How do you determine what Planning Fee is appropriate for each client? I would imagine that different client circumstances require a different Planning Fee. You mention on tape from $2500-$3000. This seems high to me.
I appreciate that you are new to Values-Based Financial Planning™ and I'm reading in between the lines that you may have a perception about working with people who can truly pay you the amount of money you actually need to earn in order to run your business, pay your taxes, pay for the present lifestyle you want, get your own financial house in perfect order and keep it that way forever, and fund your future goals. Start thinking in terms of clients who pay you AT LEAST $10,000 / year to have you as their Trusted Advisor. You might also want to start doing the math about how much each of the items I described. We are going to help you become one of the few Financial Advisors who actualize what's possible in this business instead of one of the many who don't. You can earn your Ideal Life Income, have time freedom, and help people. Try not to let your limiting beliefs slow you down. For now, just do as many Financial Road Maps® as possible with existing clients and prospects and...
My friend, a CFO of local company, referred to me his mother, who just relocated to our community. He will be present at our Financial Road Map® meeting. He's a bright person, strong personality and a CPA. I have sent him a book because I would also like to do his Financial Road Map®. How do I keep control of the meeting in case he wants to interject his opinions during his mother’s Financial Road Map®?
Be clear about the "ground rules" in advance. This is HER Financial Road Map Interview™ and SHE will have a much better experience if he just lets her think and answer the questions for herself. I suspect most of his questions will be after Commitment to Hire, if you choose to offer to be hired.
I am looking to partner with a CFP to write my financial plans. I am finding it difficult to find a qualified planner in my community that will take on this kind of work. Would you recommend hiring a full time CFP on our staff to write our financial plans? What about some of the outsourced financial planners that will write financial plans for advisors?
A. You could hire a full-time financial planner to be part of your team. B. Yes, you can outsource. Try the local chapter of the Financial Planning Association. Make an announcement that you want to pay a fee to outsource the writing of your financial plans. I would be surprised if you don't get several people interested, hopefully some qualified. C. If your evaluation is successful and you join the Committed Advisor Program we have a complete process for building your team that includes vetting for best-in-class, partnering process, and leadership. For now, I would concentrate on doing as many Financial Road Map Interviews™ as possible
I just became a Committed Advisor and as you know I have a mature business. There is a lot of material, what should I focus on first and what should my staff focus on first?
Welcome aboard. We look forward to helping you build your Ideal Business with Ideal Clients so you can create your Ideal Life. 1. Build your script binder for having referral conversations with your Ideal Clients. 2. Memorize all those you will be completing face-to-face, practice them, and practice the phone scripts. 3. Get the right amount of Client Acquisition time on your calendar and honor your calendar. Your staff: 1. Empower them to hold you accountable to let go all of the technical and admin work so you can focus on client acquisition work. 2. They are in charge of implementing the Trusted Advisor Toolkit. (If your AM is not already in the Support Team Accountability Program, consider that. Speak with your Accountability Coach.)
Someone asks me, “What do you do?” After I answer the question, what questions (impactful or otherwise) can I ask that would evoke an emotional response to move things forward?
One option: ask a question that relates to what you told them you do. eg: On a scale of 1-10, how confident you that you are going to achieve your goals? Another option: ask any question from MISC list: eg: wWhat are things in your life that you are most passionate? Another option: ask any of the Ideal Life Questions. eg: Tell me about your Ideal Life... wWhat does it look like?
Profiles Software does a good job of showing Net Worth, Financial Independence projections, etc. Going forward with the Ideal Life Evaluation Program, do I just quit "cold turkey" with Profiles and just use the action plan?
Not during the Ideal Life Evaluation Program. If you continue your journey to implement the full Values-Based Financial Planning™ Turn-key Business Model you will learn how to find a best-in-class financial planner to write your plans. This will no longer be something you do. Your plan writer may or may not use Profiles. When you enter Implementation Meetings and Progress Meetings with clients there will be significant, behind the scenes, documentation for every piece of advice you have for your clients so they can achieve their goals. However, your clients are paying you for your advice, not to review all of the data. In fact, the simpler it is for them and the less of their time you consume, the more valuable you are to them. You can make this adjustment cold-turkey or transition over time. In the meantime, complete as many Financial Road Maps® as you can and keep doing what you are doing to create the advice you give your clients to actualize their Financial Road Map®. By the...
Can you clarify when to give a Values-Based Financial Planning™ book to an existing client? I set appointments with existing clients and do the Old World, New World introduction and then the Financial Road Map®. Should I always give the Values-Based Financial Planning™ book to the clients if they hire me?
