How to find more new business for your professional services business (4) – Spare a thought for the IFAs

Here's where it stays.

If you’ve been following this series of posts, you’ll know that I’ve been writing about strategies to help professionals – anyone selling an expert service – to find ways of bringing in new business.

At the beginning of the series I explained that your best prospects are not the people who are ready to buy today.

I’ve also talked about how to get people to show more interest in your business and how to get people to build a relationship with you long before they’re ready to buy professional services in your area of expertise.

However, there’s one group of professionals who have particular problems in making sales because they’re often selling high-value investments and “services” which take a long time to mature.

These are the professionals selling pensions or property for investment or other long-term investments. 

These are the people who really struggle to get clients to see the reason for buying now.

Come back later

As any Independent Financial Adviser (IFA) will tell you, it’s never too soon to start to think about your retirement income or what life will be like when you’re a lot older than you are now.  Unfortunately, whilst most people will accept this as the truth, getting them to take action is a different matter.  It’s the same with buying property for investment.  There are always good reasons for doing nothing today and putting off decisions until tomorrow.

It’s difficult to inject urgency into these types of decisions.  It’s difficult to get people to take action now – or in the near future.   The consequences of inaction might be significant in the longer term, but the consequences today or tomorrow are barely recognisable.

Join my club

Where urgency doesn’t help to make a sale then it’s time to try something else.   When injecting urgency into the sales process doesn’t work, try exclusivity.

In other words don’t focus on the purchaser’s situation, focus instead on the opportunity and the fact that:

• It won’t be there for long.
• Circumstances are going to change soon.
• The only time to make the purchase is now.

The message is simple.  You can only be part of that exclusive club if you act now.

“There won’t be another hotel built at this resort for another five years so ……..”

“Changes to taxation mean that you can only take advantage of this situation if you act before ……”

Many professionals don’t focus enough about selling exclusivity – except the IFAs that is.  IFAs  know exclusivity  one of their most important assets.  They know that  selling opportunities often works extraordinarily well.

So, why don’t you sell exclusivity, too?

I  can only take on ………………. clients.  To be part of that group you need to be the sort of person who ………………….

My practice is almost full.  I have spaces for …………………. but only if ……………..

What’s different?

How are you using the advice in these posts to help you to change the way you market your business?  Let me know in the comments.

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