Just starting Out
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I have been a business owner for 18 years and I am now looking into the possibility of being a financial advisor.
Will my experience as a former business owner help with prospecting?
Any input would be appreciated.
Not enough info here, should we just guess what kind of business you owned? If you were driving an ice cream truck for 18 years I think you'll have a tough time.I have been a business owner for 18 years and I am now looking into the possibility of being a financial advisor.
Will my experience as a former business owner help with prospecting?
Any input would be appreciated.
If nothing else, it will help you relate to prospects running similar businesses. It’ll give you something to talk about to break the ice and get to know their concerns and needs.
Ice cream truck. LOL
I had a chain of retail stores for years and just sold off my restaurant recently. The financial advisor bit interests me due to the high earnings potential and the lack of overhead. Another concern: With the current economic conditions and the potential for much worse, are people more willing to talk with an advisor or are they short circuiting?That’s kind what I figured. A few friends have been telling me I’m crazy getting into financial advising with the state of the economy, but I think a lot of people will be looking for some direction.
What I’m finding is that in the last downturn, 00-02, people flip flopped from one advisor to another. They then find their accts can go down just as well with the new advisor, so their inclined to stay put.
Clients may be looking for direction right now, but they are sure not going to some new guy in a strip mall. Seasoned advisors are holding their own right now and picking up new clients. I have talked to a number of new clients and they are being really picky who they are doing business with. UhOh be careful thinking that any sort of direction is what the clients are looking for as they are looking for good solid advice and not some product to buy.
CF,
That's a great point. My mentor (been in the business for years) has seen a HUGE stream of referrals coming in the past few months. Me, not so much (some, but not like him). I also have some friends at other firms that have seen a lot of referral business lately. So it's not really about your firm or location, it's more about time in the business, reputation, and trust.[quote=UhOhChongo]Ice cream truck. LOL
I had a chain of retail stores for years and just sold off my restaurant recently. The financial advisor bit interests me due to the high earnings potential and the lack of overhead. Another concern: With the current economic conditions and the potential for much worse, are people more willing to talk with an advisor or are they short circuiting? [/quote] Yeah but now is a good time to get into the ice cream thing too, I mean with the cold weather coming nobody would expect it, NOBODY!!! Think about it, like an ice cream truck for adults, pull up to the wirehouse with some Haggen Daz or some fancy new Ben and Jerry flavor these brokers and their clients would be buying the cream wares, everybody likes ice cream when their money is getting cut in half, I know I do! Also, low overhead in the ice cream truck, all you need is an old mail truck, a big magnetic sign, some external sound system, maybe a spinning cone, and a shitload of ice cream!Sounds tempting!! Also, have a bunch of half naked chicks dishing out the Cherry Garcia.
[quote=CashFlow]
Clients may be looking for direction right now, but they are sure not going to some new guy in a strip mall. Seasoned advisors are holding their own right now and picking up new clients. I have talked to a number of new clients and they are being really picky who they are doing business with. UhOh be careful thinking that any sort of direction is what the clients are looking for as they are looking for good solid advice and not some product to buy.
[/quote]Thanks for that tip. Believe me, I not expecting to get any high worth clients for a while. I have a ton of connections through CPAs, lawyers, insurance brokers, real estate agents, and many home owner’s associations, but I won’t be talking to them until I am up to speed(6-7 months?) or partner with a senior advisor. Most likely go out and pay my dues by talking to 100-150 random business owners each week to start.
As with setting up any business, I believe determination, drive, vision, and knowledge are the key to success.
One other question: Has anybody had much success with setting up at conventions?
Again, thanks for the tips everyone.
the knowledgebase you’ll need to grasp is vast. if your are going to appeal to high net worth folks or sophisticated investors, you’ll need around 5 years of busting your ass. every client in this environment has heard the story that you’re likely to tell them, 1000 times. not your fault, of course, it’s just that you can only embrace so much at a time. example- the 401(k) market: before you engage in an intelligent conversation w/ business owners about competing for their company sponsored ret. plan, you better know your stuff. as a prior business owner yourself, you certainly have a ‘leg up’, but don’t understimate the time it’ll take you to become a quality FA. in this business, and even moreso in this type of environment, you can ‘sell’ your way only so far.
re: conventions…have a few hundred chip clips and refridgerator magnets made up with your name and logo. they’ll go pretty fast. maybe bring a fish bowl and give away a free hot lunch. conventions, imo, are a total waste of time.
I wish I had put my money in Cherry Garcia instead of my portfolio, looking at the chart the ice cream is holding value better than most of anything I own.Sounds tempting!! Also, have a bunch of half naked chicks dishing out the Cherry Garcia.
Just passed the 7 today with an 83. Not bad considering one of my tires blew out and I had to run a mile to make the test on time. Crazy day.
I must say, the first and last 30 questions for each section were pretty straight forward. The middle questions took a lot of time.
I’m with Bondking on the conventions, and I learned it the hard and expensive way that buying a booth with an 8-foot table, waste basket, and one power outlet for $1200 is a complete waste of money.
I’ve found a better way: to attend the conventions and just walk the floor–don’t spend the money on a booth and wait for people to come to you. Walk around, visit the booths, shake a lot of hands, just meet people. A lot cheaper, and you’ll meet more people. I do this for the oil and gas industry conventions, and I tell everyone who asks that I go to learn about my best clients’ business, and what’s going on in the industry, as well as pick up investment ideas for my other clients. That works a lot better than setting up a booth and handing out a bunch of brochures nobody reads.