Yesterday I was hosting a sales coaching conference call for Cathay Wealth Management, a division of Cathay Bank.  The financial markets are crazy, and we discussed the fact that clients are looking for solutions.  They need solid, proven strategies.  A trusted advisor remains calm in the face of a storm, and exudes strength and confidence, and can communicate that demeanor to clients and prospects.  This calm happens when you know the history of the financial markets – we have been here before.  Consider the following strategy when choosing what you will say to clients and prospects:1.  Don’t Confuse The Headlines With The News.  The national media sells stories with hyperbole and superlatives. Bad news sells.  This bias for promoting bad news even extends to the corporate sector. A 2007 press release from PricewaterhouseCoopers Contained the following headline:

U.S. Industrial Manufacturers Expect Lower Growth Rates for the Next 12 Months, According to PricewaterhouseCoopers

When you read the article, you find the survey of manufacturers predicted quarterly revenue GROWTH of 5.7 percent!  While this was a reduction from a previous forecast the predictions could still be considered robust.  So look beyond the headlines to the real news.

2. Know The Dynamics of Market Cycles.  Markets cycle, so recognize the predictability of cycles over time as demonstrated in different asset classes.  Study financial history.  Use tools such as Ibbotson Charts and other third party resources to show clients how markets ebb and flow.  Be able to explain how bad news always produces opportunity, and get clients positioned to exploit opportunities when they appear.

3.  Remember the Four Basic Principles of Investing

* Professional Management
* Asset Allocation
* Diversification
* Dollar Cost Averaging

In A Tale of Two Cities, Charles Dickens wrote, “It was the best of times; it was the worst of times…”  While the challenges we face are many, these days can truly be the best of times for those advisors that know their story, and are proactive about taking it to the people who need it most.  Also remember, your clients know a lot of people just like them that need a financial advisor just like you who is always present when needed the most.

Good selling!

Technorati Tags: sales coaching, financial markets, trusted advisor

Selling financial services as a financial advisor, stock broker, insurance agent, or banker involves six critical factors to be successful – long term. Short term success is possible without attention to these “Critical Success Factors,” (CSF’s) but long term success requires proficiency on a regular basis in each area. The CSF’s include:

1. Prospecting
2. Sales Approach
3. Presentation
4. Answering Objections
5. Closing
6. Service

Nothing revolutionary here; these topics have been taught since the earliest days of sales training. However, today many firms neglect basic sales training, and we always benefit from a reminder to step outside ourselves and objectively examine our business. Let me ask you a few questions:

• Are you weak in one or more CSF’s?
• Do you pay attention to and seek to improve each factor?
• Do you continually evaluate yourself and your business?

If you are new to financial product sales, or if you are experienced, consider reading my book, The Ultimate Small Cap Business; Building A Financial Advisory Practice. This concise book provides a comprehensive overview of financial service selling and practice management. Look for future posts to provide tips for each of the Critical Success Factors of Sales.

Good selling!

Technorati Tags: financial advisor, stock broker, insurance agent, banker

Yesterday I was speaking to a sales coaching client who works as a financial advisor in a bank in New York. She asked me how to answer an objection that she had received on a recent sales call. After suggesting a response, she asked me about another objection – and then another and another. We spent the rest of our coaching call discussing how to answer a wide variety of objections, and I shared several “techniques” for dealing with objections.

This conversation reminded me that the long lost art of sales training has been, to some extent, marginalized and in some cases forsaken. “Sales trainers” – and I use the term loosely – suggest that selling has evolved. Salespeople should sell in their “own style” they say. Salespeople should listen, ask open ended questions, offer solutions, and then…

What happens is the prospect inevitably says, “I want to think it over,” and today’s salespeople lose the sale, at least temporarily, because they cannot deal with objections and close the sale. Let there be no doubt that selling has evolved and for the better. Professional salespeople do develop their own style, and always have. However, salespeople need a foundation of skills to help them survive – and actually sell something – until they have the experience and wisdom to sell within their style.
My suggestion for this sales coaching client was to make a list of every product and service she presents on a regular basis, and then list the four most common objections she hears to the offering. Then I suggested she consider how to answer these objections. Being prepared in this fashion will make her more confident – and successful – as she grows in her sales skills.

Sales training still provides a foundation for all new financial advisors. With a multitude of resources available there is no shortage of opportunities to learn the ways of the masters.

Good selling!

Technorati Tags: sales coaching, financial advisor, sales call, Sales trainers, selling, Salespeople