Any good, long-standing business is served by a network of reliable and productive relationships. The stronger the relationships any firm has – be this with their clients, introducers, service providers, and staff – the more successful the business is likely to be. This is true across any market sector, but even more so in the modern intermediary marketplace.
There are, of course, several key relationships on which the foundations of any firm are built. For intermediary firms who gain clients principally through introducers, e.g. estate agents, there are relationships to nurtured. However, it is questionable whether all adviser firms have the right level of focus on the ongoing quality of this relationship with the introducer and/or the client. In many cases there is too much focus on new business coming through the rather than properly cultivating existing ones and getting the most out of the introducer relationship.
So, for the purpose of this article, let’s focus on ensuring that you get the most out of introducer/referral/ancillary relationships – providing you already have them in place. And if you don’t then the far bigger question is why not?
Back to the case in point, the first rule is to ask some hard questions regarding these relationships on a consistent basis. With that in mind, here are just three simple questions which could make a real difference to your business relationships.
Do you have full trust in your partners to manage your client’s individual requirements and enhance your overall proposition?
If not, then some serious answers need to be found as to why not. And let me also ask – when was the last time you asked yourself this question? This is something that should be considered and reviewed on a regular basis.
Have they ever not properly serviced the needs of any client you have passed onto them?
If the answer is no, then great. However, also consider how many times you have followed up with clients to ensure that they have received the service they deserved. Some issues may have gone under the radar without you knowing about it.
If yes, did you brush this off or did you dig deeper and question where the failings lie, and, if necessary, have they been rectified?
When was the last time you reviewed this relationship in any detail or is this simply running in the background on autopilot?
This could have become inefficient over time without you even realising it. Any business can easily fall into the trap of being involved in long-standing relationships with partners whose offering might have become stale or dated in comparison to new entrants or market disruptors. Which means that you could also be falling behind your competitors.
In conclusion, it’s more important than ever for a range of businesses to have processes or strategic relationships in place like The Moving Hub has with Knowledge Bank to fulfil a range of client’s needs and these will inevitably help cement relations, establish a bond of trust and lead to further business/ referrals/higher retention rates. However, and this is important to underline, this will only happen when these affiliations are implemented efficiently, effectively and competitively.
Asking simple but tough questions will ensure that you are maximising lead generation opportunities and/or revenue streams while better servicing the needs of your clients.
So why not start today?
Peter Joseph is CEO at The Moving Hub
