This is a fundamental question because at the core of every successful business is the need for clients to make decisions to work with us and buy our product or service. That said – decisions are difficult and getting more difficult every day. The chief culprit of this in western civilization is...

It’s only a matter of time before commission based investment products cease to exist. In October of 2009, the Association of British Insurers called on the European Commission to deliver a framework for removing remuneration bias as well as other changes in the way retail investment products are sold....

"People will find a thousand ingenious ways to withhold cooperation from a process that they sincerely think is unnecessary or wrongheaded" – John P. Kotter In Leading Change, Kotter outlines eight necessary steps to effective change. This article deals with the first of these. We’ve all...

After training over 150 business teams in the U.S. and Canada, I know that advisors struggle with consistent appointment scheduling. One week their calendar is full, the next week, it’s empty. Why? Because when advisors have a full week, there’s no time to get on the phone to schedule more ...

In forming relationships with prospects, do you lack assertiveness?  Do you constantly seek approval?  Do you lack the ability to close a sale?  These symptoms point to a costly form of call reluctance that may well be the Achilles’ heel of the sales industry. Jon has been in sales for nearly 12...

Excerpt from The Appointment Scheduler, Ch. 7, by Gina Pellegrini One way to reduce the unpredictability of appointment scheduling is to use our scripts, at least in the beginning.  Whether your marketing assistant is an absolute beginner or a seasoned pro, telephoning techniques are always helpful.  The...

Don’t be afraid to let go and grow! Do you manage your practice — or are you a control freak, always trying to arrange, contain and maneuver people and events? Do you trust your employees or are you guilty of second-guessing and overriding their efforts? If you’re afraid to let go of some...

Call reluctance springs from three sources:  personality predispositions, hereditary influences, and exposure to others with call reluctance.  Find out how to recognize this insidious obstacle to success and how to overcome it. “Today, I’ll prospect.” Mark drives to the office, feeling...

Are you working your client base efficiently — or do you cherry pick? By cherry pick, I mean this: do you glance over the names in your client files and call only the people you think will do business? Are you calling them because of a hunch, a preconceived notion or past history? If that’s the...

Appointment scheduling is one of the most important parts of your business. Without a regular stream of quality appointments, you end up with flat sales and unimpressive revenues. In my nearly twenty years as a consultant, I’ve come across common scheduling mistakes that cost advisors time and money....