Nearly three quarters of Unbiased clients have never used an adviser before, and the same proportion state that their adviser met or exceeded their expectations.
So which aspects of a professional’s service help convert clients into loyal advocates? And how can you bring these attributes together to create the perfect client experience?
A common theme is the speed of response. Clients are impressed by being contacted within an hour of being matched, so get ahead by using your dashboard’s Welcome Message feature to ensure you’re always responding promptly.
Clients also often state that they were “nervous” before the first meeting, and praise professionals that calm their nerves via phone or email.
One client told us that a professional even “reserved a car parking space for our arrival”, providing them with the reassurance they wanted, and laying the foundations for them to take on the professional’s services.
When making a first impression, there are many attributes that can play in your favour.
“Professional” was, unsurprisingly, a common positive comment - but combining this with being “friendly” created the best impression. One happy client told us that they “liked his manners: very friendly, but professional”.
Part of getting this balance right is to focus on a phrase which appeared many times: “wasn’t aloof”. A number of clients believe that most professionals (of any industry) are usually aloof, so being “positive”, “understanding”, and “approachable” will put you at a competitive advantage.
The most powerful thing a professional can do at the start of the first meeting is to listen.
Clients praised professionals that avoided overloading them with information or opting for the hard sell.
At the earliest stage of the first meeting, ensuring clients feel “understood” and “valued” by listening to their goals and concerns proved a far more effective conversion strategy than going straight into discussing products or solutions.
Having listened to your clients’ needs first of all, providing your advice is relatively straightforward.
“Knowledgeable” and “helpful” were by far the most common positive comments - but to maximise this, consider how you’re imparting this knowledge.
What differentiated a great professional from a good one was the way in which the advice was communicated. “Explaining everything excellently” and being “clear in what was proposed” had the warmest reception, with clients being impressed by simple language, concrete examples, and everyday terminology.
Once advice has been provided, there’s another opportunity to provide a service which guarantees referrals.
Ensuring clients don’t feel pressured to choose one option over another was often praised, and the best professionals answered further queries without needing the client to employ them.
Therefore, it pays to be “in contact all the time”. This doesn’t just help clients with their initial enquiry, but also maintains engagement so they can be converted again at a later date.
However, you don’t need to wait to convert clients a second time.
It may seem overly sales-driven to begin upselling immediately, but clients actually praised this approach. One client lauded their professional who was “helpful in teasing out areas you may not have thought about”.
Some clients stated that they used a professional that they had met before, but had previously been unaware that this professional could help with their enquiry.
So even if clients don’t respond to upselling immediately, impressing with your service and planting the seed of your further abilities can help ensure you receive repeat business.
