UHNW Prospect
Need some different viewpoints here…
One of my best clients introduced me to a friend who is retired and worth about $50 million. We had dinner and when I asked if I could be of any service to him, he stated that if I had any good investment ideas, I should definitely give him a call to discuss them. He said that he invests in all kinds of instruments and that he has three buckets… his “safe” bucket, an intermediate bucket, and his risky investments (he bought a LOT of Ford stock at $2).
My assumption is that being this wealthy, his “safe” money is taken care of… most likely all wrapped up in accordance with his estate plan. Again, this is an assumption, not factual knowledge.
My ultimate goal, obviously, is to handle his safe money, the estate plan, etc… However, I feel that he is positioning me to be a salesman (ie. coming to him with good idea after good idea) instead of functioning as an advisor to him. Additionally, I’m really not good at picking stocks and don’t like “risky” investments. I’m more conservative and value-oriented.
I’m not saying that just being a salesman to him is a bad thing… at that level of wealth any trade he makes would most likely be sizeable. But I don’t want to get started off on the wrong foot here. I don’t want to forever be pegged as an investment salesman. My goal is to become a trusted advisor, planning and managing a good portion of his money.
How would you proceed?
His “safe” money advisor doesn’t do stock trades or other transactionable business, this is why he is asking you to do it. You are already off on the wrong foot as he is talking to you about his play money. Of course you invited this by asking the “service” question. You should have asked him a UHNW question, like “What do you think of Obama’s proposed tax changes?” I don’t care if he is a Dem, he doesn’t like them. Follow up with “my firm and I help premier investors such as yourself keep more of their own money, I’ll give you a call next week to discuss a couple of ideas.”
I agree…
He is open to hear ideas, just change it from investment pitching to actual planning.Why not ask your prospect what they are expecting from you and then determine if they’ll be a good fit for what your expertise is in?
Forget that. This guy has been around the block and if he is worth $50Mil you can't d*ck around. He is offering you the chance to earn a piece of his business. Give him an idea that will build trust and a muni fits the bill.Why not ask your prospect what they are expecting from you and then determine if they’ll be a good fit for what your expertise is in?
I would go with the muni idea above, not that I have any clue what a guy with $50 million is thinking. … Give him your best ‘safe money’ ideas and try to position yourself as his No. 1 advisor. It sounds like that’s what you do for your regular prospects. You might earn his respect for being true to yourself and not falling all over yourself just to sell him some crazy growth idea. If you’re already having dinner with this guy, you might be able to get into his circle a bit and get some referrals or do business with some of his network.
This is a $50mm prospect and the best you can come up with is pitching him a muni? Wow. This is multi-generational wealth. Why not talk to him about estate preservation strategies? Maybe something like form a trust, fund an annuity with the trust as the owner, children as annuitants, grandchildren as beneficiaries. Skip that nasty estate tax issue for an entire generation. Keeps your money in your family. Get about 60 years of tax deferred growth.
Lets hear it guru ? What would you do ?
[quote=Sam Houston]This is a $50mm prospect and the best you can come up with is pitching him a muni? Wow.[/quote]
Maybe whip out the ICA guide?
Seriously, I’d love to hear what this guy is looking for – and what the UHNW are all about, just in case I doorknock one.
That's what I was thinking...he could at least propose some Growth Fund of America.This is a $50mm prospect and the best you can come up with is pitching him a muni? Wow.
CIB is all he needs.
Sorry, was editing the post with a solution as you guys were asking for an idea. Here it is off the top of my head.This is a $50mm prospect and the best you can come up with is pitching him a muni? Wow. This is multi-generational wealth. Why not talk to him about estate preservation strategies? Maybe something like form a trust, fund an annuity with the trust as the owner, children as annuitants, grandchildren as beneficiaries. Skip that nasty estate tax issue for an entire generation. Keeps your money in your family. Get about 60 years of tax deferred growth.
Damn...you beat me to the American Funds punch line. I thought it was pretty well served up though. As far as what the UHNW want, we transferred in $500k from a lady a couple of weeks ago worth about $20MM. She is trying us out specifically with actively traded stocks. I'm not a huge fan of it, but my partner handles it. I bring up to her what I do, safe money and protecting income streams, and now I have her and her husband coming to a retirement income planning dinner. Maybe I'll get to do $1MM into a VA, who knows. She said how much she liked her muni portfolio, so I don't need to go there...for now. All of their money is in their businesses, munis, equities, and cash. Other UHNW people have some real estate. But for the most part, for as much money as they have, their investments can be pretty simple.[quote=Sam Houston]This is a $50mm prospect and the best you can come up with is pitching him a muni? Wow.[/quote]
Maybe whip out the ICA guide?
