Second Article in the Series:
Efficiency and Productivity
One of the most challenging conversations I have with financial advisors is that involving the client list. While the advisor/rainmaker would like to add to the client list, there are obligations to serve the clients the advisor already works with. This adds to the conundrum of too little time to market and identify new Ideal Clients. It is also likely contributing to workflow issues in your team and placing constraints on their time.
When you review your client list through the lens of your Ideal Client parameters, you begin to see that some do not fit your Ideal Client profile. Knowing that we have to make space available for new things to come into our life and business, how do you begin the task of culling your client list?
I find there are usually three types of non-Ideal Clients. See how many of these you have:
The Pseudo Ideal Client: They fit your Ideal Client profile on all measures, except one. This one measure is usually a big one such as the client who hired you because he wanted professional help, yet he second-guesses and questions each of your recommendations; or the client who belittles and harasses your staff with outlandish demands.
The No-Fit Client: No element of this client profile lines up with your Ideal Client. They may have become a client before you had an Ideal Client profile, or you may have inherited them as a client. Perhaps you just hit it off and they trusted you to handle their finances.
The Big Hitter Client: This client is a large revenue producer for you, either from the amount of assets you oversee or planning or other fees associated with the work you perform. They don’t line up with your Ideal Client profile, yet the revenue is great.
Culling the Client List is an important investment of your time and energy to take your business to the next level. As with anything else in our lives, our business needs the space and energy to find and onboard new Ideal Clients. In the next messages, we will address how to handle each client type.