Time For A FOFA Change

Editor's Notes

1. Hi and welcome to the webinarMy focus will be not be upon the technical aspects – I’ll focus more on two themes
2. What I’m picking up in both the mains stream press and with adviser groups and real advisers are:Selling your value propTime wasting – It will be more onerous on your business. My goal today is designed to help with both.Word of warning - I will be looking at this at a higher level and not the nitty gritty BUT to me FOFA signals a time for a change.I also wrote an article highlighting the public will decide the future of financial planning not FOFA and I will be following that theme in the next ten mins.In my view you can sell your Value Prop better than ever before and if you do it right, you will save significant time through a quicker sales process and a far more efficient service to your clients
3. Selling Value – Today you need to get over the ‘perceived Value’ hurdle. There are less people seeking advice today from advisers because the perception is that little value is added. Many would go one step further by highlighting that an adviser can take away value through high fees and clumsy advice – think Storm, think Industry Super campaignsValue needs to be real – I highlighted one website I saw of an adviser talking great service – however, read through the FSG and the adviser will knock you for more that 4% per annum on a $100,000 investment – So hard to see real value being added there. Once you have your value prop finalised and by finalised I mean it will hold up great scrutiny – you need to communicate it, time and time againAs I mentioned, there are plenty of competitors who have you in your sights. Industry super is just one, we have seen life insurance businesses going crazy online and with big marketing budgets on TV.We’re seeing online businesses pop up and then there is the banks who are flat out trying to sell their super options very cheaply and directly to their clients.
4. So where to start?All advisers know the importance of making a good first impressionWe go to lengths to make sure the reception area presents a good image, we are aware of dressing correctly and of course we have practised that all important hand shake!However, you will now have more people checking you out on the web. Not just your website but also you other profiles. Some people say – Well Col, no big deal, my prospects are always referred to me – Well, things are changing, the referral process will now include a quick trip via Google – Just Google It is now very much a part of life, no escaping it
5. Keep your communication consistentImage here of Obama, we can all learn from him. We might not ever be as good, but simply staying on message is vitalTelling people what you do no linger cuts it. There was a Choosi debate on LinkedIn which found it’s way into Money Management. Now, advisers were saying that Choosi wasn’t saying the right things. I’m not arguing with the technical arguments, however, I checked many of their websites and guess what, the advisers only say ‘we offer life insurance’ (or words to that effect).Very few advisers highlight the real benefits of seeking advice from them and their business – Why you.Let people to get to know you – massive opportunity for advisers. What this does is allow the client, the prospect that was referred by your client and visitors have a chance to know more about you. If you, your staff have done something for the community, let the world know about it, Also, show off your clients. Make it very personable and you will go a long way.Respond and engage – this is where social media comes into it’s own via facebook, twitter and LinkedIn. Most people don’t get involved directly with the conversation but you will be amazed just how many are listening in.The trick, you keep going and going. It takes time to build a following but a fraction of the time it took just a few years ago.Back to Obama – he adapted to Social media far quicker than his counterparts and that has no doubt given him the edge in a close race. His victory photo and remarks was the most re-tweeted tweet of all time. The Message was simple – Four More Years and Very Personal – image of him hugging his wife.
6. To reaffirm my thoughtsTalks to bullet points
7. Have a plan – How are you going to communicate these new docs? Most people won’t recall what you said in the appointment so you need to re- affirm that in your messagingUse technolgy, and I of course include the web and social media you should have a re-think to the way you plan it. I wrote a blog post in the IFA and I highlighted that you should focus upon how technology can best help your client. Make it easier for them and by default it becomes easier for you. Think through your processes and challenge yourself – Do your clients want and need a physical face to face review?There is nothing in the rule book of great advice that say you must give it face to face. We become creature of habits and many advisers will insist on face to face reviews no matter how inconvenient it is for their clientsI have mentioned a few tools here but the list is endless and forever changing. Focus first on your messages and we can work on how to deliver them
8. Thewrap upReview your website – Clean up the messaging. This is now the office that gets visited the mostBlogs, a great way to tell your ‘what and why’s’. Also a great way to show some personal insight beyond the obligatoryand oh so familiar (boring) – Meet the team page.Engage across the board- Consider multiple site – A plug here for Humble Investors which is giving financial advisers an opportunity to expand their brand beyond their won websiteSocial media is of course another route to communicate and engage your clientSkype and Google Plus are great tools and people are very comfortable with them – especially the older generationNew wave of Social CRM systems. I use Nimble and with a click I can see so much about each contact it is beyond belief. I’ll have more on Nimble over the coming weeksThat’s me done - Cheers