Seriously, I’d love to hear what this guy is looking for – and what the UHNW are all about, just in case I doorknock one.
Sorry, was editing the post with a solution as you guys were asking for an idea. Here it is off the top of my head.[/quote] Sam, WTF. Empty your inbox.[quote=Sam Houston]This is a $50mm prospect and the best you can come up with is pitching him a muni? Wow. This is multi-generational wealth. Why not talk to him about estate preservation strategies? Maybe something like form a trust, fund an annuity with the trust as the owner, children as annuitants, grandchildren as beneficiaries. Skip that nasty estate tax issue for an entire generation. Keeps your money in your family. Get about 60 years of tax deferred growth.
Sorry, turns out I get a lot of PMs. Mostly death threats.
[quote=Sam Houston]This is a $50mm prospect and the best you can come up with is pitching him a muni? Wow. This is multi-generational wealth. Why not talk to him about estate preservation strategies? Maybe something like form a trust, fund an annuity with the trust as the owner, children as annuitants, grandchildren as beneficiaries. Skip that nasty estate tax issue for an entire generation. Keeps your money in your family. Get about 60 years of tax deferred growth.[/quote]
Okay, first of all I didn’t just have dinner with him, but with my client, his wife, the prospect and his wife. I couldn’t get into that type of conversation at dinner. This dinner is an annual thing I do for my clients when they come home from wintering in Florida - it’s not about business. So I had about 20 seconds to ask my “service” question to the prospect privately as we were walking out of the restaurant.
Again, this is an assumption, but I would figure that he had his lawyers draw up an estate plan long ago. There may not be a need there.
I’m more concerned about two weeks from now, when I call him to meet me for coffee and I present some ideas.
[quote=Sam Houston]His “safe” money advisor doesn’t do stock trades or other transactionable business, this is why he is asking you to do it. [/quote]
Highly unlikely. With that kind of money, I seriously doubt any advisor would deny this type of client a service they desired. And before you say he’s with some type of RIA/Fee-only/Managed Money advisors, I think (but am not certain) that he is with a big wire like SB or ML. So stocks transactions are available.
[quote=etj4588] [quote=Sam Houston]This is a $50mm prospect and the best you can come up with is pitching him a muni? Wow. This is multi-generational wealth. Why not talk to him about estate preservation strategies? Maybe something like form a trust, fund an annuity with the trust as the owner, children as annuitants, grandchildren as beneficiaries. Skip that nasty estate tax issue for an entire generation. Keeps your money in your family. Get about 60 years of tax deferred growth.[/quote]
Okay, first of all I didn’t just have dinner with him, but with my client, his wife, the prospect and his wife. I couldn’t get into that type of conversation at dinner. This dinner is an annual thing I do for my clients when they come home from wintering in Florida - it’s not about business. So I had about 20 seconds to ask my “service” question to the prospect privately as we were walking out of the restaurant.
Again, this is an assumption, but I would figure that he had his lawyers draw up an estate plan long ago. There may not be a need there.
I’m more concerned about two weeks from now, when I call him to meet me for coffee and I present some ideas.
[/quote] This is the idea for the second conversation. First conversation was three sentences, "taxes?, I can help, I will call." Easily accomplished in 20 seconds.
Let me phrase it a different way. You don't call your lawyer for a $10 parking ticket. You only call him for important stuff.[quote=Sam Houston]His “safe” money advisor doesn’t do stock trades or other transactionable business, this is why he is asking you to do it. [/quote]
Highly unlikely. With that kind of money, I seriously doubt any advisor would deny this type of client a service they desired. And before you say he’s with some type of RIA/Fee-only/Managed Money advisors, I think (but am not certain) that he is with a big wire like SB or ML. So stocks transactions are available.
