Skip navigation

Marketing for HNW

or Register to post new content in the forum

10 RepliesJump to last post

 

Comments

  • Allowed HTML tags: <em> <strong> <blockquote> <br> <p>

Plain text

  • No HTML tags allowed.
  • Web page addresses and e-mail addresses turn into links automatically.
  • Lines and paragraphs break automatically.
May 26, 2009 5:38 pm

Hello all – <?: prefix = o ns = "urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:office" />

 

I work for a large RIA (fee-only NAPFA firm)…(Please let me know if this should be in the RIA section). I am currently a salaried employee, but would love to begin bringing in new clients. However, our minimum accounts size is $1M (sometimes we will bring on $750k with high earnings potential). Typically we bring on new clients through other client referrals. To make the leap from Planner to Advisor, I need to start bringing on clients. This can happen by me waiting for the Advisor to pass smaller clients to me and then getting referrals, or I can dive in head first and do whatever it takes to bring in clients.

 

I have read a lot of post, including the 500 day war (which was very good). I would welcome any thoughts on what you see as the best way to bring in $750k+ clients. From the post I have read, it sounds like cold calling is most effective for $100k or less size accounts, however if this works well for larger accounts and people can verify that, then I am very open to it.

 

I appreciate all your insight.

 

Thanks.

May 26, 2009 6:06 pm

Maybe I’m reading this all wrong, but if the firm’s minimum account size is $1mm, then the firm has been doing something right.  Wouldn’t the existing partners/advisors be the one’s to look to for advice on bringin in new clients?  Honestly, very few people on this forum are  in the $750K+ minimum phase of their careers.

  Working in this space requires (IMHO) a bit different approach (generally speaking).  You can get many clients in the 750K-1.5mm area through traditional prospecting methods, but many of thsoe people, plus most above that amount, cannot be "had" through traditional prospecting (cold-calling, semianrs, etc.).  
May 26, 2009 6:18 pm

B24,

  I really appreciate your honesty. The advisor that I work for has around $100M under management with around 40 clients. Our process would be that he would give me smaller clients over time and then I would "grow" with them and they would refer more clients. This is how things normally happen, I wasnt sure if people on the board had other marketing experiences in pursuit of $750k - $1M+ clients.   Thanks agin.
May 26, 2009 6:41 pm

Never look a gift horse in the mouth!

May 28, 2009 1:31 am

Just call people with money.

  If you spend 12 hours a day, five days a week, calling only those who can meet your minimum you will open accounts for the min. The key is your list.   It's that simple!
May 29, 2009 10:05 pm

Unfortunately, business development is a very personal thing. What works for one advisor doesn't work for another. Anyone who tells you that they can teach you how to prospect is lying to you. There are certainly some good pointers that someone can give you, but ultimately - you'll need to figure it out for yourself.

Getting clients in the HNW space ($1mm-$10mm) is harder because it's more competitive, the stakes are higher and the clients tend to be more sophisticated, but the same principles apply as any other market - persistence, hard work and creativity. A big part of the job is earning peoples' trust.

In the UHNW space, it's very hard because of the extreme level of competition, but also because such people tend to only operate on referral and they're constantly prospected. Even the most high end brokerages don't compete terribly well compared to Northern Trust or Bessemer's personnel and services. The exception is when someone is able to make a unique value proposition (like access to an exclusive product or you're an amazing stock picker), where this CAN work when one is cold calling executives. There seems (in my experience) more of a focus on competence in this space. The personalities can also be quite challenging.

Jun 8, 2009 4:52 pm

I can say from current experience its doable- i’m the one doing marketing for a HNW Producer- I make 250 calls a day, and try to get at least one call scheduled … If they have under half a million, we don’t want it, but our target is 7 or 8 figures (but recessions always open your mind to new ‘opportunities’)

  just gotta bust ur chops .... I been doing this about 3 months and made about a good 50 contacts ... granted, they might take a yr to close some of them, but thats part of the game
Jun 8, 2009 5:03 pm

[quote=finale1]I can say from current experience its doable- i’m the one doing marketing for a HNW Producer- I make 250 calls a day, and try to get at least one call scheduled … If they have under half a million, we don’t want it, but our target is 7 or 8 figures (but recessions always open your mind to new ‘opportunities’)

  just gotta bust ur chops .... I been doing this about 3 months and made about a good 50 contacts ... granted, they might take a yr to close some of them, but thats part of the game[/quote]   12,500 calls and no new clients? Are you selling cat turds?
Jun 8, 2009 5:54 pm

its called building a pipeline dimwit …

  and the word "some" obviously has a different meaning then the word "all" .... go read a book or something...   4 million closed so far- 1 guy 3.5mm, another a little ovr 500k ....   and Alice, if you knew HNW people that you could close in less than 3 months from a straight cold call, you would either be rich, or a liar ... i presume the latter
Jun 9, 2009 2:14 am

[quote=finale1]its called building a pipeline dimwit …

  and the word "some" obviously has a different meaning then the word "all" .... go read a book or something...   4 million closed so far- 1 guy 3.5mm, another a little ovr 500k ....   and Alice, if you knew HNW people that you could close in less than 3 months from a straight cold call, you would either be rich, or a liar ... i presume the latter[/quote]
Great post!