15th July 2022

The secret to getting more financial planning referrals

Would you like to generate more high-quality financial planning referrals?

The secret is in creating the right conditions where you get more referrals, even before asking.

Dan is a financial planner whose primary business goal was to build his practice and increase the number of clients he serves.

However, the process of finding and bringing on new clients was far slower than he would have liked. One of the ways his frustration was showing up is that he was suffering from what is called ‘shiny object syndrome’.

When we began working together, I immediately noticed that Dan seemed to change what he was doing every week.

One week he was all enthusiastic about networking. Then it was writing blogs. Then it was doing a seminar. And so on…

Shiny object syndrome is when you get all fired-up and enthusiastic about a new idea and you start taking action. Then as soon as the going gets a little tougher the idea gets abandoned in favour of the next ‘shiny object’ that catches your attention.

Of course, I love new ideas and they can be great.

But there is another factor that makes an enormous difference to results, yet it is so often overlooked.

What is the absolute best source of financial planning referrals?

We all know that existing happy clients are amongst the best sources of new clients.

Someone who has heard a glowing report about the impact you have made and wants a similar experience is about as good as it gets, isn’t it?

They are open to what you do, often keen to engage immediately, and are also the best source for more referrals in future. At least, this has been my experience.

Dan rarely received referrals. So, I suggested to him that we look at the level of impact he is having with his existing clients.

The one key that makes you more referrable

The greater the impact your work has on your clients the more referable you become.

Someone taking out a pension probably won’t light up the conversation at their next dinner party! But people will often talk about a conversation that stopped them in their tracks. One that made them think about their life, what they are doing with it, and their hopes and dreams for the future.

I know and work with advisers that have more referrals than they can handle. This does not happen overnight, but it is a realistic goal.

Dan was great, technically speaking but in truth he discovered that he could do a lot more when it came to understanding his clients.

He admitted he was very quick to jump upon opportunities to solve his client’s financial problems without first really getting to know and understand them on a deeper level. Consequently, his relationships were very transactional.

Creating a deeper connection with your clients

What helped Dan was not yet another prescriptive ‘How-to’ solution.

What is far more helpful is discovering how we (innocently) get in our own way and, more importantly, how we get out of our own way.

Our feelings tell us about our state of mind. When we feel tense, agitated, or frustrated these feelings are a signal that we are caught up in our thinking. It is a sign to let go and allow the mind to settle.

Being fully present transforms the quality of our relationships

Dan found that with a more relaxed mind his client meetings were radically different.

He and his clients connected much better, he listened better, and the natural curiosity of a quiet mind helped him to really get to know and understand his clients.

This was highly significant. Dan realised the degree of impact you have in your clients lives correlates with how many referrals you receive. Over the next few months people began to refer him more often.

Another thing he realised was that ‘shiny object syndrome’ was also a product of his insecure thinking. As his mind settled this stopped happening. Instead, he found himself consistently focusing on a small number of key activities that he enjoyed doing.

What really made the difference to Dan was his understanding of how his mind works. Because it’s invisible we do not tend to factor in state of mind to our results, yet it is right at the heart of everything we do.

P.S. Did you enjoy this article? 

You can download a FREE copy of ‘Magical Client Meetings Every Time’. You will discover the 10 essential keys and use the score sheet to immediately determine your next steps. Click here to download.  

John Dashfield, Dashfield Coaching & Development Ltd