Walk a mile in someone else’s shoes

Financial advisers are selling an invisible product that makes for a complex client relationship, according to John Sautelle of the Perform Group.

“What are clients of financial advisers really buying?” he says.

“As with other professional services, there is not a product that clients can see, touch or smell. Financial advisers are selling services, they are selling the invisible.”

Sautelle, who is speaking at this year’s FPAConvention, argues that while many financial advisers are seeking ways to differentiate their services, there are few distinguishing features between the many financial advice providers, services and products.

“The answer lies in a shift in thinking and approach — from being an expert at selling financial products to becoming more of an ‘ally’ and trusted adviser,” he says.

“There is a growing realisation that people buy with their emotions and then justify their decisions with logic. The assumption that the decision itself is based on logic is a fallacy.”

Sautelle says this means financial advisers can not rely on the client making a logical decision, they have to develop a trusted ‘ally’ relationship.

By building this relationship, the adviser is creating a significant competitive advantage over their rivals.

“One of the keys to developing trusted ‘ally’ relationships is to learn how to effectively shift perspectives between first position (self-oriented), second position (the adviser’s client perspective) and third position (neutral observer),” Sautelle says.

“Experts tend to listen to clients almost exclusively from first position, whereas a trusted ‘ally’ listens to clients from second position and analyses their problems from third position.”

Advisers spend far too little time developing a deep understanding of their clients, he says.

“So often we tend to jump straight into the content — to find out what the facts and issues are, to apply our analytical skills and immediately start suggesting a solutions approach,” Sautelle says.

“Clients can experience this as opportunistic and indifferent to them and their situations.”

The second position requires an adviser to understand and respond to the client’s deeper fears, needs and aspirations, and the outcome is a better rapport and level of trust.

Sautelle says making this paradigm shift from being an expert to an ‘ally’ is a crucial step in creating a point of difference in the adviser’s service proposition.

“Developing and refining the skills to move between first, second and third positions will help the adviser with making that crucial step in their service offering,” he says.

‘How You See It, is Not How Your Client Sees It! Learn How to “Walk in Their Shoes”’, John Sautelle’s session, will be held on Thursday December 2 at 11:55am-12:55pm .