Please find a range of blogs below:
08 September 2024
One size doesn’t fit all. When we customize our ice breakers, we adjust for the type of prospect we have.
To someone nearing retirement, we might say, “I just found out how to double our pension in only nine months.”
Of course, this is interesting to our older prospect, but totally uninteresting to our 19-year-old university student. What should we say to this person?
“I just found out how we don’t have to work 45 years like our parents”
This is why we want to constantly build our inventory of ice breakers. Each new ice...
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01 September 2024
What phrases could we use to make our prospecting conversations easier?
After we mention our benefit, we could say:
“Would you like to know more?”
“Would you like to know how I am doing it?”
“Would you like to hear how they did it?”
Our bonus for using these phrases early in our conversations?
When prospects say they want to know more, they make a “yes” decision.
Prospects know if they want something … or not.
Here are two examples.
“I can now retire ten years earlier. Would you like...
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25 August 2024
Imagine we didn't know how to cook. Totally clueless. All we could do was burn water. Ugh!
Now, we decide to learn to cook.
Would we spend weeks cutting out pictures of food for our vision board?
Or maybe we would chant affirmations, “I am one with food!”
Bad strategy. Instead, here is what we would do:
“Learn one new tip or technique about cooking food every day.”
At the end of one year, we would be pretty good. At the end of two years, we would have some serious cooking skills. At the end of three years, we might insist...
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18 August 2024
Do we need a safe, non-invasive question that moves our conversation forward? A question that can tell us our prospect’s motivation?
Ask this question.
“So, what do you like to do in your free time?”
Prospects get to choose what they do in their free time. Their free time activity might be the most important reason to use our business to get more free time.
“I’m just curious …”
I was afraid to talk to strangers. Pretty normal for us introverts. But it all changed with these three words, “I am just...
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11 August 2024
Need the toilet? We see every toilet sign.
Don’t need the toilet? We walk past every toilet sign, never noticing its existence.
When we set goals, we notice resources and opportunities that could help us move forward to achieve those goals.
Goals help us see opportunities where others walk by.
The purpose of business
The purpose of business is to solve our prospects' problems.
When prospects tell us their problems, then all we have to do is ask, "Would it be okay if you could fix that problem?"
Our prospects make a quick...
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04 August 2024
Of course, we don’t know how to do this business when we start. Nobody learns the skills of every profession in the universe while we are in school.
But we are human. We can make the decision to learn new skills.
The only thing between us, and where we want to be, is some stuff we don’t know how to do yet.
Let’s learn more skills now.
"I don’t believe you!”
Advisor straight out of the Academy: “People need facts and information to make a decision.”
Me: “No.”
Advisor straight out of the...
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28 July 2024
So … we should get good at mini-stories to build faster.
Prospects love listening to stories.
Stories don’t sound like a sales pitch.
Prospects love “mini” as attention spans are short.
We only get one chance, so we better be good with our opening sentences.
In less than 15 seconds we can change our careers. One good story can replace a lifetime of prospecting.
Here are some story prompts. Once we say these opening words, it is easy for us to create a story.
Once upon a time …
When I was young …
Here is what...
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21 July 2024
Who is going to make the sale?
The Professional Advisor?
Or, the prospect?
One quick way to get the advantage is to let the prospect do most of the talking. If the prospect talks more, and we talk less, our chances of success are greater.
Unfortunately, if we do most of the talking, and the prospect doesn’t, our chances are slim. Ouch.
Now, that doesn’t mean we don’t talk. But it does mean that when we talk, we should use proven words and concentrate our message in a few short sentences. Then, our prospect will talk, feel great, and...
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14 July 2024
Here is the biggest obstacle to our business … us.
We get programmed by teachers, parents, friends, the news, TikTok, astrology, and yes, even fortune cookies.
Unfortunately, most of this programming tells us to stay small, don’t take chances, fit in with the crowd, don’t think too much, and stay where we are.
Breaking free is hard. We have to associate with different voices … oh.
We must see opportunity while others see only risks. This is easier with a support team of people moving forward.
Where can we associate with more...
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07 July 2024
When in doubt, tell a story. Stories are easier for prospects to process in their minds. It is a natural way for them to learn new things.
Humans like short stories and presentations. They hate long stories and presentations. Short is always better than long. If prospects want more, they will ask.
Prospects love hearing about our failures. They find it so interesting.
Give prospects a chance to opt out of the conversation early. This reduces their stress and guarantees that we have prospects who will listen to us.
Facts push people into the analysis side of the...
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