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I bet that you think 1 + 1 = 2. Not every time! I’m going to show you how bringing two powerful strategies together will produce three important benefits for you:

1. Converting More Prospects into Clients
2. Higher Client Satisfaction and Loyalty
3. More Referrals and Personal Introductions (sometimes without asking

Without question, the #1 Most Important Strategy I’ve been using and teaching for 25 years is The Value Discussion. The Value Discussion helps you increase prospect and client engagement. It often generates referrals on the spot and it’s the starting point of a referral conversation – at the appropriate time.

The #2 Most Important Strategy I’ve been using and teaching for 25 years is “foreshadowing.” Foreshadowing a conversation you intend to have later makes it easier and more effective when the time comes.

How Does 1 + 1 = 3? Keep reading. I’ll show you how.

Have you ever done some that generated multiple benefits at once? Maybe not just for yourself but other people as well?

Here’s how one small business owner created a positive situation out of a negative review on social media, all while helping his business and his community at the same time.

Sending reasonable priced gifts to your clients – at least your ‘A’ clients – and your referral sources creates great “engagement.” And it’s “engaged” clients who give referrals.

So what’s your plan for this year?

One of the best gifts I ever sent to our clients is when my daughter was selling Girl Scout cookies. I sent out 144 boxes of Thin Mints. My clients loved it and my daughter led her troop in cookie sales that year.

By the way – if it has your logo on it – it’s probably not a gift… its promotion! There are exceptions to that rule, however.

I want you to think back to your high school or university psychology class. Do you remember learning about Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs?   I always remember that the first level is physiological like: breathing, food,…

“Hiding behind technology? What does Bill mean by that?” Email, texting, and LinkedIn are great tools to assist us in gaining introductions. I love those electronic handshakes, don’t you?

BUT as good as these tools can be in turning someone’s willingness to refer into an actionable introduction, I keep seeing so many professionals using these tools in ways that reduce their effectiveness.

I wonder. Are you making these same mistakes?

Last week, I was speaking to a group of financial professionals. Also on the program was Nick Murray – industry legend, author, and engaging speaker. Nick had some fun with all the fear people seem to have around prospecting for new business.

Then he made a statement that pretty much sums up my philosophy about prospecting. A perspective, that if everyone would adopt – not only would they not be afraid of prospecting, the whole concept of prospecting and selling would be elevated to a higher level. Would you like to know what Nick said? Keep reading…

If you want to make 2016 a great year for introductions to quality prospects, you have to be careful not to make the mistake of creating merely an Introductions Initiative to get more referrals and introductions. An initiative will only yield short-term, temporary results at best.

Well… what about an Introductions Program in 2016? Only if you want a modest increase in new clients through referrals. What’s better than that?
If you want a thriving business based on Introductions to qualified prospects – then you want to build a Culture of Introductions throughout your firm. Here’s how to do that…

Go from Incremental Growth to Exponential Growth

Before we get to the 3 Strategies, let’s start with a simple formula you can use for any aspect of your business. Nothing magic here; simple and effective: Vision > Strategies > Tactics. Unfortunately, most professionals and business owners go straight to the tactics. They have a great idea and implement without much regard for the overall vision and strategy. While the idea might be sound, the results will be limited.

For the purposes of this article, let’s use this vision: In 2016 We Will Build a Culture of Growth through Personal Introductions. Can you get behind that vision? I suspect you can. Now… on to the 3 Strategies to support that.

I’m going to give you a pretty simple recipe to help you tweak your current actions to produce better results – be it with referrals, introductions, or whatever else at which you want to get more consistent and more effective. But first, you have to find someone to help you with this. It could be a business partner, colleague, staff member, a manager, or a friend.

Do you have someone in mind? Great! This is your Accountability Buddy. Now here’s the simple idea…

You’ve probably already heard me talk about the importance of client engagement. A study by Advisor Impact has shown that there’s a low correlation between client satisfaction and the giving of referrals. It is Engaged Clients who give referrals. A prospect or client has to appreciate both the value your work delivers and you as a person. So from the minute you meet someone, you want to be thinking about how you continually connect on both levels.