You may choose not to give your existing clients the book. Once they have experienced the benefit of Values-Based Financial Planning™ by working with you they don't really need to read about it. If they want a copy of the book for their library and ask for it, fine. Otherwise, I wouldn't offer it or make a big deal of it.
My client also requested that the personal note on the Values-Based Financial Planning™ book to be changed. What would you do in this circumstance? My view is to change the note although it would not be in the client's handwriting. Please let me know your thoughts.
The client has to write the note. If they want to change it they have to write a new one and SOMEONE OTHER THAN YOU will coordinate getting the new note to put on the book.
I work predominately with retired clients. My thinking is that some of these clients would have friends, family that we would be able to assist however I am thinking that I really need to be aiming at more successful/professional type people although I have little of this type of person in my client base. This may be a silly question but how would you got about attracting this type of clients?
#1: Implement the Self-Referral process in locations where people with money tend to be. #2: All that matters is that your clients pay your fee and meet your personality criteria. THAT'S an Ideal Client. Perhaps you are spending too much time thinking and not enough time doing.
I see in the Progress Meeting agenda for the Goal Progress Outlook meeting that the client can be given the Quality of Life™ Enhancer exercise as homework. I am MORE under the impression that this exercise should be done in person and administered by me. Why does it refer to the Quality of Life™ enhancer exercise as homework? Am I missing something?
I agree. I would do the Quality of Life™ enhancer exercise as an interactive exercise facilitated by you. Mark Little creates the agendas for the Progress Meetings. You might ask him what his process and thinking is for this. Until you are consistently.... like for 20 weeks in a row... having 15 - 20 hours a week of Client Acquisition time on your calendar AND HONORING IT I recommend that you don't even think about the Quality of Life™ enhancer exercise.
What is the process or exact instructions on submitting a recording to Bill for his review and give feedback?
Your question exact directions can be found by logging in to www.committedadvisor.com and following the path below: Home > Coaching Calls > Committed Advisor Program (CAP) This will take you to your CAP Action Sequences. While here, you will want to look for the Action Item labeled “Trusted Advisor Recording Program #1-5" (depending on which Action Sequence you're on). If you do not see one listed, your Accountability Coach will have to grant you an Action Sequence pass so you may move to the next sequence and see this Action Item. After you see this Action Item, click on it and any forms you may need and all questions should be answered.
Prior to hiring Bachrach & Associates, Inc., I had already created several of the deliverables on an annual basis for clients. I have been charging between $500 and $1,000 for this type of planning in addition to AUM wrap fees. Can you help me gain clarity and perhaps some verbiage on why a current client should pay 2x-3x times what they are used to?
At this point you may not be able to justify why they should pay more money. As you continue on your Values-Based Financial Planning™ journey, however, you will be learning about a level of client experience, client service, and value delivered that will easily justify a higher, maybe significantly higher, fee. Whether a client chooses to come to your New World and pay the higher fee for the greater value is for you to work out with your clients. The clients who come into the New World will be your base from which you build your entire Ideal Client Community, by referral only. On the other hand, you may already be charging too low of a fee for the value you provide. In which case, the language might sound like, "After doing some serious numbers crunching in my business it has become clear to me that I've been charging much too low of a fee for the service and value that I have been providing. As such, we will be right-sizing our fee to $ / , effective . Do you have any questions...
I have a prospect who says that they want to come on board with me but that they can’t out of loyalty to their existing advisor. What should I say in my script for this situation?
Ask clarifying and expanding questions in response to their comment and in response to your questions. Go deep. They make talk themselves into working with you. You may also prefer a more direct approach such as: - Are you saying that you believe that I am better advisor who you believe would do a better job of helping you get your entire financial house in order and actualize what's on your Financial Road Map? If the answer is yes, then you might consider giving them a script or some talking points that will help them politely disengage from their existing advisor. It might go something like this, in writing to provide to them to use when they make the call or craft the email to their soon-to-be former advisor: "We appreciate the work that you have done for us in the past. We have come to the point in our life where we have decided to simplify our financial life. As such, we will be consolidating our financial affairs with one advisor so we can take full advantage of all of...
I recently asked an Ideal Client to commit to the 3 meeting process by putting our next 3 meetings on the calendar. She replied, "Honestly that's hilarious! I don't even know what next week looks like". She left our meeting with only the next meeting on the calendar but I would like to get the other 2 meetings on the calendar. My reaction is to explain that to deliver comprehensive advice; that it helps to be totally organized with all my deliverables team well in advance. Is there any way to approach the comment or think about her response?
