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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To secure your financial future, you need to consistently make good financial decisions.

While some of these decisions may be small, many others will be complex and carry consequences that could significantly impact your financial future.

Some people are able to make complicated financial decisions on their own; however, many of us need help and guidance when making important financial choices.

Financial advisors are professionals that will bring knowledge and perspective to your financial decision making, helping you avoid any blind spots to make informed decisions regarding your finances.

What’s more, households that partner with financial advisors are better off financially than households that don’t. In this post, we’ll explore three key reasons why you should consider working with a financial advisor.

What do financial advisors do?

Financial advisors improve their clients’ financial outcomes by providing specialized guidance. Simply put, a financial advisor can help you identify your financial goals, develop a plan and work with you to put your plan into action.

Financial advisors can help you with:

• Planning for retirement
• Increasing your monthly savings contributions
• Tackling debt
• Insurance and tax planning
• Investing

An advisor helps you determine how much money and resources you have now, how much you’ll need in the future and how you can strategically grow your wealth.

1. Financial advisors can help you see your entire financial situation

Do you ever think about buying an investment property or owning a new home in the future?

Perhaps you want to start your own company, pay for your child’s education or build a portfolio that generates a healthy stream of dividends long into your retirement.

These financial goals come with a “cost” and a financial advisor can help you:

• Define and prioritize your goals and understand trade-offs
• Identify the links between your goals
• Develop strategies to reach your goals based on your available resources

Financial advisors construct frameworks for their clients that organize all the pieces of their financial situations. Furthermore, they help clients balance competing priorities and assist with determining the most efficient strategies to reach their goals.

With so many decisions to make, financial planning can be overwhelming. Advisors have expertise in cutting through the fog to help you identify which goals matter most to you and recommend the right tools, products and information to help you achieve your goals. Ultimately, this saves clients time and increases client confidence regarding their ability to build their future.

2. Financial advisors can help you reduce your financial risk

As our lives progress our exposure to risk increases.

For example, our health deteriorates, we may have more dependents, the job market may evolve, and we may find ourselves out of work or our investment style may have changed.

Often, we’re so busy with our day-to-day lives that we don’t notice a problem emerging before it’s too late.

A financial advisor can help you understand your own unique risk profile and suggest risk mitigation strategies to ensure you and your family are protected from unforeseen events or problems. For some, this might include purchasing a comprehensive insurance plan; for others, it might involve developing a hedging strategy to reduce the downside risk of an aggressive growth portfolio.

Throughout life we all experience life changing events, whether it’s having a child, landing a career changing job or inheriting money. Financial advisors can act as risk coaches at various turning points in your life, ensuring you’re proceeding with the appropriate caution.

3. Financial advisors can help you build wealth faster

A growing body of research suggests that households using financial advisors are more disciplined savers and have better financial outcomes in the long run in comparison to households that don’t use one.

Generally, the longer you work with an advisor, the better off you’ll be. After 15 years or more of working with a financial advisor, advised households can accumulate as much as 173% (2.73 times) more assets than otherwise identical non-advised households (The Investment Funds Institute of Canada, 2012). Advised households also tend to have more RRSPs and Tax Free Savings Accounts in comparison to their non-advised counterparts.

When asked, 61% of investors strongly agreed that their advisor helped them increase their net worth and achieve investment returns (Investment Funds Institute of Canada, 2011). These facts and statistics support the hypotheses that financial advisors:

• Provide valuable advice that enhances client decision making
• Develop meaningful financial plans that help their clients save money and increase their net worth
• Act as financial educators, informing their clients about important financial products

Your financial advisor can help you develop creative strategies to grow your wealth and alert you to investment vehicles and opportunities that you may not have been aware of.

When you work with a financial advisor, you benefit from their skills, knowledge and perspective. Your advisor will guide your financial planning and decision making which will have a positive impact on your financial health and well-being.

Interested in starting a career with Canada Financial? Join us at our next Carrer Webinar.