Don't Sell a Book, Sell a Business

Many advisors who sell a financial services practice are really only selling a book of business, not an actual business. What is the difference between a 1X transaction and a 2X or better multiplied transaction? Well clearly one of the most important issues is the quality of the client relationships. That has been proven to be just as important as the quality of their assets. How loyal are the clients based on how they have been served to this point of the relationship? Have they simply bought investments, or are they bought-into a professional process? Metrics on empowerment, referrals, demographics and commonalities, commissions vs. fees and several other issues are key as well. 

Put Time on Your Side

The bottom line is it is essential that you get out-front and be well prepared to multiply the value of the asset and make the outcome as smooth and predictable as possible. Deploying a process demystifies the experience and ensures there is minimal opportunity leakage and that you don't squander your time.

There are More Sellers Than Buyers

As a seller, when you tighten up your business through organization and structure as well as essential best practices, you unlock hidden value in your business that differentiates you from all the others with similar aspirations. In 12 months or less you can execute a panoramic practice management process that a suitor will recognize as extremely valuable. Remember what a buyer wants; only pleasant surprises. They want the transition to be smooth, and the integration into their core business to be virtually effortless.

Many buyers in the past have acquired sketchy books thinking there was a vein of gold or all kinds of low hanging fruit just waiting to be uncovered. As a result, the buyer was fixated on the price of the acquisition rather than the quality of the asset resulting in an outcome that spiraled downward. With the benefit of hindsight came a lot of regret.

Dig Your Well Before You're Thirsty - Confucius

Remember, quality relationships last long after you paid for them. So get clarity on the issues that will impact your transaction and get organized with a plan and process. As a potential seller, the longer you wait and the less prepared you are, the less value you will get from your asset. Preparation will help you squeeze more juice out of the orange.

Continued Success!

Contributed by Duncan MacPherson

Take Action:

Maximize the value of your business! Check out the Pareto Systems 'The Multiplier Method' one-on-one consulting program!

The Pareto Systems Multiplier Method Program focuses on advisors who are considering buying or selling a book of business, and maximizing the enterprise value of the transaction from either end.

Visit our website to learn more: https://www.paretosystems.com/the-multiplier-method.html

Reaching your ideal clients and your targeted market is much more important than reaching raw numbers and hoping.

In this episode of the 5 Minute Fix, Duncan explains how to stay focused and narrowcast like a specialist rather than broadcast like a generalist. To watch more great videos by Duncan subscribe to the Pareto Systems YouTube channel: www.youtube.com/ParetoSystemsInc

We're so fixated on the next client that we drift into entropy with our client service model. The law of environment says that we have to consistently be mindful of the fact that we are products of our environment. If you hang out with people who are negative and cynical, you'll become a product of that environment. Surround yourselves with a team and clients who have an alignment of interests and a philosophical connection.

To learn more about establishing and maintaining a positive work environment check out the Pareto Systems ‘Business Evaluation Process.’ It’s a gap analysis that will ‘pop-the-hood’ on your business to uncover untapped opportunities and overlooked vulnerabilities and ensure your team is on the right track. Learn more here: www.paretosystems.com/business-evaluation-process

When it comes to relationships, the more familiar a relationship becomes, the more things can be taken for granted. Value gets trivialized. It works both ways. We can fall into that trap because our most deserving clients are often the least demanding, so we can sometimes take them for granted.

Maintain and enhance your client relationships to avoid falling victim to the Law of Familiarity, click here to learn more www.paretosystems.com/total-client-engagement

Professionalize and standardize your approach to shift from an organic to a scalable model.

In this episode of the Blue Square Method, An Attitude of Gratitude, Duncan discusses the importance of being grateful for the many things that you’ve accomplished, while still aspiring to achieve your ambitions.

For more information on showing your appreciation and gratitude check out the Pareto Systems Total Client Engagement process: www.paretosystems.com/total-client-engagement

We wish you and your families the best this holiday season.

Consistently attract and associate with clients who are philosophically aligned with you. When there's turbulence, you don't dread the number of your best clients on the call display because they're not calling to blame you. They're calling to ask you how you're doing. It's the unenlightened client that uses you as their lightning rod and I would suggest you respectfully and professionally disassociate. If somebody’s views and philosophy are not in sync with yours, it's going to hurt you more than it helps you.

