What BIG Producers Know (that average producers don’t)
“What BIG Producers Know (that average producers don’t)” – Part 1
By Greg Blackwell,
Managing Partner, Trust Performance Coaching
Feb 16, 2012
“I’m working harder than I’ve ever worked and generating less income than I should be. What am I doing wrong?” Stan said to me after delivering a keynote address. He was clearly frustrated. I hear comments like his frequently from seasoned sales veterans who want better results faster, more clients sooner and time to enjoy their families. In short, it’s about how you run your business, engage your clients and manage your mindset.
Today’s discussion pinpoints the differences between top producers and average ones. These differences aren’t generalized armchair speculation, nor the opinion of any firm I represent, but my own first- hand knowledge based on over 25 years of personal experience in the securities industry.
Twelve of those years I spent working exclusively with large producers. This begs the question, what’s large? In this case, large is the top producers at Fidelity Investments, Ameriprise and Morgan Stanley Smith Barney. I’m going to share my observations on the secrets of these top producers, and what differentiates the ordinary from the extraordinary.
We’ll break our discussion into three areas:
Practice Management, where we explore how Big Producers run their businesses-
Client Engagement, meaning how Big Producers position themselves to clients and set client expectations-
and The Champion’s Mindset, how Big Producers think differently from average producers, and how they put these processes into action.
I’ll publish three papers – one on each discussion area. In today’s message, we’ll focus on
Practice Management. How do BIG Producers run their business? Here are six things they do differently from average producers.
- Big Producers work with a small handful of vendors: two to three mutual fund companies at the most. By focusing their efforts on fewer firms, they are more often considered large clients by each vendor. This position affords the producer a preferred status with each vendor, earning them the firm’s highest service levels as well as access to greater resources such as the firm’s portfolio managers, national speakers, and more financial support for business development.
- Big Producers also work with fewer clients with whom they have fostered deeper relationships. They’d rather focus on 100 relationships that average $10,000 gross per year instead of 500 clients averaging $2,000 in revenue per year. The result is that without compromising on their own revenue, they are able to offer better service to fewer people. These fewer, larger clients will tend to have complex needs, and therefore tend to be extremely loyal to the person that understands and satisfies them.
- Big Producers are always acquiring new clients. But not just anyone who can fog a mirror, they’ve identified in great detail their Ideal Client Profile, and they don’t compromise on who they choose to take on as clients unless they’re referred by an existing client. For example, an Ideal Client Profile could mean corporate executives over the age of 50 with at least $500k in liquid assets, or small business owners with an income over $250 k and/or liquid assets over $500k. It is imperative that you know your own bottom line before you are introduced to new prospective clients. “Under-promise and over-deliver?” This is where it starts.
- Networking events are feasts of opportunity, and Big Producers are masters at working a room. To genuinely engage people in conversation requires patience, practice, and a touch of finesse; especially when it comes to initiating the conversation. Here are 10 icebreaker questions or conversation starters to engage others in productive dialogue:
- So that I can help you, what would make tonight (this event) successful for you? As I meet others, I’ll be sure to steer them your way when appropriate.
- How did you get your start in your business?
- What do you enjoy most about what you do?
- What separates your company from your competition?
- What advice would you give someone just starting in your field?
- What one thing would you do with your business if you knew you couldn’t fail?
- What significant changes have you seen take place in your profession through the years?
- What do you foresee as the up-and-coming trends of your industry?
- Describe the strangest (or funniest) incident you’ve ever experienced in your business.
- What strategies have you found to be the most effective for promoting your business?
- BIG Producers are diligent about setting up strong referral alliances with CPAs and attorneys. The following best practice originated from Alliance Bernstein:
- Learn the names of CPA’s and attorneys of your top 10 clients. Arrange a face-to-face meeting with them if remotely possible.
Start by saying, “You and I have ________ for a client and I think they’re wonderful. Would you share your Ideal Client Profile so that I only refer suitable prospects to you?”The Law of Reciprocity suggests they ask the same of you. At the end of the year, send them a letter recapping your referrals to them and their referrals to you. If you’ve referred 3 and they referred 0, a friendly conversation is warranted.
- What do you do better than anyone else? Unique Ability is a concept created by Dan Sullivan whose premise is that every person on the planet does something uniquely well – better than anyone else. Others can help you discover your unique ability if you ask about 40 people to tell you. What is your Unique Ability? Personally, I know that my strength lies in dialing in to the root obstacle that’s preventing someone from accomplishing their goals and then providing practical solutions. Big producers seem to be more self-aware than average producers. They know what their Unique Ability is, and they delegate all other tasks to a trusted party. Most average producers are about $18,000 away from rising to the next level. This sum is six month’s salary of an administrative assistant, who takes over all non-revenue producing activities. You see, after six months, you should be generating more than enough revenue to cover the cost of your assistant because of your newly found time to focus on driving revenue for your business.
Every great athlete has a coach. Who’s yours?
In Part 2, we’ll discuss how BIG Producers engage their clients in a different manner than average producers. The client experience is different.
