How can you get introduced to high-net-worth (HNW) individuals, and do your clients know what your ideal prospect looks like? Also, how do you gently reject a referred prospect who doesn’t fit into your target market? Tristan Hartey, Dip FA, BA (Hons), an 11-year MDRT member from Chester, England, UK, and Bill Cates, referral coach and founder of the Cates Academy for Relationship Marketing, discussed their tips for attracting these coveted referrals during an MDRT podcast. To hear the complete episode, go to mdrt.org/get-referred-up-to-HNW-clients.

Cates: Generally, people tend to refer laterally and down on the economic ladder. So, choosing who you ask makes a big difference. If you ask a C client, you’re likely to get a referral to a C or D prospect. Occasionally lightning strikes, and they refer you to someone who’s very wealthy, but you want to play the odds. So, ask A and B folks. I found that it’s an educational process to get referred up. People need to know who you serve the best and for whom your processes are geared toward. And notice I’m saying who you serve the best versus who you’re looking for.

Think in terms of what’s best for the prospect and the client. Explain that you designed processes to work best for these types of folks, and then follow up by saying “people such as yourself,” because you’re asking people who know people who already fit those parameters. Whether it’s assets, income, psychographics or demographics, be clear because, if you want to get people who fit, then you’ve got to be clear in teaching your clients. It’s a great way to plant the seed for referrals.

A lot of clients introduced me to folks they thought would benefit from my work. I knew I wasn’t the right advisor for everybody, but if you’re willing to talk to the referral, you don’t want to waste their time by having them drive to your office or you drive to their office. So, talk to them by phone or Zoom. After you teach them about who your processes are geared toward, they may self-qualify themselves out. Now, if you have a junior advisor who you can refer them to, that’s great because they’re still going to get helped but not by you. The big thing to do after that conversation is to call your client who referred the prospect, tell them, “I had a great conversation with your friend; he’s a very nice guy, but we discovered that the timing is not right for me to be working with him.” That’s the key phrase. You want your client to hear from you before they hear from their friend who may be a little disgruntled because you wouldn’t work with them.

Hartey: I like that expression — the timing isn’t right — because that’s a great way of not making the potential client feel that they’re inferior. One of the big things we do every year is review our process and look at who our ideal client is and add 10% or 20% each year to what our ideal client looks like. Then when we go about asking for referrals from our top 50, top 100 clients, we’ll put those numbers in the presentation to clients. We’ll say the clients we’re looking for have X amount in assets, this much in money, and that number goes up every year. Then the client gets the idea that this is what we’re looking for because those are the numbers we are using.

Cates: I think that’s great. You’re teaching them through the examples and the models that you use. That goes back to that idea of educating your clients to get referred up. One phrase I teach that will help in this area — and it’s planting the seed — is promote the possibility for introductions by saying to the client that you’re never too busy to see if you can be a resource for anybody they think would benefit from what we do. “See” is the qualifying word. If you’re brand new in this business or you need any kind of activity, take out the word “see” and say you’re never too busy to meet with, to talk to. But if you’re a little more selective, say you’re never too busy to “see” if you can be a resource. I’ve met many advisors over the years who will serve anyone, and I think that’s OK as long as that’s a strategic decision, not a default. People deserve to get served, and you might want to think about scaling your business and finding a junior advisor to help you with those folks.

What’s a memorable story about a HNW individual that went better than you initially thought it would?

Hartey: I had this client who was quite cagey. He came in and wouldn’t tell us anything about his figures, and he started off wanting to do a smaller style of investments than we would normally do. This was almost a case where I could have said, “Sorry, the timing isn’t right,” but this was during my earlier advising days and I was like, OK, we’ll just try it.

So, I got the figures together, we produced it and then at the end of the second meeting, he turns around and basically produced a brand-new file of how much he was worth. It was about 10 times more than the initial investment we were looking at doing, all because he liked the level of service. He had been to other advisors, and they turned him away because he arrived in the wrong type of car or didn’t look like he had money. He just wanted to be treated in a certain way.

So, it’s vitally important that if you’re going to qualify or refuse someone, do it in the right way. But if you are happy to give a little bit of time, sometimes it’s best not to judge a book by its cover. He was someone who’d been to three or four different places, which gave me the idea that maybe he had more than he was saying because you don’t shop around if you haven’t got a huge amount.

Cates: I had a situation with my advisor. We were playing golf, and he said to me, “Bill, I just want to let you know that I’m doing a lot of work with the ultra-wealthy.” I said, “That’s great, I’m happy for you. What’s ultra-wealthy to you?” He said $30 million, and he just got a client that had $40 million. I asked, “Where does that leave me?” He said, “Don’t worry, Bill. You’re always a client for me. We still work with folks, and I just wanted to let you know.” That’s where the business friendship allows you to do that. If you decide to move to a target market that the client isn’t in, you can be more transparent and let them know that they don’t have to worry. But if you’re not careful, people will get a little nervous. The last thing you want to say to a client is, “These are the folks we serve these days, and to be honest with you, they’re more successful than you.” It’s all in how you frame it for people. They’re either going to get nervous about not fitting in anymore, or they’ll understand that it’s just something else that you’re doing, and you wanted them to know about it, and maybe they can help you in that area too.

Hartey: We’ve had a few clients come to us and ask, “Have we got enough money to still be with you?” And the answer is of course, yes. It’s just explaining that we help a wide range of people with different problems. Let’s say they’re a retired client with half-a-million dollars. You like that client and want to keep looking after them. So, you still make them feel valuable, but also mention that we have expertise in people with $5 million, $10 million, $15 million, whatever it might be. It sort of gives them that balance, so that they feel that they’re still relevant and that you are going to continue giving them great service. You’ve made them feel comfortable, and you’re continuing that education, so you can get referred up rather than laterally or down.