Forget that. This guy has been around the block and if he is worth $50Mil you can't d*ck around. He is offering you the chance to earn a piece of his business. Give him an idea that will build trust and a muni fits the bill. [/quote] So why not do the counter-intuitive thing and not throw up product? How do you know a muni fits the bill? What about a CRT? Or Life Insurance? Or real estate? Or investing in YOUR business? You have no clue what he wants or needs, so why not ask him what he wants or needs?[quote=deekay]Why not ask your prospect what they are expecting from you and then determine if they’ll be a good fit for what your expertise is in?
“Again, this is an assumption, but I would figure that he had his lawyers draw up an estate plan long ago. There may not be a need there.”
It doesn't make sense to make this or any other assumption. Why not ask him questions? As for this specific assumption, it might be correct. An estate plan drawn up long ago, however, may very well not satisfactory for today. Also, lawyers put together legal documents. We handle the funding. I know that when someone tells me that there attorney has taken care of their estate planning, there are absolutely other things that should be done.He may own Muni’s. That doesn’t mean that he should own them.
It seems to me that all assumptions are unreasonable when the alternative to making assumptions is to simply ask questions. My advice would be to ask some questions and then lead with whatever will maximize the chance of making him a client.Look, if you keep up this kind of second-guessing of yourself, this prospect will turn into a china-egg and NOTHING will get done.
#1 - Get an idea of his expectations and make sure that you know what YOUR expectations are and that there is a fit. #2 - Complete a fact-finder. Never assume ANYTHING with ANYBODY. If he balks, you need to explain that for you to do your best work, you need to know the kind of planning that has already been done. I think it's funny how a lot of investment guys get dollar signs in their eyes when they hear about other people's money. The relationship is the same, the advice is the same. If you're ready to drool over this guy, then you're not ready for a relationship with a guy with an 8-figure net worth. His money doesn't matter unless he sees that you can provide value and that you see that he will fit in the practice you are trying to build. Be ready to say that his expectations aren't a fit if they really aren't a fit for you and the kind of work that you do.Muni bonds are terrible… He would be better of in an EIA or possibly a lot of whole life…(I switched to italics to indicate the sarcasm)
Ice I agree... if you have $50MM networth, you probably have $2-3MM in some type of liquid form... Muni's are great way to go..I understand the whole get a spot at the table theory, but if you wanted to be Martha Stewarts personal chef, you wouldn’t start with a PB&J. Tease him with a bigger concept. If he doesn’t like it ask why. In twenty seconds, he has already discussed his three buckets of money. He wants to talk about himself.
munis are a safe bet, but if you wanna get his attention, show him a convertible bond. this guy is intrested in ~special situation ideas~ so bring him something unique and timely. and ask him to place a sizable trade. have conviction in your idea.
do good for him and there will be perks...lots of perks. go get em!!![quote=Sam Houston]Sorry, turns out I get a lot of PMs. Mostly death threats.[/quote]
How fitting…
Ask him if he would like to see what your $100,000,000+ clients are doing.
[quote=iceco1d]
Let me preface this by saying that I'm not being a d*** here.
But, as I look on this page, I see posts from 3 insurance heavy guys, that PROBABLY do most of their business with regular people (i.e. "I can make a decent buck selling insurance...almost everyone I meet is a qualified prospect). Not saying you don't have experience with UHNW people, and not saying you do. But PLEASE illustrate an example where approaching this guy with a couple of good, solid, muni bonds is going to be a problem. Please also illustrate an example for me, where a guy with $50MM in net worth (lets assume, he's not on death's doorstep - since he was at this dinner, and socializing pretty nicely, and lets assume that at least a few $MM of this net worth, is liquid and investable), should NOT have exposure to high quality municipal bonds? I hear what you guys are saying about planning - the approach with the muni is STRICTLY to get him to place an order, and get you "at the table" with his other advisors and professionals. After you get him to place 1 trade, go hog-wild with anything else you want to try to do. Get a seat at the table first. A muni is probably his best shot @ doing it. Bondguy, chime in whenever you are ready. I'm sure you've landed various HNW, and even maybe UHNW prospects, by getting a seat at their table by selling them a good local muni first...correct me if I'm wrong.