How Financial Advisors Can Develop a New Service Offering

Are you looking to ramp up revenues for your business? Expanding your services can be an effective way to attract new clients to your advisory firm and generate more sales from your existing client base. If you’re ready to make a move, it helps to know how to develop a new service offering that’s both scalable and in-demand.

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How Expanding Services Benefits Advisors

You may be comfortable in your chosen niche, but there are some good reasons to consider broadening the scope of services you offer. Expanding services can enable you to:

• Attract new customers who may previously have been outside your reach
• Connect with younger generations of prospects who may be primed to begin working with an advisor
• Fill financial planning gaps for your current clients and increase retention rates
• Increase revenues sustainably at a scale that you’re comfortable with

Are there potential downsides to consider? Certainly, and perhaps the most significant is the risk of getting it wrong. Expanding your services could backfire if you’re putting something out there that no one wants.

That’s why it’s important to have a game plan to ensure that you’re making the right offer, at the right time, to the right people.

How to Develop a New Service Offering as a Financial Advisor

Creating a new service requires research and planning. These tips can help you shape a strategy that’s positioned for success.

Ask the Right Questions

Asking questions can offer insight into whether a new service offering is both necessary and desired. Here are some things to weigh as you develop your offering:

• What is a need your clients have right now that you’re not meeting? If you don’t know the answer to this question, consider asking your clients to complete an anonymous experience survey. It could yield some valuable feedback.
• Where does a new offering fit into your overall business model? Can you build on what you’re already doing with complementary services?
• What does the market say about the services you want to offer? Is there a demand for it? Is that demand likely to increase or decrease in the future?
• Does your current skillset or professional background allow you to make this offering available right away? Will you need to obtain new credentials or certifications first?
• What kind of financial investment will you need to make to bring this offering to market?
• Could you benefit from a strategic partnership or collaboration in developing this offer? If so, do you have any candidates in mind for such a partnership?
• Why do you want to expand your services beyond what you’re doing now, and what risks would doing so entail?

Asking these kinds of questions can help you evaluate whether it makes sense to proceed with your new offering.

Focus on Value

Here’s another question to ask yourself when developing a new offer: What value does it bring to the client?

Your clients are unlikely to respond positively to a pitch for a new service if they aren’t able to recognize what’s in it for them. So you have to ensure that you’re communicating value clearly in a way that’s tangible to the client.

Put yourself in your client’s shoes and imagine you’re hearing about this offering for the first time. Does the offering speak to you? Are you excited to learn more about it? Will it ease a pain point or provide a solution you’ve been searching for?

If you can’t say yes to all three questions, chances are your client won’t either. Putting value front and center can help you mold a more persuasive offering.

Set Realistic Goals

Goal setting is an important activity for financial advisors; without goals, it becomes more difficult to chart a clear course to success.

Ask yourself what your goals are for creating a new offering and be specific. For instance, instead of saying that you want to increase revenue, you might set a goal of increasing revenues by 10% annually with this new offering.

Setting goals around your offering allows you to establish some trackable metrics you can use to measure your progress. For example, your key performance indicators (KPIs) might center on new client acquisitions or increases in revenue per client.

Test and Tweak

Introducing a new offering typically involves some trial and error, and you’ll likely need to make some adjustments to find the right formula. Tracking your KPIs can offer insight into what’s working and where you may need to improve.

If you’re having trouble gaining traction with a new offer, ask yourself whether it truly makes sense for your business right now. It may be that the timing is wrong, and you need to shelve the idea for the time being.

And if you still believe it’s the right play, ask your clients for feedback. They may be able to point out issues with the offering that have landed in your blind spot.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

What’s the Best Way to Grow Your Advisory Business?

Advisors may pursue different paths to grow, which may include expanding their offerings, targeting a new niche or forming strategic partnerships. Central to these efforts is building relationships and providing value to clients. Without those things, it’s more difficult to build a thriving practice.

When Does It Make Sense for an Advisor to Develop a New Offering?

It could make sense to expand your services if you’ve identified a need that you’re equipped to fill and there’s demand for what you plan to offer. Market research can offer insight into current trends and what advisory clients are looking for that they’re not getting.

What Are the Risks of Expanding Your Service Offerings as an Advisor?

The biggest risk of developing a new offering is that you’ll spend time and/or money creating something that no one responds to. That’s why it’s important to lay a solid groundwork that begins with understanding what it is your clients need and what you can provide.

Bottom Line

Planning and research lie at the heart of how to develop a new service offering. If you’re unsure where to start, consider asking for help. A business development consultant can help you evaluate your idea and map out a plan for bringing your new offering to life.

Tips for Growing Your Advisory Business

• Once you’ve created a new service offering, you’ll need to do some marketing to bring attention to it. If you’d like to get more eyes on your business tomorrow, it could make sense to start working with an advisor marketing platform today. SmartAsset AMP (Advisor Marketing Platform) is a holistic marketing service financial advisors can use for client lead generation and automated marketing. Sign up for a free demo to explore how SmartAsset AMP can help you expand your practice’s marketing operation. Get started today.
• Part of developing a new service offering that’s designed to sell is knowing how to overcome objections. Consider what kind of hurdles you might encounter when trying to sell prospects or clients on your offering and formulate strategies for countering them.

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