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Having been in this industry for over 20 years, I am still constantly surprised by the mismatch between the information advisers want, and what the broader market chooses to provide them with.
I learned long ago, when we started No More Practice, that the fastest way to add value was to provide advisers with content that could enhance their business, that they could not, or did not, access elsewhere.
It’s why we are still in business today, and while we don’t always get it right, we continue to add value more often than not.
Our analytics also tell us a lot about what you are interested in, and what drives the deepest engagement.
Despite this obvious fact however, I still see a bunch of marketing materials from service providers that talks about their product or service and how it’s the best choice for advisers.
In a day and age where the customer rules, to see continued product flog to an audience that’s already time poor is both frustrating and an obvious waste of time and money.
For advisers, it must be exhausting to be thrown a barrage of information, the majority of which is not helpful to your day-to-day business.
So how we can turn this tide, and get you more of what you need, and less of the rest? I believe the first step is for advisers to be honest. I had a fascinating discussion with someone from South Africa recently, who admitted to me that he found Australia frustrating. People sat in meetings, nodding and acting interested, and then nothing happened afterward. In South Africa, he said, if people were not interested, they would stop you in the first ten minutes and tell you not to waste your time.
I think there is a fair element of this in our industry, where people, for the sake of being polite, put up with noise that adds no value.
This noise wastes valuable funds and time that could be allocated to something else that’s actually beneficial.
So I urge you the next time you are in a meeting being sold something that you don’t want to buy, be honest. Say, ‘thanks, but no thanks.’ It will be surprisingly liberating for you, and will direct your time and resources into something you may well want.
Today is the age of education, not product flog. If you are not learning, it’s most likely not useful. Use this yardstick by which to measure where you spend your valuable time. It may take a while to get used to, but things will improve with this simple change. For we all need to spend what time we have improving what we do.
And don’t feel bad for being honest and saying no. In the long run, your honesty is better for everyone.
Until our next instalment,
The opinions expressed in this content are those of the author shown, and do not necessarily represent those of No More Practice or its related entities. All content is intended for a professional financial adviser audience only and does not constitute financial advice. To view our full terms and conditions, click here.
