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?

Article ID: 430
Last updated: 20 Nov, 2019
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 our finances being coordinated, comprehensive, and simpler to manage. We appreciate your understanding and support as we make this transition. Again, we assure that this is nothing personal and we appreciate your past service."

On the other hand, if the answer is "no" or "maybe" or some form of hemming and hawing, they may have just been using "loyalty to their existing advisor" as an excuse to not hire you. If that's the case, let them go and continue seeking your next truly Ideal Client.
Also listed in
folder Miscellaneous
folder Commitment to Hire Conversation™ -> Ideal Clients Resisting to Hire/"Let Me Think About It for Awhile."


Others in this category
b I had a very compelling couple of meetings this week and it was great. As before, I still am anxious about what my next step with them is. Things like their Homeowners Insurance scare me a bit since I have no background in that. My understanding was that there were some sophisticated Deliverable Process that we would be privy to be able to work through the various venues. Now that I have the clients committed I feel deeply that I too need to deliver on our promise. Please allay our fears about the next step.
b Should we prepare a list or outline of our Deliverables Team to show to people in the event they ask a question during the Commitment to Hire Conversation™, or just outline it verbally to them?
b I am new to Values-Based Financial Planning™ and under my organization I do not yet have a Deliverables Team. We are in the process of creating it but it may be months to a year down the road as an organization. How do I build a plan in the meantime that will create or show how my quoted fee or desired fee of $5000 per year is paid or able to be paid by the client?
b There are many forms that my clients must fill out. They are not something that can be done in the "let's take a few moments to make that happen" section. I need to prepare the paperwork and it takes more than a few moments. What I like to do is have the clients come back in to do the paperwork and go over any other information in the questionnaires I need. Then, after that, I will complete the plan and have the clients back in to go over that plan.
b I am one of the newer converts to Values-Based Financial Planning™ so this may be a mindset issue for me, but I have had several prospective Ideal Clients ask me, "How are you going to help me have a 10 level of confidence with so much going on in the world? " I tend to repeat much of what I have already said from the Pivotal Questions, but I am not convinced I have that way of being with my answer. I have begun scripting some stuff out based on the answers to the pivotal questions, but I wanted your thoughts on answering the HOW question. It’s a little different from the, "What do I get for the fee?" and, "How do I know that I can trust you?" and, "What’s the process?" scripting, so I am piecing together my answers from there.
» More articles