Voices

Are You 'Worth' It?

As an advisor, can you look your prospects in the eye and say, "I'm the most expensive financial advisor in America-because I'm worth it?"

Trying to break into the U.S. market in 1971 that was dominated by a local leader, a French personal care products manufacturer came up with a clever slogan. No, it wasn't "Wisk around the collar beats ring around the collar." It was the classic, "Because I'm worth it."

Back then, L'Oreal shook up the establishment with their bold claim that Preference by L'Oreal was "The most expensive hair color in America." And they finished the ad by saying, "Because I'm worth it."

So, are you "worth" it?

Often, advisors get uncomfortable explaining their value and justifying their fees. And when push comes to shove, it's easier to give a little on your fee than try to defend your value.

If you're one of those advisors-it's time to stop discounting your value.

Now, obviously, you can't charge a high fee without being able to back it up with extraordinary service. What I want to share with you today is a free tool to help you define your value so going forward, you can confidently charge fees that are commensurate with the great value you provide.

It all starts and ends with the basics:

1. Develop a mission statement.

I know, you've heard it a million times but do you really have a mission statement that you are passionate about and drives what you do and how you do it?

2. Structure your practice to deliver on the mission.

You have to be able to back up what you say you do. Don't settle for good, be extraordinary. The very best advisors get an "unfair share" of the business because prospects can easily discover who the "best" advisors are through the media and word of mouth. As Seth Godin says, "Being the best in the world is seriously underrated."

3. Select keywords from your mission statement and expand upon them.

Highlight three to five keywords in your mission and then create a narrative around those words. This narrative should be truthful, authentic, and heartfelt. You want your clients and prospects to see the real you, not some slick, packaged variation.

Follow these three steps and you'll end up with a compelling response when prospects ask why they should do business with you. For a free toolkit on how to create your own value proposition along with a sample of Carson Wealth Management Group's mission and their value proposition, click here.

Clarity of mission and value are hallmarks of the very best advisors in the country.

_____________

Steve Sanduski, CFP?, is a New York Times bestselling author and co-author of, Tested in the Trenches: A 9 Step Plan for Building and Sustaining a Million-Dollar Financial Services Practice. To learn more, visit, http://www.peakadvisoralliance.com/ and http://www.truewealthcommunity.com/.

 

 

For reprint and licensing requests for this article, click here.
Practice management
MORE FROM FINANCIAL PLANNING