The primary goal of prospecting questions is to qualify the prospect. In order to be your client, certain requirements must be met.
Financial planning is a process that can take many forms, so it’s important to ask the right questions up front to determine if a potential client is a good fit for your services.
Some financial advisors make the mistake of trying to close the sale during the initial conversation. This usually doesn’t work, because you haven’t had a chance to fully assess the prospect’s needs and objectives.
You have spent a lot of time and money marketing your business, so don’t lose them trying to move too fast.
The goal of prospecting questions is simply to get enough information to determine whether there’s a good fit between you and the prospect.
The types of questions you ask will depend on the services you offer. Generally, there are three categories of financial advisor prospecting questions:
1. Financial Needs Questions
2. Background Questions
3. Risk Tolerance Questions
For example, you might ask how much debt the prospect has, how much they earn, and how much they save each month. This information will help you to determine if the prospect is a good fit for your services.
Background questions are designed to get an idea of the prospect’s financial history and knowledge.
For example, you might ask how long the prospect has been investing, what types of investments they are familiar with, and whether they have ever used a financial advisor before.
This information will help you to determine if the prospect is a good fit for your services.
Risk tolerance questions are designed to get an idea of the prospect’s risk tolerance level.
For example, you might ask how the prospect would react if they lost 10% of their investment portfolio. This information will help you to determine if the prospect is a good fit for your services.
Let’s dive deeper into the layers beneath each type of financial advisor prospecting questions.
How to ask good financial advisor prospecting questions?
Have a plan
Before you start asking financial advisor prospecting questions, it’s important to have a plan. This will ensure that you stay on track and get the right amount of information from the prospect.
When you’re ready to start asking financial advisor prospecting questions, keep the following in mind:
- What type of clients are you looking for?
- What type of information do you need to qulaify a prospect?
- What type of questions will help you understand a prospect’s financial situation?
- How can you ask questions that will elicit actionable information?
Asking financial advisor prospecting questions without a plan is like shooting in the dark- you might get lucky and hit your target, but more often than not, you’ll miss.
Having a plan ensures that you stay focused and get the information you need to make informed decisions about your prospects.
Have Focused Questions
Financial advisors need to ask focused questions in order to get the most accurate information from their clients.
By asking a series of specific questions, advisors can help their clients feel comfortable and gathered the relevant data needed to make informed decisions.
Advisors should avoid bombarding their clients with multiple queries at once, as this can be overwhelming and deter people from providing accurate responses.
By taking the time to ask focused questions, financial advisors can ensure they are getting the most out of their client interactions.
Speak your Prospects Language (mirroring)
It is important for financial advisors to be able to speak their client’s language. By understanding their niche, advisors can communicate more effectively and ask the right questions. This will help build trust and strengthen the relationship.
Don’t Interrupt
When financial advisors are working with clients, it’s important to not interrupt. Not only is it rude, but it can also make it difficult to understand what the client is saying.
Instead, financial advisors should ask questions and then let the client talk. This will help ensure that everyone is on the same page and that the advisor can provide the best advice possible.
Develop Your Prospecting Questions Plan
Financial Questions
Current Financial Situation
As a financial advisor, one of the first things you will want to know is your ideal client’s financial situation. This includes their income, debts, and other financial obligations. Advisors will need this information in order to create a financial plan that fits their needs.
Why now
You need to understand where they are and how serious they are in doing business with you. It’s important to get a sense of their urgency so you can determine how much time and effort you should put into the relationship.
Budget
A key part of financial planning is creating and sticking to a budget. As such, advisors will want to know what their clients’ budgets are. This includes their monthly income and expenses. By understanding this information, financial advisors can help their clients make the best financial decisions possible.
Savings
Another important aspect of financial planning is saving for the future. financial advisors will want to know how much their clients are currently saving and what their goals are. This information will help advisors create a financial plan that meets their needs.
Investments
Investments are another key part of financial planning. Financial advisors will want to know what kinds of investments their clients have, as well as their risk tolerance. This information will help advisors recommend the best investments for their clients.
Financial Goals
One of the most important aspects of financial planning is setting goals. financial advisors will want to know what their clients’ financial goals are. This includes short-term and long-term goals, as well as specific dollar amounts.
Priorities
Financial advisors will also want to know their clients’ financial priorities. This includes things like paying off debt, saving for retirement, and investing. By understanding their clients’ priorities, financial advisors can create a financial plan that meets their needs.