[/quote] It's not a question of whether approaching him with a Muni Bond is a bad idea or not. This isn't just a cold call. There's at least a small relationship which means that it is very likely that the guy will meet face to face. I just think that asking the guy, "What's your biggest financial concern?" or something else that gets him talking is a better way to go than to pitch a product. He may say, "I'd love to generate some more tax free income." He may say, "I have more money than I can ever spend. I just want to figure out the best way to pass my wealth onto my kids." If it's the former, munis can be great for him and pitching a good bond would be a great way to get a seat at the table. If it's the latter, what good are munis? What's the point of generating tax free income for someone who doesn't need income? What would he do with the tax free income? Reinvest it in more Muni's? What's the end result if he invests $5,000,000 in munis and gets an average of 5% over the rest of his lifetime, which unfortunately, only lasts 5 years? It grows to $6,380,000. After Federal and State estate taxes (assuming50% federal and 16% State), his beneficiaries will get $2,170,000. When Bond Guy is cold calling, he is just looking for prospects/clients. I think that takes a very different approach than when someone is saying "I want this specific person as a client." When you want a specific person as a client, I think that it would be common sense to ask that person what it is that they want to accomplish. This is especially true when the rep has the ability to get face to face with him on a favorable basis. Ice, let me ask you a question. What is the advantage of pitching a muni bond instead of actually talking to the guy to see what makes him tick? (My practice does not focus on UHNW. There is no net worth focus in my practice. It focuses strictly on occupations. Attorneys, CPAs and business owners are the only people that I call and will go see without a referral.)At least I have not been banned 17 times and counting, have a competing site, and still post here more than my own site. Did I miss anything Bobby?[quote=Sam Houston]Sorry, turns out I get a lot of PMs. Mostly death threats.[/quote]
How fitting…
Ice, he didn't invite that meeting to take place. We'd all be broke if we were waiting for that invitation. The OP should ask for that kind of meeting. Since they just had dinner together, there is a very good chance that he would get the meeting. If the guy balks at the meeting and says, "I'm just looking for the occasional good investment idea", absolutely use munis to get in the door.
I guess my point is that we don't have to guess at a way to get in the door when there may be a sign out front that says, "Welcome. Please come in."A second meeting will take place. He meets with his retired buddies 3 times a week for coffee in their hometown, so I told him that I was vetting a few ideas in light of the current market conditions and that what I could do was call him to meet for coffee to discuss - he said “absolutely”. So I’m not worried about getting a second meeting.
The reason I’m even asking about this is because eight years ago I inherited a HNW doctor who thought of me as an investment salesman. It took me until last month to finally become his one and only advisor by ACATing everything to me. I don’t want this to take a similar course in terms of time, so I’d like to be proactive about shifting his paradigm about me from the get-go.
The guy is 70 years old and I don’t think he’s going to hand over everything to me after working with others for many years. Someone said that he is giving me the opportunity to earn a piece of his business - I think this is correct. However, having the “fact finding” conversation may be a turn-off to him. Don’t you think this type of guy has been approached like that at least 100 times over the years?
I hate to say it, but after the giddiness of getting in with this guy wore off, I felt like Charlie Sheen to his Gordon Gekko… and that’s not where or who I want to be.
At least I have not been banned 17 times and counting, have a competing site, and still post here more than my own site. Did I miss anything Bobby?[/quote] A competing site.... That is a bit of an overstatement.. that site sucks.. no one is ever there the last post is always from 3 months ago..terrible site..[quote=HAAIC] [quote=Sam Houston]Sorry, turns out I get a lot of PMs. Mostly death threats.[/quote]
How fitting…
[quote=iceco1d]
Let me preface this by saying that I'm not being a d*** here.
[/quote] Whenever someone begins a sentence like this, inevitably he winds up being a d1ck.[quote=iceco1d]I see your point. I suppose I took this…
[quote=etj4588] when I asked if I could be of any service to him, he stated that if I had any good investment ideas, I should definitely give him a call to discuss them. [/quote] as, "I'm just looking for blah blah blah" and NOT necessarily a new wealth management plan. Maybe I'm being too much of a puss with my interpretation... [/quote] He may mean "investment idea". My experience is that in a lot of cases "investment idea" doesn't mean squat. It means, "I am not sure what I want to do with my money, but I have no way to verbalize exactly what I want. Therefore, I'll say I want an 'investment idea.'" And FWIW, I don't have a minimum to work with someone. However, I have many clients who are HNW. They just happen to have most or all of their wealth tied up in their business. Munis may be the way to go. So may an EIA or WL or real estate or penny stocks. Ultimately I'll find out what he wants and sell it to him. You'll try to sell him and have no clue if he wants it."However, having the "fact finding" conversation may be a turn-off to him. Don't you think this type of guy has been approached like that at least 100 times over the years?"