If she doesn't know what the next week look likes, buy her a 2012 calendar and put the 3 meetings for the next year on it. Advise her that when she begins to plan to the following the week during the week prior to that week's arrival, to schedule around the meeting with you. The bottom line is that you don't really explain much. You have a process and if she wants you to be her advisor she follows the process. If she has an emergency or a big conflict with a future meeting it can be rescheduled. Be strong (professional) and follow your process.
After listening to Bill's May 2009 webinar, I am committed to determining who the best financial planners. Should I interview other financial planners over coffee as suggested also or just figure out who the Values-Based Financial Planners are and know the rest can't possibly provide all 110 deliverable checkpoints?
I think you may be misunderstanding the point of the exercise. Your goal is to find a planner for your Deliverables Team. To do so, you will follow Mark Little's process for building your Deliverables Team. You do not want another Values-Based Financial Planner because they are also outsourcing the plan writing and will not be available for you to hire to be their planner. This may all be a bit premature because right now your focus is on doing as many Financial Road Maps® as possible. (I recommend that you stop listening to all of my old webinars. Now that you are officially in the Ideal Life Evaluation Program, execute the Action Sequences per your Accountability Coaching sessions.)
Once a client says ‘yes’ to paying for a plan, what engagement letter do you use with the invoice?
It depends on your licensing and what your firm requires. They will be the best resource to answer your question.
I just completed a Group Self-Referral presentation. It went very well. Should I email the participants’ filled-out Ideal Life worksheets to them? If so, what email template should I use?
Make a photo copy of the completed Ideal Life Worksheet for yourself and mail them their original with a hand-written note.
I am uncertain of how to proceed in the following situation:
My 85 year old client (client for 20 years) now needs aged care accommodation. His sons are taking power over his financial affairs without notifying him to avoid any upset. I saw him last week. He is in good shape considering and understands the need for aged care but not aware the sons have taken over control of the financial affairs
I met with the sons last week and am due to meet again on November 24th about their father’s care and ongoing service. I have already offer them the opportunity to get their respective Financial Road Maps® completed -- One dominant brother had responded back, “No, not required at this stage.”
My client warned me about 7 years ago to be very careful of the dominant son. The sons are anxious to get father repositioned (I hope for right reasons) into aged care --- without some of the streamlined systems I have used in last 7-8 years --- aged care would have occurred much earlier.
This is a good client (past loyalty) and a survival client at approximately $24k paid annually.
Should I ask the sons to reposition to a new adviser given that my client is their father and they now wish to take over his affairs? I would like to help the father but feel it’s incorrect to get involved with him and his sons.
Take care of your client. If his son's don't want to hire you, on your terms for being an adviser, then they have a decision to make about finding a new adviser.
Should I schedule/conduct Financial Road Map® meetings with Non-Ideal Clients that won’t be able to afford our service and become Ideal Clients?
I am trying to reconcile different comments regarding Non-Ideal Clients and Financial Road Map® meetings with Non-Ideal Clients
• Jeff (& Tom Moore) – do a road map with ALL existing clients
• Bill Bachrach 24/7 website – answer to a question – there are some existing clients you shouldn’t conduct Financial Road Map® meetings with
• Rick Barrera – “Non-Ideal Clients will Steal Your Ideal Life….and prolong your journey…” Disengage as quickly as possible.
I entered Ideal Life Evaluation Program and Committed Advisor Program with the approach that I will do what I am told to do and not question things (Tom M. and Peter’s O's advice). I am just having a difficult time reconciling; soaking up resources for a little more short term profit, getting FRM meeting experience, giving the gift of a Financial Road Map® to Non-Ideal Clients, Non-Ideal Clients potential referrals (although there would be a disincentive for them to refer where it would shorten their tenure as a client?), letting Non-Ideal Clients know what we are doing...
We could add one deliverable and increase revenue but I am finding that my deliverables team is already stretched (it will get better with experience) with Implementation meetings, Progress Update meetings...we only have 14 Ideal Clients so we will be able to handle a lot more Ideal Clients work load once we gain efficiency and better time management. Although I think the time management by my Deliverables Team (in-house) has been fairly good - it seems to be more an issue of efficiency with new system and reports.
I think it would be fun to do these road maps and an easy way to fill up some Client Acquisition time. While this may be easier than other Client Acquisition activities I don’t want to take the easy way out. Lastly, I think there is something to momentum and keeping busy on PRODUCTIVE Client Acquisition activities, I just want to make sure this is productive/the best use of my time.
Do NOT do Financial Road Map® interviews with all non-Ideal Clients. Follow the process of the Annual Recurring Revenue exercise to determine who you will invite to do Financial Road Maps® and who you will not. When in doubt or getting conflicting input, advice from me should be the tie-breaker.
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