It’s a trust thing
What stops you from having successful and profitable relationships with business professionals such as solicitors and accountants?
At a recent seminar I ran on working with professional connections, I asked the same question to the audience.
I received a number of answers:
‘I find it too difficult.’
‘I no longer have the confidence for this market.’
‘I don’t know how to make a profit out of this market.’
‘It’s not a priority for me.’
‘They don’t want to work with me.’
‘I don’t know how to approach them, I have no plan.’
All valid reasons – but the audience’s number one concern was their perception that solicitors and accountants just don’t trust financial advisers.
I wanted to explore this in more depth, and asked the audience to tell me why they feel they aren’t trusted.
Keep communication flowing
It soon became apparent that advisers feel that some solicitors and accountants think advisers concentrate too much on product pushing, are commission-led and don’t communicate effectively.
It was clear to me talking to the seminar delegates that the communication issue is the key barrier to trust. The C word is fundamental to all good relationships, be they personal or business. When communication fails, a natural consequence is an erosion of trust.
So if trust is an issue and communication is key to profitable relationships with solicitors and accountants, how can you make sure you have a plan in place to maintain effective communication?
You have to become the driver behind any relationship – the virtual team captain. You have to become the creator of solutions and the project manager behind any implementation. Put simply, you have to control the flow of communication and keep it moving. When it stops, so do the business opportunities. Confusion grows and then trust can be lost.
This might seem like a lot of work, but if we believe that relationships with solicitors and accountants can enhance our business then it’s an investment of time well worth making.
Check out our guide to the nuts and bolts of a good working relationship to get you started.
John Joe McGinley, Business Strategy Manager
March 2010