I don't know. Maybe having investments pitched towards him without asking questions will be a turn-off. It doesn't have to be a full in-depth fact-finder. If you simply ask him about what he wants to accomplish, it will tell you the direction that he wants to take.
[quote=anonymous]
“However, having the “fact finding” conversation may be a turn-off to him. Don’t you think this type of guy has been approached like that at least 100 times over the years?”
I don't know. Maybe having investments pitched towards him without asking questions will be a turn-off. It doesn't have to be a full in-depth fact-finder. If you simply ask him about what he wants to accomplish, it will tell you the direction that he wants to take.
[/quote]I get that... but he's the one that told me to call him with an idea.
So… call with an idea.
Just be sure that you can back up the suitability of the idea with proper fact-finding.[quote=etj4588] [quote=anonymous]
"However, having the "fact finding" conversation may be a turn-off to him. Don't you think this type of guy has been approached like that at least 100 times over the years?"
I don't know. Maybe having investments pitched towards him without asking questions will be a turn-off. It doesn't have to be a full in-depth fact-finder. If you simply ask him about what he wants to accomplish, it will tell you the direction that he wants to take.
[/quote]I get that... but he's the one that told me to call him with an idea.
[/quote] Yes, but you can't possibly have a good idea for him without knowing what he wants to accomplish. If he doesn't want to meet, he doesn't want to meet, but you have no idea if he wants to meet or not because you have not asked him. "Call me with an idea." is not equivalent to "Only call me with ideas. I don't want to meet.". Phone call: You: It was nice meeting you the other night. I do believe that I have some ideas that may be of great interest to you. First, though, I want to find out a little bit of what exactly you had in mind. Do you have time to grab a cup of coffee this week or is your schedule a little freer next week? Him: Blah, blah, blah You: Great. I'll see you on Thursday. Either the guy is going to meet with you or not. If he won't, it's more than likely that when he said to call him with ideas, he was blowing smoke up your ass.
[quote=anonymous]
Either the guy is going to meet with you or not. If he won't, it's more than likely that when he said to call him with ideas, he was blowing smoke up your ass.[/quote] As I said earlier, I'm not concerned with getting the second sit-down. I'll get it. After thinking about his for a while, I feel as though I may have to begin with this prospect by coming up with some good ideas to get him comfortable with me. Meet with him a few times, grow the account, and then start bringing up some estate planning techniques like purchaseing life Insurance in an ILIT to pay estate taxes... and then see where that conversation goes. Timetable should be about six months or so. Thoughts?[quote=etj4588][quote=anonymous]
Either the guy is going to meet with you or not. If he won't, it's more than likely that when he said to call him with ideas, he was blowing smoke up your ass.[/quote] As I said earlier, I'm not concerned with getting the second sit-down. I'll get it. After thinking about his for a while, I feel as though I may have to begin with this prospect by coming up with some good ideas to get him comfortable with me. Meet with him a few times, grow the account, and then start bringing up some estate planning techniques like purchaseing life Insurance in an ILIT to pay estate taxes... and then see where that conversation goes. Timetable should be about six months or so. Thoughts? [/quote] Stop thinking and start asking. You are playing games in your mind when you should be asking him questions about what he wants. The timetable shouldn't be 6 months. It should be closer to 6 minutes. Call him. Meet with him. Find out what he wants. Sell it to him. If you can help him accomplish whatever it is that he wants to accomplish, he'll be comfortable with you. Since he's already met you, if he agrees to a sit down, it means that he's already comfortable. I just don't get the thought process of guessing what he wants when you have the ability to ask him.I did ask him. Conversation went like this…
Him: If you come up with some good investment ideas, don't be afraid to pick up the phone and call me. Me: What types of things are you looking for? Him: I invest in everything. Thats when he went into his spiel about the three buckets (with emphasis on the riskier stuff).You asked a very different question, or at least, he answered a very different question.
You asked him about what types of investments he wants. I'm suggesting that you ask him about what he wants to accomplish.
His answer about investing in everything gets you nowhere. An answer to what he is trying to accomplish gets you to exactly where you need to be.
