Mistake 5: Financial Advisors Fail to Sell the Dream

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Marketing and prospecting are the twins of financial advisor success. Unfortunately many advisors don’t actively market and promote their businesses. They rely on the tortoise approach to growth: 2-3% annually by sheer luck.

This is the 5^th installment in my series about financial advisor marketing mistakes in which I detail many common errors advisors make in their marketing.

For this 5^th mistake, when speaking with prospective clients about what you do, I wonder if you sell the dream beyond what you do for a living.

Do you sell the dream of having a bright financial future?

Clients come to you for help. Many don’t understand the fundamentals of investing, cash flow management, and organizing their finances. But those areas of finance are not what you’re selling.

Emotions drive us

As adults, we are all a result of the experiences and emotions we have endured in our lives. Whatever our experiences with wealth, positive or negative, we all want more money because it represents pleasurable experiences.

When you are “selling the dream,” you are connecting the emotions behind money with the end result of having achieved financial goals.

For example, you might say that you want to grow your practice to be more successful, but what really drives you is to earn enough to give your family a good life. To live in a beautiful home, drive a nice car, go on exciting vacations, and have your children attend good schools – this is what drives you.

Connect emotions

Many advisors are left-brained and analytical which is wonderful when it comes to investment philosophy and managing wealth. However, when communicating with prospective clients, it’s important to remember to sell the dream and use your right-brain skills in the process.

What does this mean?

Don’t just focus on terms like financial planning and investment management when you’re in a meeting with a prospect or client. Make sure to touch on the emotions that money invokes like achieving financial independence, what it feels like to send kids to college, and what it will mean to leave a legacy.

In other words, financial planning and wealth management are just terms. When selling or marketing, relate to people with words they can understand and talk about their dreams.

Here are the other mistakes in this series:

Mistake 1: Financial Advisors Lack a Target Market or Niche

Mistake 2: Financial Advisors Should Avoid Template Websites

Mistake 3: Financial Advisors Lack a Value Proposition

Mistake 4: No Business Networking Strategy

Mistake 5: Failing to Sell the Dream

Mistake 6: Advisors Lack a Professional Brand

Mistake 7: Failing to Sell Your Value