In 1984, Richard Saul Wurman saw a convergence between 3 disciplines he believed the people in them didn’t understand. The Apple Macintosh had just made its debut. The compact disc was introduced. USA TODAY began publication. Wurman saw people working in those areas as one community. So, he pulled together a conference that featured speakers...Continue reading
Now that we have been through two years of a pandemic, remote meetings are here to stay. While most clients agree that in person meetings are different (and better) experience, there are good reasons to do advisory board meetings virtually, like when you have participants distributed over a wide geographic area. We might do short...Continue reading
This is one of those experiences that strikes terror into the hearts of a consultant. I was facilitating a client advisory board meeting for one of my first and best clients. We were going around the table at the beginning of the meeting sharing significant events with each other. About halfway through the group, one...Continue reading
The advisor said he wanted to get feedback on the planning system he uses. Being at the center of the advisory relationship, that’s a great thing to get the clients’ perspective on. So I started going through the preparatory questions. What specifically do you want to know about clients’ experience of the system? Silence. Have...Continue reading
Most of the members of your Client Advisory Board will naturally be clients. But there is a role for a few other types of members. In particular, having a center of influence on your board can hold benefits for you and for that other professional. Speak for multiple clients – One benefit of including another...Continue reading
Why have so many advisors moved from commissions to fees? It’s a vastly more profitable model, sure, but only over the long term. The initial income grows slowly but the business that develops is more consistent and more durable. I propose the business case for long term referral marketing is the same. Referral strategies are...Continue reading
Are you making portfolio adjustments in response to changing market conditions? They can help you attract more referrals. Providing clients a timely bit of news can be a reason to talk about you. Studies of referral behavior indicate that the most frequent reason clients provide referrals is because a friend explicitly asked for one. The...Continue reading
Client feedback can be invaluable in understanding and enhancing your value and boosting your relevance. It pays to know what’s on clients’ minds. How you put that feedback to use, though, depends on who’s giving it to you. Not all feedback is equally valuable. When it comes to soliciting it, be selective. It pays to...Continue reading
It’s time for resolutions and plans. Before looking forward in making commitments, you may find it more productive to look back. Reviewing your experience over the past year can yield a lot of clues about what may create the biggest successes for the 12 months ahead. Here are some statistics to compile. How many referrals...Continue reading
“There is no one single way to drive referrals, however there are some fundamental truths. Success is about ‘becoming referable’ and then staying top of mind with the client.” This one is special – and bittersweet. After five years and nearly 130 episodes, it is with some sadness (but with great pride) that we’re announcing...Continue reading