Business Growth

There are 3 distinct barriers every adviser must manage in their career.  Each of them is a defining point which can see the end of the advisory career….but Barrier 3 is where most founders flounder. Barrier 1 is simply getting enough new business and clients to earn a living and survive the startup phase as […]

The difference between a good (but not spectacular) professional and a truly magnificent performer is the ability to succinctly articulate what makes them special. This is often referred to as having a “Unique Selling Proposition”, or USP.  While the concept has its detractors there is no doubt in my mind that in professional services those […]

As many advice businesses reach maturity it is common to consider whether they should “buy to grow”.  Should they buy another practice, or more commonly, should just buy a book of business from another practice. The typical reasons suggested for wanting to grow through acquisition are: Get new clients to “cross-sell” to Increase business turnover […]

Just about every professional says they want to be growing their business….they want fresh ideas; the business satisfaction of solving new problems for new people; they want to do something NEW. When you ask whether they want new business or whether they want new clients, there is usually a delicate pause….followed by “BOTH Please“. Are you sure that’s what […]

In times of great change, as we are currently facing, there is a prevailing thought amongst most business owners or managers that they are responsible for making the necessary internal changes to deal with all those external changes.  Apart from the risk to the sanity and health of anyone running a practice in trying to […]