Sharing real stories about yourself or about unique client situations can help you get your clients to better understand your value. These stories can help clients to see you as a living human being rather than only as a financial advisor.
“Stories are a powerful way to build relationships,” says Tina Jakma, certified financial planner at T. Jakma Financial in Toronto. “But they must be true and believable.”
Stories allow you to establish an emotional bond with clients, adds Jonathan Rivard, regional leader and financial advisor with Edward Jones in Richmond Hill, Ont. “Good financial advisors are good storytellers.”
According to Heather Holjevac, a CFP with TriDelta Financial Partners in Oakville, Ont.: “Personal stories enable you to establish trust with clients and make them more comfortable when dealing with you.”
Here are some ways to use stories to build long-term relationships.
> Find your story
Most advisors have one or more stories to tell based on personal experience, an event or a unique client situation. To find your story, Holjevac says, ask yourself:
Who or what has influenced my values or beliefs?
How have I helped clients in unique situations?
These would be the stories that have shaped your views or your passion as an advisor, Holjevac says. The trick is to find stories that are appropriate to specific client situations. “Make sure they’re right,” she says.
Adds Rivard: “You must be empathetic and sincere. You’re trying to reach out to the person sitting across the table.”
> Share your values and beliefs
The stories you tell should reveal your values and beliefs and what you stand for. These values can be demonstrated by how you’ve handled specific client situations.
By being able to relate to clients through stories, you open the doors to questions that clients are not sure about asking,” Rivard says.
Clients typically pay more attention to “a specific situation, not something that has never been tried,” Holjevac says. “If your story shows them how you’ve helped others, then you have their attention.”
> Simplify complex ideas
“Solutions-based stories are valuable tools to help clients understand complex ideas and can differentiate you as an advisor,” Rivard says. You do not necessarily have to discuss performance or asset allocation, he says, but rinstead educate your clients through these stories.
For instance, Jakma says, clients have asked her: “Would you make that investment for your father?” Such a question takes the complexity out of the investment decision and makes it personal.
“Stories make people more comfortable,” Holjevac says. “You don’t want to get caught up in numbers.”
> Provide insight
Your stories should provide insight into what clients should expect from you, Rivard says. They must demonstrate that you are passionate about helping them achieve their goals as opposed to talking to them about products.