your clients want to be approached about referrals in a way that is effective, but will never make them uncomfortable or compromise your relationships. 3

5 1. Clients have to value your service and products enough to refer. 2. Clients have to know all of your products and services. 3. Clients have to know that you want to grow and who an ideal client would be. 4. Clients have to have a comfortable plan when they meet someone. 5. You have to know how to comfortably approach the topic with each and every client. How to Solve the Problem Conduct annual meetings with your best relationships to accomplish the following: -Update clients on your products/resources -Update clients on your growth objectives and ideal client profile -Get their feedback on their experience and how to make it better than it is today Results of Implementing These Strategies More referrals Higher quality referrals Better client retention Better relationships with your best clients Better, more open communication with your top clients 4

6 Objectives of Interactive Client Surveys 1. Ensure best clients are kept abreast of your service offering and resources. 2. Update clients on expansion goals and ideal client profile. 3. Get feedback on the clients experience and how to improve the experience to become more referable. 4. Learn the most effective approach to referrals with each client. As A Process Conduct one Interactive Client Survey per week with 50 most influential clients and relationships No expense 70 hours of your time per year 5