Dare to be Different!Feb23

The following post is courtesy of Diane Harrison who is principal and owner of Panegyric Marketing, a strategic marketing communications firm founded in 2002 specializing in alternative assets.

Winning new clients is a lot like being the individual selected for a new job. The techniques which work for a job candidate are similar for an investment manager wooing new investors. In both cases, you need to prove your value and right fit for the job.

Last November, Forbes.com ran an article; Seven Ways To Differentiate Yourself In A Job Interview, that provides some useful tips to consider for managers looking to grow their investment business, The tips are rather simple and straightforward, but when translated into action steps, can work to elevate you from the rest:

WHY DIFFERENT IS BETTER

Let’s explore these 7 tips as they can relate to investment management and its selling process. It goes without saying that the field of prospective options for investors is extremely crowded, and to get noticed by anyone, let along the right target audience, is a daunting task for 95% of fund managers. You need to be able to articulate your uniqueness and why that matters to the potential investor―how you can help them and why you are the best fit for the job.

1) DO YOUR RESEARCH―Before you ask for someone’s time, make sure you will be talking to the right person. There are a number of ways to pre-investigate a prospect’s investment inclinations, their current portfolio mix, and their historical investment performance. Knowing as much about the target prospect as you can will assist you in shaping the flow of the conversation and presentation when the actual meeting occurs. Don’t use half of your allotted time with a prospect asking qualifying questions of them you could have researched in advance.

2) KNOW THE PAIN POINTS―Understanding what will move your prospect is even more important than understanding what it is you offer. Relating your solution to their problem is how you can create an emotional as well as intellectual connection with someone, and that will lead to a deeper exploration of the process and your solution offering with them.

3) ADDRESS YOUR OWN SHORTFALLS―How do you turn a weakness into a strength? It may not always be possible, but one underused method is to demonstrate your own 360 degree perspective on your abilities or business and control the narrative on how your potentially less desirable attributes are viewed in that moment. Address them in a forthright manner and offer your views on how they are being managed to a better outcome going forward, and you will at the least gain the respect of your audience for so doing.

4) DEMONSTRATE YOUR COMPETENCE― It’s typically far easier for a manager to focus their message on what it is they do well, and this is a critical component to influencing prospects that you can add value to their situation. The trick is in keeping the message clear, simplified, and focused on the end results, which should be client-oriented. To use a car analogy, it’s not as necessary to explain to a prospect how you can build the car as it is to have them understand that you are an expert driver of a safe and reliable vehicle.

5) SHOW BY EXAMPLES―Illustrating the concepts you want to communicate through real-life case study examples is one of the most powerful tools you can use to create a lasting impression in a prospect’s mind. People naturally comprehend information better when it comes in the form of a story structure―present them with a problem to solve, what happened to address it, and how did it turn out? By constructing several of these scenario examples that showcase your abilities to understand and solve the types of problems that are familiar and troubling to such prospects, you will set yourself up as a solution to their needs, and keep the conversation going.

6) FOLLOW UP WITH MEANINGFUL INFORMATION―Many years ago when I first began my career in investment sales, my mentor explained to me one of his most valuable devices to gain that second meeting on follow up. During the initial conversation, we would listen very closely to the client’s side of the conversation, and take note of anything that might prove useful for us to research a bit further after the first meeting was over. Then, as part of our meeting follow up, we would restate what we’d heard and offer several suggestions on how to address the issue. It showed a true desire to hear the client and not just talk at the client, and often got us the desired result.

7) CUSTOMIZE A THOUGHTFUL THANK YOU―There exist few things less sincere than a form letter with your name slapped on it. We’ve all received them and universally despise them. If you’ve had the privilege of meeting with someone, take the time needed to craft a personal message back to them that conveys you were present and attentive at that meeting. Reference a couple of key points you heard, perhaps add in the meaningful information follow up outlined in point 6 above, and send it promptly. There is no substitute for good manners, period, and it will be appreciated,

If you incorporate these practices into your selling approach, I believe wholeheartedly that you will have more positive interactions overall, and perhaps greater success in closing new sales as well. At the very least, you will have a clearer internal vision of your value proposition and tools to help you get it out to your market.