How Financial Advisers Can Have Better Sales Calls In 2022

Time is money and you don’t want to waste either. With the world opening back up there’s no time like the present and it’s important that you are making the most of every call and interaction you have. We’re going to show you how financial advisers can have better sales calls in 2022.

Now, a lot of this information in this article isn’t necessarily new, but it is invaluable. One of the key things that financial advisers need to do, as with every profession, is to sell. The trouble is, very few organisations actually offer any decent sales training. Those that do are still preaching outdated sales tactics from the 80’s, which have proven to no longer be effective. 

Whilst sales training is an entirely different subject and takes a great deal more info than can be fitted into this blog, we are going to show you how financial advisers can have better sales calls so you can make the most of your time on the phone.

Don’t Sell Anything!

Wait, what? Yes, that’s right. This is so counterintuitive to what we have been told about getting on the phones, but the reality is that your prospects are wise to being sold to. Even over the phone people can tell when they’re getting sold to and even if they need what you’re selling, are unlikely to buy it.

What people want is a solution to their problems. They want you to understand their needs and help them to source the right product or service that is going to help them achieve it. Nobody cares about you, your service or your product. This sounds harsh, but it’s true. The second you start flying into a pitch is the second that you have lost them.

Financial Advisers Can Have Better Sales Calls By Qualifying

Picture the scene. You’ve just spent the best part of half an hour on the phone to someone who has been giving you all the signals that they are keen to work with you. You’ve told them exactly how you can help solve their financial challenges and have laid out a pathway to helping them achieve their goals, only to find out that they aren’t able to invest the kind of money they need to get started. 

We’ve all been there, but it’s a real rookie mistake. Many people don’t want to sound rude or presumptuous, so will avoid asking the critical questions up front. One of those key questions is usually along the lines of, ‘how much are you looking to invest?’ or, ‘ what sort of salary bracket are you earning in right now?’ These might seem like uncomfortable questions to ask as, at least in the western world, we have been taught not to discuss money. It really needn’t be though. If you are dealing with people’s money, you need to know how much they have. Imagine if the client asked you how much money you had made in the portfolio over the last year and you could on;y give them a ballpark figure. Do you think they would be happy?

Financial advisers can have better sales calls simply by getting those who aren’t qualified off the phone as quickly as possible. You can still be nice, even offer them some help and point them in the direction of someone who can, but if you can’t, say so, be honest and put the phone down.

Start With Good Data

We did say that nothing in this article was groundbreaking right? Again, this seems like such an obvious point, but you’d be surprised at how many people will buy a list of thousands of people that has been used by every other adviser in the area and start dialling without a second thought. 

If your firm isn’t supplying you with decent data then you’ll likely be looking to generate your own leads. If you’ve been following our blogs and guides, you’ll know that you’ll want to know exactly who you are targeting and the best place to start is with a buyer persona. There’s no amount of persuasion that can happen, no slick talking method that will convert bad data into a good client. You’ll simply be wasting your time trying to pitch (see the first point) something to someone who simply doesn’t want it.

Establish Need And Urgency

Why would you need to establish need and urgency? The reason for this is that it helps you to frame the conversation. It will also lead you on to a more in-depth discovery session later on. Financial advisers can have better sales calls by doing proper fact finding on the initial connect call. The last thing you want to do is realise that the person who seemed to be qualified, is really just wasting your time by talking about future plans and ideas and has no real time frame in which to achieve these things. 

You could consider this as the second part of qualification. First off, have they got the money to work with you? Yes? Great! Next is are they serious about doing something or are they just kicking tyres? When do they want to get started? What happens if they don’t get started? These are all key things that you need to uncover in order to ensure a great discovery session later on.

Can You Actually Help Them?

One of the most frustrating things that can happen on a sales call is for you to have someone who checks all the boxes, is keen to work with you, but you aren’t able to help them for one reason or another. This actually takes a great deal of discipline and courage to turn down the business. It may seem like a crazy thing to do, after all the person on the other end of the phone is saying they want to give you money, but in the long term, it will be better for you and for them if you are honest about your capabilities. 

It might not feel like it at the time, but it will actually be a good thing for you as your honesty will be the driver for a referral that person will give down the line. It’s super tempting to work with anyone and everyone. However, you really need to consider if you can actually help them. If not, it’s time to walk away.

One of the key things that mean financial advisers can have better sales calls is being smart about who you want to work with and quickly identifying if in actual fact you can. Even if you have bad data, you can still have good sales calls. Simply by asking a few key questions that get you to the info you need quickly you’ll be able to sift potential clients from time wasters in an instant. 

Want to learn more about how Adviser Leads can help you to get more sales calls and grow your AUM? Book a strategy session with us now by clicking the link below.