The Fact: In 2001, advisors relied on prospecting methods, other than referrals, for 42% of their new business.

The Implications: Despite the fact that the average advisor relies increasingly on client referrals as the practices matures, prospecting activity continues to represent a substantial proportion of new business. When top producers are compared to average advisors, there is little or no difference in the tactics selected to attract new clients. Success appears to be driven by the extent to which prospecting tactics are tailored to the needs and interests of the target group and the consistency and professionalism of the execution. Given growth targets, advisors will need to continue to focus time and effort on prospecting.

The Idea: In order to make a realistic assessment of the scope of prospecting activity that will be required to meet your goals, start by tracking the source of all new assets or revenue. New assets, for example, can come from existing clients, client referrals, centre of influence referrals, prospecting activity and market appreciation/depreciation. For the sake of simplicity, treat the latter as a residual category. Determine what you can expect to generate from the first three categories based on past experience and you will have a sense of the number of new clients you need to generate from prospecting activity. In order to assess the total number of prospects you will need in the pipeline, gross that number up to reflect your expected conversion rate.

The Next Step: The Business Success Kit provides you with the tips, tools and templates that you’ll need to enhance practice productivity and profitability. It’s the most practical and comprehensive guidebook available for financial advisors. For more information, visit www.AdvocisStore.ca and click on the Business Success Kit.