Let’s face it: Financial advisors can sometimes seem like a dime a dozen from the consumer’s viewpoint. Competition is fierce, and it can be a challenge just to keep a financial services business afloat. Although the majority of financial services professionals likely enter the industry with hopes of eventually building a multimillion-dollar practice, many don’t survive for more than a couple of years.
So, how can successful producers stand out from the competition? How do they continually attract new clients, retain old ones, and increase their success and profits? It all comes down to taking a few carefully planned measures, according David J. Mullen Jr., author of “The Million Dollar Financial Services Practice: A Proven System for Becoming a Top Producer” (AMACOM, 2008).
“The road to a million-dollar practice is a series of steps that build on one another, and you must take the first ones first,” Mullen writes. “An advisor can commit to the multimillion-dollar road at any stage of (their) career, but the fastest and easiest way is to take the proper steps at the beginning.”
Mullen’s book can serve as a helpful resource for financial professionals who have the motivation and desire to build and maintain a solid business model. His step-by-step guide offers advice on such topics as marketing, prospecting, sales methods, time-management techniques, templates, and more.
The formula for success
Mullen explains that there’s actually a very straightforward formula for achieving success. “The formula for building a million and multimillion-dollar practice is not a complicated one,” he says. “It involves building the right foundation first, then taking it to the next level with ongoing marketing, developing strong relationships with clients, and providing outstanding service.”
Get motivated
Multimillion-dollar advisors aren’t just lucky people — they are seriously motivated. “To truly succeed, an advisor must have more than simply the desire to succeed. There must be a far deeper level of motivation,” Mullen writes.
This motivation is what keeps you going — so you’ll need plenty of it. “An advisor’s motivation will be tested over and over throughout (their) career, and (their) motivation reservoir must always be deep enough to replenish (their business),” explains Mullen.
Time is on your side
According to Mullen, an agent’s time-management skills — or lack thereof — can make or break their practice. “How you spend your time determines how successful you are,” he says. “There are so many distractions and so much information in this business that it takes a deep level of motivation and discipline to focus on the right activities.”
Mullen explains that the “right” activities include appointments with qualified prospects, prospect follow-ups, prospect drop-bys, client calls, and client appointments. Because all of these tasks carry the threat of rejection, many advisors may be tempted to put them off or avoid them altogether. But Mullen says that these “high-rejection-potential activities” should make up the bulk of an agent’s time.
He suggests putting together daily and weekly schedules to ensure that you’ll stay focused on the essential tasks.
Every financial professional dreams of surpassing the million-dollar mark — but according to Mullen, dreaming isn’t enough. It takes loads of motivation, commitment, and know-how.
“Building a multimillion-dollar financial services firm is not complicated, but I’m not going to pretend that it is easy. If it were, there would be a lot more financial advisors making millions,” Mullen says. “Yet those who reach or exceed $1 million in business have one of the best jobs imaginable.”
Amy Bell is a freelance writer and frequent contributor to the Agent’s Sales Journal. Visit her Web site at www.writepunch.com or email her at amy@writepunch.com.“The Million Dollar Financial Services Practice: A Proven System for Becoming a Top Producer” is available for purchase at www.amazon.com and www.amanet.org/books.