by Tony Vidler 
The opportunity to grow your professional services firm by gaining new clients has probably never been better because consumers want to talk to you.
On the back of the sudden realisation in 2020 that markets do not go up forever, and cash reserves really do help, and it is worthwhile transferring a heap of risks, there is no doubt that a huge proportion of consumers want to engage with quality financial advice now.
There was some detailed research in Australia a few years ago which confirmed then that a third of consumers wanted to talk to good advisers. That proportion will only have gone up. The anecdotal evidence from advisers I work with is that the level of engagement in annual reviews of all sorts of insurance and investment business is sky-rocketing. Those handling lending advice or debt management cannot keep up with consumer demand right now.
So the level of interest in accessing professional advice has never been better. That does not mean that all interested consumers are actively trying to set up meetings or discussions however. Many are in a state of inertia simply because they do not know who to talk to, or what to look for…and those advisers who are run off their feet right now are the ones who have been most active in either their marketing or in communicating with existing networks. The common ground is that they have been pro-active in reaching out and letting consumers know who they are, what they do, and how they can help.
Advisers who are busy getting out there and talking to clients and their communities are finding that more clients want to engage in more wide-ranging advice and are generating more recommendations and referrals.
Proactive. Making stuff happen. Creating conversations.
Who knew that could lead to getting more business?
Apart from the 1 in 3 consumers without an adviser who would like one, there are more than 50% of the existing clients of the advisory industry who are open to switching to another adviser they can trust more, largely because of poor communication or a lack of the personal touch.
The point in this is simple: do not be afraid to engage in marketing which highlights the problems you can fix and helps consumers understand better how you can help them. That includes 1-to-1 marketing where you create conversations and actively talk to consumers. The level of interest in accessing professional financial advice has never been higher.
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