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The qualities that make you a good Advisor may not be the qualities that make you different.
Why Should I Hire You?
There is a question every Advisor faces, and it may be the toughest and most important question we will ever have to answer.
Why should I hire you?
Every Advisor knows this is an important question, and every Advisor wants to give a compelling answer. They want to distinguish themselves.
So what do we say?
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I care deeply about my clients.
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I’m a good listener.
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I take a personalized approach.
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I believe in building long-term relationships.
These answers are most likely true. They certainly are admirable.
But how many good Advisors say exactly the same thing?
Good Is Not the Same as Different
Caring, listening, honesty, being relationship-oriented.
These traits matter. But perhaps they are so fundamental to being a good Advisor that they are expected as basic value.
They are affirming, not differentiating.
They are table stakes.
They are the price of admission.
The qualities that make you good don’t necessarily make you different.
It doesn’t mean you are not different. You probably are.
Think of an Advisor you know and admire.
You and that Advisor don’t conduct meetings identically.
You don’t talk the same way.
You don’t react to upset clients the same way.
You’re different.
But if I asked each of you why someone should hire you, you most likely would suddenly sound alike.
Why Do We All Sound Alike?
Why is that? Why do we sound alike when we are so obviously different?
One reason is that we confuse being good with being different.
We instinctively rattle off the qualities every good Advisor should have.
And, frankly, we haven’t thought deeply enough about what makes us different.
We haven’t asked ourselves the serious question:
What do I deliver that another good Advisor might not?
So when somebody unexpectedly asks us, “What makes you different?” we reach for what’s handy.
I care. I listen. I’m responsive. I put my clients first.
These are all true, no doubt.
But they are also what the next Advisor will say.
Give the Prospect Something to Choose
The next time you are asked why someone should choose you, keep in mind that the prospect is not trying to grade your value proposition.
They are simply trying to choose someone.
If every Advisor says they care, they listen and they provide personalized service, what does the prospect have left to choose on?
Before you tell a prospect what makes you different, ask yourself if other Advisors are saying the same thing.
If so, dig deeper.
What do you do that demonstrates what you are saying?
If you say you are a good listener, what do you do as a result of listening?
One thing you might say is that, as a result of careful listening, you provide personalized service to each client.
As a result of personalizing your service, you are able to create and maintain long-term relationships with every client.
There is nothing cookie-cutter about you.
Don’t Stop at the Claim
When deciding what makes you different, don’t stop at what you believe makes you different.
Ask yourself what you do as a result of what you believe makes you different.
Don’t stop at “I listen.”
Ask yourself what happens as a result of your careful listening.
Don’t stop at “I care.”
Ask yourself how you demonstrate that caring to your existing clients.
Don’t stop at “personalized service.”
Ask yourself what it is you do to make the client experience personal.
When explaining to prospects why they should hire you, give them something they can see, understand or even experience themselves.
You May Already Be Different
I’m guessing you don’t need to become more different.
I’ll bet you are already different.
You may just need to get better at identifying and explaining the difference.
If another Advisor came to mind while you were reading this, share it with them. Just don’t tell them why.