I was talking with (helping) a person who has a very small advisory firm about a recent conversation he’d had with a prospective client. He wasn’t able to articulate the situation very well so I asked him things like:
- What’s their objective?
- Did you ask about timing?
- Why are they talking to you (what are the issues)?
Obviously, he didn’t ask these questions, or many others, or I wouldn’t be writing about this. All I got was they had a nice conversation and got along well.
Contrast that with a meeting I had the other day. At one point, my prospective client said, “You ask really good questions.” This was after he had opened up about his business, his future plans, and family issues (which I didn’t ask about but sharing them showed a high level of trust).
High pressure sales is so 1960-70’s. Nobody wants to be sold, especially younger people who grew up in an age of information everywhere on everything (like our video podcast on this subject). For example, want to buy a car? Go online, find out what the dealers are paying, get competitive bids, etc. A lot different than even 10 years ago.
When we solve problems it’s because our clients know the what, they just don’t know the how. As in, how bad is the what (problem), how do we fix it, how much will it cost if we don’t fix it? You don’t have to paint a picture of doom-and-gloom, you only have to ask the right questions so they realize you know how to solve the problem.
“To achieve great things you need a plan and not quite enough time.” Leonard Bernstein
