“Hold the pickles, hold the lettuce. Special orders don’t upset us. All we ask is that you let us serve it your way!”
These lyrics to the catchy Burger King jingle said to the world in 1974, “Forget McDonalds and their rigidity…we’ll make your burger just like you want it.” This resulted in a healthy increase in gross sales and profits for Burger King. McDonalds soon followed suit, becoming more flexible with their orders.
Do your clients get it “their way” or “your way”? With so many choices out there, it’s a question more relevant today than ever before.
When I’m working with Financial Advisors and their teams, nobody ever says, “Bill, I’ve got too much time on my hands.” What I hear is the opposite. Everybody is struggling with time management issues. Most advisors run so hard they don’t take time to ask the question “why” when it comes to the daily operation of their business. They’ve grown accustomed to, and are comfortable with, certain practices they believe their clients value. This happens when they assume the preferences of their clients, rather than asking clients what they prefer.
Here’s a great example of an industry that failed to know their client’s preferences. Freek Vermeulen, Associate Professor of Strategy and Entrepreneurship at the London Business School, stated in a recent Harvard Business Review article:
“More than a decade ago I worked with a large British newspaper company, I asked why their papers were so big. Their answer was “all quality newspapers are big; customers would not want it any other way.” A few years later, a rival company – the Independent – halved the size of its newspaper, and saw a surge in circulation. Subsequently, many competitors followed, to similar effect.’
Yes, customers did want it. Later, I found out that the practice of large newspapers had begun in London, in 1712, because the English government started taxing newspapers by the number of pages they printed — the publishers responded by printing their stories on so-called broadsheets to minimize the number of sheets required. This tax law was abolished in 1855 but newspapers just continued printing on the impractically large sheets of paper.” (Full article: “5 Stategy Questions Every Leader Should Make Time For”)
Don’t go the way of the broadsheet papers. Be proactive.
Here’s two simple questions you should ask every client when you do a review. This will lead to deeper client relationships, increased revenues, and time being added back to your calendar:
- What are we doing too much of?
- What do we need to do more of?
As you drill down in these questions, you want to ask things like:
- Are we calling you too much, or too little?
- Would you prefer fewer calls and more emails or texts?
- Are the number of reviews we’re doing with you too many or too few? Too short or too long? In person or Webex/Webinar?
- When do you want to hear from us?
Burger King saved money on pickles and lettuce by letting their customers have it their way. Newspapers got smaller because one publisher decided to give readers what they wanted. How could your practice be transformed by replacing your assumptions with your client’s preferences?
Dare to serve your clients their way! They expect it, they deserve it, and they want it. If you don’t, somebody else will!
Bill Edmonds is an “Outside-Insider” (an Executive Coach and Consultant), who works with Financial Advisors to help them reach their full potential in the areas of organizational and personal development. He spent 24 years with Merrill Lynch until his retirement in 2014, where he led a $100+ million per year revenue wealth management business unit as a Director with the firm.
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