Last year, my wife and I sat in on a group discussion at a business building seminar. There were about a dozen other business owners around the table from all types of industries. Event managers, business coaches, naturopaths, personal trainers and more.We were discussing how we could each improve the messaging and brand positioning of our business, and everyone was chiming in with their two cents worth. It was an interesting and spirited exchange of ideas.When it came to our turn, we introduced ourselves and shared that we are in the financial advisory industry."Oh gosh," said the woman next to us. "Well you're up against it aren't you?""Hmmm," sighed another. "That's one industry with a big reputation problem."The others nodded in agreement and looked at us sympathetically.My wife and I exchanged glances, surprised by how pervasive this negative attitude seemed to be.You see - while of course we are aware of the poor examples of this industry that are often seen in the media - we feel far removed from all that.In fact it would be fair to say that we feel prouder than ever to be in this business. That's because we see on a daily basis, the powerful and highly positive impact our team's work has on the lives of our clients."What you need to get across," ventured one of the people at our table, "is that you're different to these ones we read about in the paper, and that you can be trusted."OK. So there it is. If the question of trust is such a big 'elephant in the room' in the broader community, the best thing we can do is address it head on.But how do you communicate the concept of trust without sounding, well... cringeworthy.Back in the day, certain types of salespeople were famous for uttering the words, "Trust me". And if you heard that, you knew to run!
Fortunately, however, there is an indicator that demonstrates the high level of trust our clients place in us.And that's in the large number of family members, friends and colleagues they refer our way.In fact more than 90% of new clients who come to us do so as a direct recommendation by an existing client. This statistic speaks volumes we think. Having good financial advice is so critically important that you would only ever recommend a business to someone you cared about if you have faith in what they offer.In helping someone sort out their finances, define their goals, implement their personalised strategy and provide ongoing guidance, clients put a lot of trust in us.And we take this very seriously.In fact a longstanding client recently put his hand on my shoulder and said, "I don't know if you guys know how important you are to my wife and I. All of the big things we want to achieve - like retire comfortably and travel - have come because of how your team has helped us. It's been really nice to know we can trust in your advice and not worry, and just get on with enjoying this next big adventure in our lives."It's stories like this that drive us to do what we do.And we're constantly delighted to hear about the difference our team makes to the lives of the people we serve.Our business is growing each year, with more and more people coming through our doors and staying on as ongoing clients than ever before.And the fact that most of these are introduced to us through the recommendation of a current client tells us we are doing a lot of things right.We hope this has helped 'banish that elephant'. Thank you for reading and please do make contact with me if you would like to know more.