Financial Advisor Questions
Have you worked with a financial advisor before
You’ll want to know if your potential client has worked with an advisor before to get a sense of their level of experience. This will help you determine how much time and effort you should put into the relationship.
What did you like/dislike about your previous advisor
This question will help you understand what your potential client is looking for in an advisor. It will also give you insight into their previous experiences.
Do you currently have a Financial Advisor
You want know if they plan on moving on from an advisor that they are currently working with or if they are just starting out. If they are already working with an advisor, you’ll want to ask more about why they are looking for a new one.
It will also help you qualify them as a client based on the way they are handling the separation from their previous advisor.
Expectation Related Questions
What would you like to achieve with me
This question will help you understand your client’s goals and objectives. It will also give you a better idea of what they are looking for in an advisor. You must understand and be ready to discover if they have unrealistic expectations.
This will help you understand if the client is ready to invest in their future and how much they are willing to spend. It will also help set client expectations early on, so there are no surprises down the line.
What is your timeline for achieving these goals
This question will help you understand how soon your client wants to achieve their goals. It will also give you a better idea of the urgency they are feeling. Advisors need to be aware that some clients have unrealistic timelines, so it’s important to manage their expectations early on.
Projective Questions
What if…
You want to get an understanding of how your potential client would handle certain situations. Based on your niche and experience you should have a good idea of some common hurdles or objections you’d encounter along the way. Find out now and as the relationship grows you’ll know what areas to coach them on.
What Would…
You also want to know what your client would do in certain situations, to get a better understanding of their thought process. This will help you better understand how they think about money and their financial goals.
How would…
Finally, understanding how they would feel in these situations is extremely valuable information to have. This will help you understand what’s important to them and how they think about money. It will also help you identify any areas where they may need coaching or education.
By asking these questions, you can get a better understanding of your client’s background and needs. This will help you create a financial plan that meets their specific needs.
Fear-Based Questions
Financial Concerns
They are contacting you because they currently have financial concerns or want to prevent any concerns in the future. Advisors should always be aware of their client’s financial fears and use this information to better serve them.
Family Concerns
Are they concerned about their families well being, supporting their kid’s or grandkids’ education, etc?. This type of question will help you understand the client’s motivation and what is important to them.
Legacy concerns
Planning for generations is a big concern for many clients. They want to make sure they leave a legacy for their loved ones. This type of question will help you understand the client’s motivation and what is important to them.
Personal Questions
Family Dynamic
You need the know the current status of their family in order to develop a plan that suits their needs. This question will also help you understand how many dependents they have and the level of support they may need.
Transition
You want to know if they are currently going through a transition or preparing for one. This type of information is important because it can have a major impact on their finances.
Core Values
Subtly add this to your prospecting questions so that clients feel comfortable disclosing this personal information. It will help you understand what is important to them and why they want to achieve their financial goals.
Advisors should always be aware of their client’s financial fears and use this information to better serve them.
Alternatives to ‘Traditional’ open-ended or closed-ended questions to enhance client relationships
Different questions have different purposes and are reserved primarily in relation to different phases. How do you decide if and where to answer questions effectively and how often?
Learning the best ways to answer questions can help develop deeper responses and ultimately improve client relationships. Let’s explore some alternatives to traditional question-asking.
Open-ended questions are typically used to build rapport with clients and get them talking. Closed-ended questions, on the other hand, allow you to gain more specific information about client concerns or goals.
Both types of questions have their place in client interactions; however, there are times when closed-ended questions can seem too forceful or when open-ended questions can lead to confusion. In these cases, it might be better to use an alternative question type.
Here are a few alternatives to traditional question-asking:
1) The client snapshot: This is a great way to get an overview of the client’s current situation without having to ask too many questions. Simply ask the client to describe their current financial situation in a few sentences.
2) The best-case scenario: This question allows clients to paint a picture of their ideal financial future. It’s a great way to get them thinking about their goals and what they want to achieve.
3) The worst-case scenario: This question can help clients understand their risk tolerance and how they would cope if things went wrong financially.
4) The client’s story: This is a great way to get to know the client on a personal level. Ask them to share a story about an important decision they made in the past with their finances.
5) The client’s motivation: This question helps clients get in touch with their reasons for wanting to achieve their goals. It’s a great way to find out what’s truly important to them.
Asking questions is an important part of being an advisor. However, it’s also important to know when and how to ask them. Using alternative question types can help you build better client relationships and get the information you need to help them achieve their goals.