[quote=etj4588][quote=anonymous]
Either the guy is going to meet with you or not. If he won't, it's more than likely that when he said to call him with ideas, he was blowing smoke up your ass.[/quote]
As I said earlier, I'm not concerned with getting the second sit-down. I'll get it. After thinking about his for a while, I feel as though I may have to begin with this prospect by coming up with some good ideas to get him comfortable with me. Meet with him a few times, grow the account, and then start bringing up some estate planning techniques like purchaseing life Insurance in an ILIT to pay estate taxes... and then see where that conversation goes. Timetable should be about six months or so. Thoughts? [/quote] You have to make sure that you are not getting too confident with yourself. Confidence is good, but the guy's got $50 million. If you don't think he has 15 guys calling him per week, or a hundred other guys that have had dinner with him and tried getting business from him you're crazy. When you say 6 months, is that when you expect to have the 2nd sit down, or when you think you'll have built the relationship up enough to where he'll sign the ILIT paperwork? It just sounds to me that if a guy with $50 mil tells me to "Call me if you have any good ideas," and "I invest in everything", that it was an easily crafted way of blowing you off. Since only you were there, you are the only one here that understands the context of the conversation, but its probably a conversation he's had (As well as an answer he's probably given) like 1,000 times by now. Good luck though.[quote=3rdyrp2]
You have to make sure that you are not getting too confident with yourself. Confidence is good, but the guy's got $50 million. If you don't think he has 15 guys calling him per week, or a hundred other guys that have had dinner with him and tried getting business from him you're crazy. When you say 6 months, is that when you expect to have the 2nd sit down, or when you think you'll have built the relationship up enough to where he'll sign the ILIT paperwork? It just sounds to me that if a guy with $50 mil tells me to "Call me if you have any good ideas," and "I invest in everything", that it was an easily crafted way of blowing you off. Since only you were there, you are the only one here that understands the context of the conversation, but its probably a conversation he's had (As well as an answer he's probably given) like 1,000 times by now. Good luck though.[/quote] Yeah, I get what you are saying, but this guy and my client are very close, and I doubt he would just blow me off like that. I've been doing this long enough to know when someone is being polite and when someone is serious... and he was serious. No, the six month time-frame would be for talking about the ILIT.Why the heiL wold you sell a million dollar va to someone with 20mm? are you retarded?
[quote=snaggletooth][quote=buyandhold] [quote=Sam Houston]This is a $50mm prospect and the best you can come up with is pitching him a muni? Wow.[/quote]
Maybe whip out the ICA guide?
Seriously, I’d love to hear what this guy is looking for – and what the UHNW are all about, just in case I doorknock one.
[/quote]
i have 2 uhnw clients and if i ever tried to sell then an eia they would leave immediately. obviously some of the people here have absolutely no clue what rich people want.
they want something they can’t get anywhere else. a muni is stupid - they’ve got other advisors selling them munis and even though every brokerage tells their reps they have exclusive munis - thats bs.
if you sell a single product you are now a salesperson. the rich want a private asset manager; private bank; private equity; etc. they don’t want some b/s insurance product or muni bond or fund.
you need to find an investment that really is exclusive. maybe a hedge fund that is otherwise closed to new investors or that you can get them into with 1mm even though the normal minimum is 10mm. better yet, have your own proprietary product/sma/uma/etc that they cannot get anywhere but from you.
that will get business - not 99% of the S**T ideas on this post.
[quote=deekay][quote=iceco1d]I see your point. I suppose I took this…
don’t bother with the ilit. do you seriously think they haven’t heard that one before?
an ilit will SCREAM you’re a salesmen and product pusher and you’ll never get the real money. find a way to make 0.5% on 30mm or so of the dough and you’ll make way more money and get way more referrals and build much more value in your business than you’ll ever make selling a big ins policy.
[quote=etj4588][quote=anonymous]
You know what's stupid? You not being able to use proper puncuation.
"Find a way to make .5% on $30mm..." doesn't scream salesman to you? It sure as hell does to me. How do you propose "adding value" by charging that .5%? Hedge fund of funds? Some SMA? Playing wetnurse to some spoiled-ass nephew who's waiting for the patriarch/matriarch to die?
