5 ways to find fun in improving your business

Businessman on a pedal go-cart

By AdviceBridge

This month we’re taking part in Humans Under Management (HUM).

Run by Andy Hart, a passionate and (self-confessed) opinionated financial expert, HUM promotes, highlights, and builds on the work that great financial advisers are doing to develop their behavioural advice practices.

Having a career where you get to change people’s lives for the better is one of the most rewarding things in life. And yet, when you’re caught up in the day-to-day grind of running your business, it isn’t always easy to remember how amazing your job is.

In keeping with the positive messages promoted by Andy Hart and other speakers and exhibitors of HUM, here are five ways to remind yourself and others just how awesome financial planning can be.

Acknowledge and extract value from your business

Extracting value from the expert advice you give should provide satisfaction from solving issues and improving a client’s position which comes in a variety of guises, but may include:

  • Trust – clients trust you because you support them and provide experience and knowledge they can count on by giving help and guidance whenever it’s needed
  • Peace of mind – clients can relax and feel confident about their financial situation because you have helped them understand more than they might otherwise
  • Forming relationships – although financial advice revolves around money, it’s more about people and helping them find achievable ways to meet their financial objectives and live their dream lifestyle, particularly in retirement

Spending more time on value-add activities, rather than administration tasks, will bring more fun to your role. And this is likely to lead to:

  • Sustainable business growth – once you are in the fortunate position of having a bank of happy clients, chances are your business is receiving valuable word-of-mouth referrals, so you don’t have to spend time or money promoting your service to attract new clients
  • Reliable income stream – by working to build a reliable income stream now you are investing in your future, whether you hand over the reins to someone else and retain a share of the profits or sell out once you are ready to retire.

This, in turn, will bring more enjoyment and satisfaction to your role.

While it’s nice to be reminded of the value of your service, let’s now take a closer look at those aspects you should focus on when assessing your business.

Address any issues, bottlenecks, or areas requiring improvement

At first sight, these may not seem fun or enjoyable things to do but imagine stepping into the shoes of your future self where your business is great and you’re really enjoying your work. Now look back at the tasks you need to undertake to get to that point. As you progress through your list and tick them off you will be happier in the knowledge that you are reaching your goal and enjoy the journey more.

So, if there are obvious areas in your business which could be improved, tackle these first.

For example:

Fix signs of dissatisfied or indifferent clients (turning them into advocates)

Resolve why clients are dissatisfied or indifferent and ensure that you rectify any immediate issues. Once you know you have appeased any unhappy clients, make sure the same problems can’t happen again.

Go a step further and look at your service proposition. Could you improve your service? Consider solutions such as more targeted communications specific to their interests, holding online or face-to-face events where they can hear about relevant topics whilst also seeing or hearing from more engaged clients.

Streamline and simplify your business processes

Confusing or cumbersome business processes can reduce productivity and affect staff morale.

Running your company effectively and efficiently hinges on having the right technology systems and processes to provide information quickly and accurately to your staff so they can better support your clients.

So, take a fresh look at your back-office systems and technology and see where you might be able to improve things.

The AdviceBridge platform is easy to implement within your business. It integrates seamlessly with existing software and significantly improves your business processes.

Whether you want to spend more time with your clients, make your business more cost-efficient, or automate your advice journey, the AdviceBridge platform is great for maximising profits. Get in touch to find out more or book a demo.

Clearly define your value proposition

Identify what differentiates your business from the one across town. Delivering exceptional customer service is great, but that’s expected – you need to look deeper.

Your value proposition needs to be clear, with no hype. And every potential client should be able to understand it instantly.

Whether it’s to do with sustainable investments, sports people, business owners, or doctors, if it’s of interest to you and you can clearly articulate how you add value in a particular area then there will be a greater connection.

Ideally, your value proposition should be concise and help potential clients make a decision.

Understand your ideal client profile

Hint: it isn’t simply “anyone with money to invest”.

Aligning your interests or values to your business focus will attract clients that fit this better and, in turn, provide more enjoyment from working with these people.

You may already segment your client base. If so, revisit your client segments and ensure that they are defined with clear criteria to help you deliver optimum service.

Take your time to understand your ideal client in more detail. This will increase the likelihood of meeting their needs since you can tailor your service to map on to their situation. And allow you to develop deeper engagement and mutually rewarding relationships.

Don’t forget, you have the right to be picky as you’re permitted to deal only with clients you like.

Make first impressions count for more

The first point of contact sets every client’s opinion of your business. Their initial experience extends into the ongoing service they can expect from you.

To set the right tone and meet the standards you wish to uphold, it is vital to have a documented end to end operational process in which roles and responsibilities are clearly defined.

This will also form the foundation for understanding what it costs to onboard clients and look after them. This knowledge can help you construct service agreements and implement a fee model.

Once you’ve onboarded a client, look after them with a well-defined and documented retention strategy.

While it may take some time to reassess and improve your service, enhancing your client experience will pay off in increased business and client referrals, which will create a more enjoyable experience for you.

Get in touch

If you want to find out how AdviceBridge can benefit your business and your clients, please get in touch. Email hello@advicebridge.com or call us on 020 3925 3850.