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I was having lunch with a financial professional last Friday and discovered that he has an issue with his value proposition. To put it another way, he has a “hole in his WHY.”
Since he had been through our Online Academy, he knew our system pretty well and was doing a number of things right. However, he blended some of his old-school teachings in with our system and, therefore, was not as effective as he wanted to be.
The Missing Ingredient in His Value Proposition
I asked him to tell me what he told his prospects and clients about why he did what he did… why he believed in his work.
The good news is that he had a why. He was able to tell me why he believed in his value.
The missing ingredient in his why, however, was that he didn’t bring it all the way home. He didn’t translate his why – which is a feature – into a clear and concrete benefit to his prospects and clients.
He enjoyed helping his clients. Good. He saw that many people put off doing the important work for themselves, their families, and their businesses; he felt it was his job to help them make the tough decisions and take action on those decisions. Very good. But so what? What’s the ultimate benefit to his prospects and clients?
I suggested that his process – which was well thought out and valuable – allowed him to help his clients gain crystal-clear clarity with regard to their financial lives. Therefore, the ultimate benefit to his clients is that they always felt confidence and peace of mind in knowing that they are headed in the right direction – that all of their financial bases had been covered. Confidence! Peace of mind!
Sample Script
Here’s sample script from which you can build your client-centered why. And this can only be a sample, since everyone’s why is different.
That’s a little about what we do and how we do it. I’d like to shift gears for a minute and tell you why I do what I do… what drives me in this business.
I have learned that for most people – taking care of all the ins and outs of a secure financial present and future can be complicated and confusing.
As a child, I was one of those kids who would take everything apart, figure out how it worked, and then put back to together again.
I’ve been able to take that “talent” (if you call it that) and apply it to my clients’ financial lives. I take a close look at all of the components of their situation in an effort to make the complex simple; to help my clients gain total clarity over their situation. That clarity, in turn, leads to great confidence and peace of mind for them.
This sort of work gives me a great deal of satisfaction, because I know I’m making an important difference in the lives of my clients.
*In one of our studies, I asked over 900 financial professionals if they had a Client-Centered WHY. 67.4% said that they did. But only 25% of those folks were bringing up their why in conversations with their prospects and clients.
Your Action Steps
- Specificity
Make sure the why in your value proposition is as specific as possible. Avoid platitudes and trite phrases such as, “I really care about my clients” and “We provide responsive service.” You better do both of those things. Your why should always be centered on something that either happened to you or how you’ve observed your clients experience your value. - Benefits
Remember that your why is a feature. Make sure you find yourself using words such as, “which means to you.” This is how you know you’re translating that feature into a clear, client-centered benefit.
Related: 5 Reasons To Socialize With Clients