Learn how to attract and maintain clients who buy into your philosophy and processes. Join me at Mastermind in Palm Springs, CA early next year where we discuss this and much more. For dates and more info, visit: www.paretosystems.com/mastermind

Clients should be loyal to a process not just to a person and performance

Stephen Covey, the legendary author of the book The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People, advised that we should always begin with the end in mind. It is for that reason we suggest that you apply a mindset of building a business with the intention of selling it for maximum value at some point in the future.

Your Business Should be Built to be Sold

Even if the thought of selling your business hasn't really crept into your mind, or is a distant vision for many years down the road, it's still a good idea to apply the philosophy of maximizing the equity value in your business on an ongoing basis.

This goes beyond just practice management in the traditional sense. Sure deploying best-practices creates a client experience that generates loyalty and refer-ability. But if you don't document those procedures you are still only trading your time for money. You have a job that ultimately generates an hourly income for you. Don't get me wrong, you can earn a tremendous living that way but you still want to keep an eye on the prize - maximizing the equity value of your business beyond just Trailing Twelve Months (TTM).

Beyond Trailing Twelve Months

The best business is one that earns you a living and builds your legacy. This dual-track stems from creating and deploying predictable, sustainable and duplicable procedures that are documented in a playbook and are consistently implemented. This creates the consistency that your clients crave that insulates them from competitive factors and other issues beyond your control. But the double-win is that when it eventually comes time to sell your business, the suitor realizes your clients are loyal to your process, not just to you and the performance you generate. Additionally, they realize that your procedures have not only created a durable business - he or she can also apply your procedures to their existing business. 1+1 really can actually equal 3.

When it comes to maximizing a business valuation, the buyer wants to ensure continuity through and beyond the acquisition process. When all of your processes are documented in your playbook, and you present a transitional process to professionally communicate with clients well in advance of the transition, predictability elevates. And this applies even if you plan to sell just a portion of your business through a right-sizing process.

The Rule of 3

Every action you do three or more times and that has three or more steps in the process, should be documented in your playbook. Get everything out of your head and the heads of your team members. The benefits of a playbook go beyond just consistency and continuity. The efforts compound over time creating momentum - regardless of who is deploying them. If a business is driven by maverick talent - talented people who operate daily out of their heads - the value is lower than a business driven by the procedures contained in a playbook. Remember, the faces on your team may change over time but the processes remain.

That's not to say that you will always remain on auto pilot after you create a playbook. The Law of Optimization suggests that every process can be refined over time. It's funny, when I ask an advisor "Why do you do things that way?" The answer is often the same: "That's the way we've always done it." They unconsciously drifted into a pattern and then arrived at a set-it-and-forget-it mode. Einstein was right when he defined insanity as being the repetition of an action over time and expecting a different outcome. This explains why many advisors who have been in the business for 15 years really have one year of experience 15 times. Sure they are making a living, but they aren't building a business that is valued for more than the industry average.

Let Pareto Systems help you create a playbook to harness and deploy the true value of best practices. The value of your business will increase and so too will the fulfillment you realize from it.

Continued Success!

Contributed by Duncan MacPherson

Scalable growth and client acquisition is based on alignment and your fit process – not overcoming objections.

In this episode of the Blue Square Method, The Art and Science of Scalable Growth, Duncan explains how your fit process and focus on stewardship moves clients through onboarding and to advocacy.

To take a deeper dive into the concepts Duncan discusses, check out the Blue Square Method, designed for busy professionals and their teams, who want to take their client relationships to the next level: www.paretosystems.com/blue-square

Are you trying to achieve an inflection point and a breakthrough? One of the things that contributes and fuels a breakthrough is the intellectual property you’ve built in your business. You and your team needs to consistently take all of your quality skills and intentions and document them. Professionalize, standardize and monetize so you can become a Franchise Ready Advisor.

To learn more about becoming a Franchise Ready Advisor visit our website at: www.paretosystems.com/franchise-ready