Introductions, or referrals, are essential to a financial advisor’s marketing strategy.

Nothing beats a strong introduction, you’re relying on your client as the trusted go between to introduce you to someone who needs your services.

Unfortunately, many new advisors struggle with asking their clients for introductions. 

The struggle is amplified when dealing with prospective clients – advisors may not be confident enough to request an introduction from people who haven’t used their services yet. This can cause advisors to miss out on potential new business.

While it may seem counterintuitive, there’s nothing wrong with asking a prospective client for an introduction. 

It is recommended advisors focus on generating introductions from existing and prospective clients, however, there are effective and less effective ways to do it. 

In this post, we discuss some tips and review a script that can help you get comfortable asking prospective clients to introduce you to their family and friends.

How To Introduce Yourself To A Prospective Client

Asking for an introduction can be uncomfortable, even scary for some advisors and this is normal.

A crucial part of overcoming this fear is recognizing that you’re providing high quality services to your clients backed by the support of a reputable financial services organization.

Internalizing the belief that the products, your network and level of service is so high that it’s your duty to let others know so they can reap the benefits, is key to unlocking your confidence.

When asking for an introduction, understanding the above psychology can positively impact your tone and body language and help reduce nervous energy when speaking with clients.

Before getting into a referral script, let’s look at some less effective practices when asking for an introduction:

Avoid Pushiness 

Avoid appearing pushy. For example, don’t ask clients or prospects for their family and friends’ contact information.

Avoid Pressure 

Refrain from using guilt and other emotional pressure tactics when requesting introductions. It can come across as insincere and people see through it.

Avoid Desperation 

Don’t use phrases or language suggesting your business is slow, or sales are down as it weakens your brand.

Avoid Hard sell 

When speaking with clients and prospects, always keep them in mind and bring the conversation back to their needs, not your own.

Let’s look at a tested script when seeking an introduction. 

When you approach the end of a meeting with a client or prospect, consider the following script:

“It’s been great chatting with you today and learning about your financial needs and goals. I’m looking forward to continuing our conversation. As you’re aware, I’m working to get my business off the ground and if you have any ideas on how I can grow my business I’d appreciate it. I’m focusing on working with people going through significant life changes such as starting a new business, getting married, having children or retiring. It was great to meet you and please keep me in mind.”

This approach is more effective because it’s indirect and avoids the pitfalls listed above.  What’s more, it doesn’t directly ask for an introduction. 

Your delivery (tone and pace) is important and can affect the success of this approach. Again, the beliefs you internalize about yourself and the products and services you’re offering can impact how your request comes across to the client or prospect. 

Many other template scripts are available, and we encourage you to try and test them.

Using Introductions As Part Of A Successful Marketing Strategy

Advisors that attract the most clients usually have a comprehensive system of frameworks, habits and scripts that work together to project a compelling value proposition to clients and prospects. 

However, asking for introductions is the cornerstone of successful marketing strategies, and we suggest thoughtfully engaging all clients and prospects to generate introductions. 

Asking every client and prospect to refer you increases your chances of driving new sales and ultimately getting your business off the ground and growing faster.

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