Stack your book with ideal clients

Building your business around ideal clients can make your practice more profitable and your job more rewarding. The key is to identify the clients you enjoy working with most, and recruit more like them.

“Every financial advisor will have a different idea of what is an ideal client,” says Larry Distillio, assistant vice-president, practice management, at Mackenzie Investments in Toronto.

For some advisors, ideal clients typically share common characteristics, values and goals, and might belong to a niche such as a certain profession or demographic group. For other advisors, ideal clients simply meet a minimum asset size or fee threshold.

There are no set criteria for ideal clients, according to Distillio. They are the people you have a natural affinity to working with. “They are cut from the same cloth, speak the same language and are a natural fit.”

Advisors have limited time and resources, he says, and working with ideal clients allows you to focus on the clients you derive the greatest value from.

Regardless of how you would describe your ideal client, here are some tips for finding and attracting them:

> Define your ideal client
The more specific you can be in defining your ideal client, the more effective you will be in targeting them.

Distillio advises that you use a ranking system to segment your clients based on criteria such as asset size, revenue, professional characteristics and advice requirements.

Once you have completed your segmentation exercise, he says, look at your best clients and determine whether you can group them into specific categories. These categories would be based on traits such as wealth, lifestyle and how you met them.

“Then, pinpoint specific groups of clients you want to focus on,” Distillio says.

Ask yourself: What do I most like about these clients? Is it their investment style or their personality? Or is it that their values are compatible with mine?

> Research ideal clients
In order to grow your business with ideal client groups you have identified, Distillo says, select “insider clients” within those groups and ask them whether they can refer you to clients like themselves.

You might also wish to ask what their interests are beyond financial issues or if they belong to any clubs or associations. One way to pose the question is: “If you were me, where would you start to find clients like you?”

> Customize your marketing
Research on your ideal clients should provide you with sufficient information on their unique attributes, needs and expectations. Use this information to customize your marketing message so that prospects who fit your ideal-client profile can see the value in what you offer.

> Reorganize your practice
The next step is to “reorganize or tweak your business to deal with your ideal clients,” Distillio says. Define exactly what you are going to offer and stick to promises you can fulfill. “You must then strive to build credibility with your target clients.”

Ask for introductions to prospects who fit your ideal-client profile. Tell success stories to these prospects and use case studies to show how you have helped clients like them. Case studies are useful, Distillio says, because they “bring to life” what you’re doing for similar clients.

You might also choose to host seminars for associations or clubs to which your ideal clients belong.

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