Too many advisers/planners miss great opportunities to build their business because their definition of a “professional connection” is too limited.

Stick with me for a few minutes and I’ll explain why.

Upsells and cross-sells to existing clients are the easiest way to increase a business’ turnover. After that, it’s referrals and recommendations from existing clients. And, in third place, it’s introductions from professional connections.

So far, so good.

The problem, however, is how advisers/planners define “professional connection”. In my experience, most don’t go any deeper than simply wanting to work with accountants and/or solicitors. This creates two problems.

Problem 1: Treating all accountants and solicitors the same

Let’s keep this simple; not all accountants are the same and not all solicitors are the same. Treating them like they are (as I see many advisers/planners do) makes it harder to form meaningful and mutually beneficial relationships.

Let’s take our colleagues in the legal profession where there are many specialist areas (17 according to ChatGPT), including:

• Wills, trusts and probate
• Commercial
• Family.

I don’t need to list all 17 to make my point that not all solicitors are the same. That means each:

• Can introduce you to a different type of client
• Needs communications from you which are relevant to their specialism
• Must be approached differently, based on their own motivations for forming a relationship with an adviser/planner.

The same is true with accountants. Some will specialise in working with smaller businesses, others offer services such as audit and insolvency, while some work with private clients.

Again, the same three bullet points above apply.

Problem 2: Limiting your definition of “professional connection” to only accountants and solicitors

Almost every adviser/planner I speak with about professional connections limits themselves to solicitors and accountants.

I’m not saying advisers/planners shouldn’t look to develop these relationships.

However, I believe that, if they widened their definition, they might find a more receptive audience  that hasn’t heard the same pitch from countless advisers/planners before.

So, who else should also be included in my widened definition?

Let’s look at an example of an adviser/planner who wants to work with business owners.

We all know these are busy people who often outsource certain key tasks. For example, here at Yardstick, HR, IT, Payroll, VAT, and accountancy are among the things we outsource.

It’s these types of people whom advisers/planners should bring into their definition of a “professional connection” and target for introductions.

Off the top of my head, that list could include:

• IT support
• Ops directors
• Finance directors
• Marketing directors
• Non-exec directors
• Mentors and coaches.

All these people and organisations will work with several businesses at a time, often forming deep and long-lasting relationships with their clients. It makes them the perfect introducer.

Yet, in my experience, they are targeted by only a tiny proportion of advisers/planners.

Consider these two things if you’re struggling with professional connections

If, like many advisers/planners, you’re struggling to develop relationships with accountants and solicitors, try one or both of the things we’ve discussed in this week’s blog.

Either get more specific in your targeting of accountants and solicitors or target a different audience completely.

Whether you agree or disagree, I’d love to hear your feedback on this week’s blog.

Email phil@theyardstickagency.co.uk or call me on 07785 284429 to share your thoughts.