RGR_PRACTICE MANAGEMENT _ Penton Media September 3, 2009 If you want to view this on the web go to: http://enews.penton.com/enews/registeredrep/v/741 FEATURE STORY --Executing the "Wow Factor" by Matt Oechsli St. Louis: "It seems as though every one of our clients is currently taking money out of their college savings plan," said Louise, adding, "I haven't had a spare minute to do any rainmaking this past week." What a coincidence. Parents are shipping their children back off to college; the institutions of higher learning are experiencing unprecedented budget cuts; and affluent families are dipping into their 529 plans more than usual. (http://oechsli.com/rainmaker/) Louise, a multi-million dollar producer, was sharing her frustrations with Stephen, her performance coach. What seemed like a fleeting moment of venting became a high-impact coaching opportunity. Stephen had Louise and her team focused on both attracting new affluent clients (rainmaking) and strengthening the loyalty of their current affluent clients (it's virtually impossible to be a rainmaker with dissatisfied affluent clients), but the team had gotten off track. Everyone was scrambling with the clerical task of getting funds distributed properly to clients. Negative energy is never a good thing; we are always vulnerable to it. Even big producers and effective team leaders get pulled off track at times. Until this hiccup, Stephen had Louise and her entire team focused on activating their "strategic intent" antenna in every affluent client interaction. Their objective was twofold: *Uncover something personal that would "surprise and delight" the client. *Source the name of a colleague, friend, or extended family member who could follow-up with and orchestrate a personal introduction. Things were moving along well until the flurry of college funding activity hit. Suddenly, there was a mad scramble, alas, led by Louise, and they were overlooking a surprise and delight rainmaking activity that was staring them in the face. It just so happens that earlier that morning I had received a gift from a fund company that sponsored me for a recent speaking engagement. The note read; "…we were paying attention to what you were saying about the affluent and loyalty. I hope this fits." The gift was a hooded sweatshirt purchased online from the student bookstore at UNC Wilmington, and it was for my wife Sandy. They really had been paying attention: During my speech, I mentioned that our son had transferred colleges and was now a budding sophomore at UNCW. After Louise finished her rant, Stephen used my wife's new sweatshirt as a coaching opportunity. Louise loved the idea. By the time the coaching call was ending, she was suggesting to Stephen that I tell everyone about this opportunity - hence you are reading about it in this issue of Practice Management. For affluent clients with children in college, whether they are dipping into their college sayings plan or not, this is a perfect time to surprise and delight these top clients with a gift similar to the one my wife received (she loves it). However, this does require that you really know your clients. So, in the spirit of teamwork and Louise's new-found enthusiasm, here are 7 practical steps to activate this rainmaking activity. All but #7 can by done be support personnel: *Meet as a team to kick-off this college-focused initiative. *Review the profile of your top 25 to 50 clients. *Determine who has children in college and what college they are attending. *If you are lacking any of this information, contact the client to gather the missing information. *Whenever in doubt of sizing-ask. *Order hooded sweatshirt to be delivered at the office (home if retired) *Advisor sends a handwritten note in advance to husband or wife, so that they will expect it. Not all clients will remember to express their gratitude. Don't take this personally, it doesn't mean that they didn't appreciate your personal gift, either they haven't gotten to it yet, or it's a signal that they may be lacking manners. Regardless, if you still haven't heard from a client about 10 working days after placing the order, call him or her. At this stage, you're inquiring just to make certain the package has arrived. Do not overthink the issue of follow-up. You will not appear tacky by making a follow-up call, and more often than not, good things will come of it-especially if you have your rainmaker antenna fully activated. It is during moments such as these when windows of opportunity surface and penetrating an affluent client's center-of-influence becomes much more natural as you are activating the law of reciprocity. Stephen has transformed Louise from a service-only nurturer into rainmaker who surprises and delights her top clients. None of this is complicated as long as you make a commitment to understanding the affluent, knowing your clients and thinking in terms of this "wow factor." If you want to ensure you are delivering that "wow factor" visit our download center for a FREE copy of our Surprise and Delight - The Importance of Intel PDF. (http://www.oechsli.com/rainmaker/interviews.asp?id=58) This download demonstrates both the importance and power of gathering intel and delighting your clients. Once again, we want to thank all of you who have emailed comments and questions to us. We will continue to do our best to answer each one. If you have any topic suggestions or special requests, please contact Rich Santos, publisher of Registered Rep. and Trust & Estates magazines, at rich.santos@penton.com (mailto:rich.santos@penton.com). 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