You (and all of us for that matter) have no idea what the client wants or needs. OP hasn't asked questions that would lead us to a proper recommendation. Maybe private equity is appropriate. Maybe an ILIT is. Maybe an EIA or muni or SMA is. Who knows? Until OP has this discussion, all this noise is just that - noise.[quote=iceco1d]
Wealthy people buy munis. I don't know how else to say it. [/quote] They do, but almost every firm shops the street. Inventory is sh*t because everyone has access to the same munis. He already told me he buys munis, so how am I going to differentiate myself by offering him what his current advisor is offering him? Is he going to give me the business out of pity or charity? Brandnewadvisor has some good points about exclusivity and things they can't get elsewhere. I learned from my client last week that this guy was a major investor in a private placement deal a few years ago. High risk venture. So, I know he gets intrigued with exclusive offers. I'm meeting with the guy next week, btw.Jim Prospect, I know you wanted me to call you with an idea, so I've been thinking, what can I call you with that would peak your interest and get a relationship started. I thought and I thought and I racked my brain until finally I came to the conclusion, that's not what I do or how I operate Jim. What I offer that is different from everyone other Joe on the street trying to sell you something, is a relationship based on trust and on service. My value is getting to know you and understanding your situation, reviewing what you have and making recommendations that will complement your current portfolio. Now Jim I can call you up and tell you about an investment I use and tell you how terrific it is, but it might not be right for your situation. Jim others may tell you this but this is what I've built my practice on and the only way you will know for sure, is if we do business together. Why don't we get together, I'll buy you lunch and we can discuss what you're looking for and what I do for my clients.
Sometimes blunt honesty works extremely well.Wow, that brought a tear to my eye.
(BTW, I think you meant pique.)[quote=Borker Boy]Wow, that brought a tear to my eye.
(BTW, I think you meant pique.)[/quote] You are correct and thanks for pointing it out. It's hard to be grammatically correct when you are writing a mission statement. I mean memo.[quote=jkl1v1n6]
Jim Prospect, I know you wanted me to call you with an idea, so I've been thinking, what can I call you with that would peak your interest and get a relationship started. I thought and I thought and I racked my brain until finally I came to the conclusion, that's not what I do or how I operate Jim. What I offer that is different from everyone other Joe on the street trying to sell you something, is a relationship based on trust and on service. My value is getting to know you and understanding your situation, reviewing what you have and making recommendations that will complement your current portfolio. Now Jim I can call you up and tell you about an investment I use and tell you how terrific it is, but it might not be right for your situation. Jim others may tell you this but this is what I've built my practice on and the only way you will know for sure, is if we do business together. Why don't we get together, I'll buy you lunch and we can discuss what you're looking for and what I do for my clients. [/quote]
Hey thanks John Advisor for being honest with me. I really appreciate what you do and how you do it. But I'm 70 years old John. And I have a 40-year relationship with my current advisors. In short John, I don't need you. I was hoping to build a relationship with you through testing the waters with a few decent ideas, but I understand that's not what you do. Thanks for calling John. Click.I'm sorry Jim you misunderstand me. I never said I wanted to takeover your entire account and replace all of your prior relationships. I'd just like to sit down and visit with you so I can better understand what you want to accomplish and you can see how I work. How can I offer you a decent idea that is appropriate for you if I have no idea what you currently have or what you are looking for? That's why I think we should get together for lunch next week.
John, I’m a simple guy. Grew up on a farm, got lucky and built a good business. Worked hard for 40 years. If you haven’t figured it out yet, I want to make money. Plain and simple. Show me how you can make me some money.
Well in that case Jim, I think GE is a good stock to own right now, oh you already have some, how about caterpillar, got some of that too, john deere is a good stock, you’ve got that already also, McDonalds, own it, Coke, jeesh that one also, Wal-mart, boy you own a lot already. How about some municipal bonds, good tax free income, you already have a million in them. Jim this is why I think it makes sense to sit down to visit, how can I possibly show you how to make money if I have no clue as to what you currently own. I can throw ideas at you left and right but why would you want your portfolio constructed in such a random way. Jim you built a great business and put a lot of work into it, you’re too smart of a guy to risk all of your hard work with a portfolio of investments put together by buying random ideas presented to you by various advisors. No harm in just sitting down to eat and talk, how’s Monday work in your calendar? Booked up on Monday, well how about Tuesday?
"You've got advisors for making you money, correct, UHNWP? My job is to help you spend your money without ever running out while passing along the biggest net estate possible to who and what is important to you. That's how I will add value to your life."John, I’m a simple guy. Grew up on a farm, got lucky and built a good business. Worked hard for 40 years. If you haven’t figured it out yet, I want to make money. Plain and simple. Show me how you can make me some money.
