“Simplicity is the ultimate sophistication” Leonardo da Vinci

My husband has no idea what it is that I do. I try to explain it in terms so that he can explain to somebody if they ask him, but inevitably I find that the language that I use ends up with me overcomplicating my explanation, using industry jargon, and him, in the end, deciding that he wished he’d never even asked the question!

Most people in the industry face a similar conundrum. We are so used to engaging with each other in our own “coded” language that we forget how to articulate our language outside this cocoon.

Simplicity in language and approach, when it comes to dealing with clients is often overlooked. To many, simplicity implies a lack of professionalism and credibility. After all, why else is your client with you, if it isn’t for your immense depth of intelligence?

However, the best proof of someone’s intelligence is their ability to simplify the complex.

Confidence in the value that you offer clients is critical in your ability to simplify your approach with clients.

“How can I charge a substantial fee for my services if my client believes that what I do for them is simple and straight forward?”

“Surely they have to be able to see value in the complexity of the advice that I offer them?”

Overcomplicating the delivery of your advice services might demonstrate your capability and technical nous, but how can your client then explain to family and friends exactly what it is that you do for them, and importantly how much value it adds?

It is near impossible to promote an idea or service if you don’t understand the outcome that you value in the first place.

There are 5 key areas where simplicity is the key to enabling your clients to being able to explain your value and recommend their family and friends find out more about what you do.

1. Use easy to understand language at all times. I call this the “mum and dad test”. If your parents could not understand what you are saying, neither can most of your clients! No more acronyms, industry jargon, abbreviations! SoA, RoA, ATP, LoE…Throw them out the window!
2. Simplify the engagement and advice process. A client needs to easily understand what is involved, and the likely timeframes for delivery. The financial planning process is a complex beast at times. However, using this complexity to justify fees does not reinforce to your client the real value that you provide them.
3. Provide the client with advice documentation that they can understand and explain to somebody else. Easier said than done I know, with all the compliance requirements. Advice documentation needs to comply but be concise. A tricky balancing act. If your licensee isn’t playing ball, look at other ways that you can simplify the way that you explain your advice to clients. That is where videos, and simply written “executive summaries” become so important.
4. Educate your clients in a simple and logical way. If you have a great relationship with your client, you should have a good feel for how best to explain more complex concepts to them. Say, your client loves to ski and you need to explain the risk return trade-off you could begin by explaining in terms of green, blue, black runs. If they love tennis you could explain it in terms of serving a first and second serve at top pace. The options are endless.
5. Simplify your approach to how you invest, and what technology you use to drive a great outcome for your client. Leverage technology to deliver your advice, in a simple and transparent way. The advantage of doing it this way, is that you can adapt and adjust your delivery to the type of client that you have in front of you. You might have one client that values transparency and wants to be involved in their advice plan, whereas others are happy to outsource the process entirely to you, and implicitly trust in your services.

If your clients understand what you do and how you do it, you provide your client with peace of mind and clarity about their financial security.  It makes it so much easier for them to talk about what you do to others, and effortlessly they will become great advocates for your business.

About Cashwerkz
Technology is critical in the delivery of simplicity across your business. Cashwerkz provides a simple online marketplace for cash and defensive assets. We pride ourselves on having a very easy-to-use platform which enables advisory business, as well as direct investors, the opportunity to invest in cash and defensive investments in a simple and secure manner.

At Cashwerkz, we understand the importance of simplicity. We pride ourselves on providing investors and advisers with a streamlined, straightforward approach to investing.
Find out more at www.cashwerkzstg.wpengine.com

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