Be More Referrable – The First 90 Days
The early phase of a client-advisor relationship is critical. The first 60 to 90 days, often referred to as “onboarding,” is not just about collecting signatures or completing paperwork. It’s a chance to deepen engagement and make yourself not only indispensable, but genuinely referable.
🎥 Watch the video or read the article below.
Many advisors overlook or underutilize this transformative period, missing out on opportunities to deliver value and forge meaningful business friendships. Here’s how to master this phase and build lasting, referral-worthy relationships.
Make the Onboarding Valuable and Personal
The onboarding phase is more than a checklist of administrative tasks. To stand out, blend your knowledge and technical excellence with a personal connection:
Guide Clients Through Their First Statement
Most clients may never admit they can’t really interpret their first financial statement. Sit with them (phone or virtually) as they review their statement. Explain what each part means. This simple act delivers immediate value and builds trust through clarity. Your clients will greatly appreciate the clarity, making this a highly appreciated, yet often missed, early touchpoint.
Leverage the Power of Business Friendship
There’s immense power in making a client feel like more than just another account.
Consider these gestures:
- Send a handwritten note welcoming them to your practice.
Better yet – have one or two of your team members do the same. - Arrange for a personal call from a team member who will be serving the client in some capacity.
- Invite them to a client appreciation event.
- Organize a one-on-one coffee or meal. Breaking bread with your clients is an effective way to make a better personal connection that builds trust and a better overall working relationship.
These seemingly small actions lay the groundwork for a business friendship.
Clients will only refer you if you’ve established both a Value Connection and a Personal Connection.
Invite Clients Into Your World
Educational and appreciation events introduce new clients to your team, your community of clients, and your culture. For example, extremely successful advisor, Randy Carter hosts both monthly educational seminars (to create ongoing value). By the time a client is a few weeks into the relationship, they will have already received several invitations to these events, making them feel included and valued.
Randy also host regular client appreciation events that reinforces his dedication to the client experience. This consistent engagement makes it easier for clients to refer the advisor to friends and colleagues, as they feel more integrated and connected.
(Listen to my interview with Randy on Top Advisor Podcast)
The Power of a Vision Board
A memorable onboarding doesn’t happen by accident. Advisors such as Brian Sweet employ what’s internally dubbed “The 90-Day Dazzle.” It’s a checklist of touchpoints and initiatives designed to exceed expectations. The highlight: using a vision board (or “dream board”) to help clients articulate who they want to be, what they want to accomplish, and what’s important to them.
Modern technology allows the creation of digital dream boards, but the principle remains unchanged: sit down with your client and construct a visual representation of their aspirations. This exercise achieves several things:
- It uncovers personal priorities you might have missed through standard fact-finding and discovery conversations.
- It demonstrates genuine interest in their goals, not just their assets.
- It can help to introduce you to other key relationships in their life; setting the stage for potential future introductions and referrals.
(Listen to my interview with Brian on Top Advisor Podcast)
Revisit & Fund Their Dreams
The vision board isn’t a one-and-done exercise. Advisors who thrive revisit clients’ dreams at every review meeting or touchpoint, keeping these goals alive and active. Unfortunately, too many advisors uncover client dreams but rarely return to them. The exceptionally referable advisors check in on progress, encourage clients, make helpful introductions, and, critically, ensure the dreams are funded.
Make Relationship-Building a System
The secret to consistently referable relationships lies in systematizing these high-value activities:
- Use checklists for onboarding experiences.
- Delegate tasks across your team. Everyone plays a role in the client relationship.
- Capture goals, dreams, bucket list insights in your CRM and build updates into your review process.
- Calendar regular personal touches, from handwritten notes to event invitations.
By deliberately nurturing new relationships, you become more than a service provider. You move from merely transactions, to creating experiences, to becoming viewed as a partner in your clients’ lives. That is the foundation of consistent growth through referrals and introductions.
Takeaway
Invest deeply in the first 90 days. Exceed their expectations. Show clients they matter, share in their aspirations, revisit their dreams, and systematize your care. The result? More engaged, loyal, and highly referable clients.
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