In the first of a regular series of articles focussing on soft skills, Peter Welch, head of sales and distribution at Bridgewater Equity Release, looks at something we are all guilty of taking for granted: the art of listening.
We all know the old sales skills cliché, ‘two ears and one mouth – to be used in those proportions’, but I wonder if that would truly be the case were advisers to listen to a recording of all their client meetings? I’m guessing, in most cases, not.
Customers seek advice from advisers and whether they choose to take it (and ultimately pay for it) is down not just to the quality of the advice but also the level of empathy and trust generated during the client meetings.
For many equity release customers this will be the only fee-based advice they will ever take in their lives so a degree of scepticism about the adviser may already exist, particularly if they also have family members present at each meeting. Demonstrating acute listening skills is therefore the fastest way to gain true empathy (and trust) in any relationship.
If the following aren’t part of an adviser’s modus operandi then I’m suggesting they should experiment at future meetings and in order to measure effectiveness pay attention to the way they feel the relationship is developing with their customers during the meetings:
* Advisers should have an enlightened self interest, which means that they enter the meeting with a mindset of total regard for the customer’s needs, leaving theirs outside the front door. We too often see, equity release advisers in particular, begin a meeting with a series of preconceptions (often unconsciously) about home reversion plans being inappropriate, for example. This is before they have even spoken to the client which is utterly baffling. The client’s needs, circumstances, attitude to risk, etc should point the direction of the advice provided, not the adviser’s own thoughts on product availability.
* It’s good for advisers to ask customers powerful questions they may find hard to answer. For example, ‘What will be different in your life when you’ve raised the money you’re looking for?’ We shouldn’t be surprised if there’s a long silence while customers think about answers to these types of questions – that’s a good sign. Advisers should always wait for the clients to speak first avoiding the temptation to break the uncomfortable silence.
* The adviser should summarise their understanding of what the customers are saying to check they really do have a grasp of the client’s thinking. This is also a truly great way of generating empathy advisers should never underestimate how powerful it is for a client to be ‘heard’.
* Advisers should never be afraid to tell clients what they’re feeling throughout the conversation. For example, if a client is looking like their unclear about anything then the adviser should certainly say, “I’m feeling a bit worried now that I haven’t explained that properly to you””. Always be prepared to go back over any areas which are not clear to the client
