10 Key Selling Points for New Advisors

By Bryce Sanders

January 2022

You’ve heard the expression: “It’s a young person’s world.” This might be true in the entertainment and fashion industries, yet in financial services, gray hair is considered an advantage. Years ago, when living in Brooklyn, a friend related an amusing comment after his parents met me for the first time. “I met Mr. Sanders. He’s just a kid!” That’s not the impression you want to leave with prospects.

Established advisors have many advantages, but newer ones have quite a few, too.Check them out below.

1. You know the newest and latest products.

You graduated from training. Different areas of the firm taught you about their products. You understand what’s topical now and how the products work.

Rationale:If you were seriously ill and wanted to know all your options, would you choose the family doctor, a general practitioner who has looked after the family for decades, or would you prefer a newer doctor, fresh out of medical school who has been given hands-on experience with the latest techniques?

2. You are hard-working.

Some established advisors go into a coasting mode later in their careers. They shorten their office hours. They take multiple vacations. They are semi-retired and not that easy to reach.

Rationale:You are building your practice. Your clients know this will get the largest part of your attention. You are working for them.

3. Your first clients will be important.

The client with $3 million might be just one more average-sized account for an established corner office advisor, but they will be your largest account and get lots of attention.

Rationale:When great ideas and opportunities come along, they will be among your first calls.

4. Succession planning isn’t an issue.

When clients of a certain age meet an established advisor, they might wonder how many more years they intend to keep working. They don’t want to develop a relationship, come to depend on their advisor and then be told “I’m retiring at the end of the year.” They want a stable relationship.

Rationale:The newer advisor is starting their career. They expect to be around for a while.

5. You are comfortable with social media.

You know people who say: “I don’t know how to open attachments” and “I’m not on social media.” They make that choice. Clients expect advisors to communicate through the client’s preferred channel, not to be told communication only works in limited ways.

Rationale:The newer advisor is familiar and active on several social media channels. They can text too.

6. Younger clients can relate to you.

Newer advisors are often younger. Younger clients often relate better with people nearer their age. They have common interests and more shared experiences.

Rationale:When they talk about the concert they are attending next weekend, you know what they are talking about.

7. You are open-minded.

Some established advisors reach a comfort level and either stop learning or become resistant to change. They do business a certain way and newer investments don’t fit into their picture.

Rationale:Robo-advisors, online trading and new alternative investments are all part of today’s investing landscape. The newer advisor doesn’t have preconceived ideas. They’ve been trained where these new concepts fit into the bigger picture.

8. Environmental concerns.

Many older advisors built their careers and clients’ wealth investing in oil and tobacco companies, industries that are out of favor today. It’s difficult to make the mental shift away from companies that have been so comfortable for so long.

Rationale:Newer advisors tend to “talk the talk and walk the walk.” They share similar environmental concerns and have aligned their lifestyles to become part of the solution. Younger clients tend to like that.

9. If you don’t have the answer, you will find it.

Some established advisors are reluctant to talk about product areas they don’t understand. Their fear is connecting the client to a specialist might lose the client if the specialist experience doesn’t work out. Years ago, home mortgages fit into this category.

Rationale:Newer advisors see themselves as part of a larger firm, not “stockbrokers” whose firm kept adding products they considered unrelated to their core business. Once they identify a problem, they know where to seek the solution.

10. You can sell the firm.

Many established advisors see themselves as the center of the relationship. It makes sense because they have proved their worth to their clients over the decades. Clients refer their friends because of the skills they have demonstrated. The firm is secondary.

Rationale:Newer advisors don’t have reputations that precede them. They also spotlight the firm when selling themselves. They convey the prospect is taking a step up when they become a client of the firm.

Bryce Sanders is president of Perceptive Business Solutions Inc. He provides HNW client acquisition training for the financial services industry. His book, “Captivating the Wealthy Investor,” is available on Amazon.

The original version of this story was published onThinkAdvisor.