"You've got advisors for making you money, correct, UHNWP? My job is to help you spend your money without ever running out while passing along the biggest net estate possible to who and what is important to you. That's how I will add value to your life."[/quote] Out of curiosity, how does an annuity accomplish this?[quote=etj4588]John, I’m a simple guy. Grew up on a farm, got lucky and built a good business. Worked hard for 40 years. If you haven’t figured it out yet, I want to make money. Plain and simple. Show me how you can make me some money.
"You've got advisors for making you money, correct, UHNWP? My job is to help you spend your money without ever running out while passing along the biggest net estate possible to who and what is important to you. That's how I will add value to your life."[/quote] Out of curiosity, how does an annuity accomplish this?[/quote] Who said anything about an annuity?[quote=deekay][quote=etj4588]John, I’m a simple guy. Grew up on a farm, got lucky and built a good business. Worked hard for 40 years. If you haven’t figured it out yet, I want to make money. Plain and simple. Show me how you can make me some money.
"You've got advisors for making you money, correct, UHNWP? My job is to help you spend your money without ever running out while passing along the biggest net estate possible to who and what is important to you. That's how I will add value to your life."[/quote] Out of curiosity, how does an annuity accomplish this?[/quote] Who said anything about an annuity?[/quote] You did. Or you help people budget. One or the other.[quote=Sam Houston][quote=deekay][quote=etj4588]John, I’m a simple guy. Grew up on a farm, got lucky and built a good business. Worked hard for 40 years. If you haven’t figured it out yet, I want to make money. Plain and simple. Show me how you can make me some money.
Sam,
I'm sorry, but you'll never figure it out based on what deekay wrote. I know what he's talking about, but I'll let deekay share it if he so chooses. Nothing to do with annuities or "budgeting".[quote=Ominous]Sam,
I'm sorry, but you'll never figure it out based on what deekay wrote. I know what he's talking about, but I'll let deekay share it if he so chooses. Nothing to do with annuities or "budgeting". [/quote] I didn't just fall off the broker truck. I'm well aware of what he is talking about. The post wasn't made to get deekay to share anything. Thanks for your concern.[quote=Sam Houston][quote=Ominous]Sam,
I'm sorry, but you'll never figure it out based on what deekay wrote. I know what he's talking about, but I'll let deekay share it if he so chooses. Nothing to do with annuities or "budgeting". [/quote] I didn't just fall off the broker truck. I'm well aware of what he is talking about. The post wasn't made to get deekay to share anything. Thanks for your concern.[/quote] Just curious, what do you think I'm referring to? I'll waive my consultation fee if you guess correctly.You will waive a fee that I am not going to pay? How generous. The meaningful part of my last post was the next to last sentence.
No problem. Anything I can do to help the simple people out.
Out of where? Or did you mean “help out the simple people”?
Exactly. Thanks for the English lesson, professor.
No problem. Anything I can do to help out the simple people.
Ok, so we’re done with the slap-fight.
What about my practice are you "well aware of"? I'm curious to find out what you think you know. So far you're a big oh-fer.My clients like protection, promises, and guarantees. So I sell fixed and variable annuities, life, and disability income insurance.
Let's start here.[quote=Sam Houston]My clients like protection, promises, and guarantees. So I sell fixed and variable annuities, life, and disability income insurance.
Let's start here.[/quote] Sure. They're the backbone for my practice. Once we've got those in place, we move forward to other savings and growth vehicles. Fixed and Variable Annuities have their place, but they're not all we use. We use funds, SMAs, and many of my clients own businesses and investment real estate. I'm still not sure what you're getting at, Sam.[quote=etj4588]Need some different viewpoints here…
How would you proceed?
[/quote]
[quote=Ominous]Sam,
I'm sorry, but you'll never figure it out based on what deekay wrote. I know what he's talking about, but I'll let deekay share it if he so chooses. Nothing to do with annuities or "budgeting". [/quote] What the hell are you guys talking about? How do you not outlive your money and pass on the largest estate amount without budgeting or utilizing annuities or insurance products of some sort?Agreed on building the relationship with the prospect, but the relationship with my current client couldn't be stronger.Keep building the relationship. I would use soft touches on the UHNW prospect, but, would also really deepen the relationship with your existing client (the friend). He may be the key to winning over the prospect.
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