Article list

Everything from Tony Vidler - Adviser to the Advisers

Good? Fast? or Cheap? What sort of advice is it going to be?

From Tony Vidler - Adviser to the Advisers

A few years ago a university in New Zealand conducted a study to find out where consumers were turning to for financial advice. At the time they found that the number one source of financial advice for most respondents was “newspapers and media”. For 29% of the population that was their “go to” source for […]

06 Mar 2019

More referrals are created by repetition

From Tony Vidler - Adviser to the Advisers

Referrals remain the most powerful marketing for professionals despite the plethora of advertising and marketing tactics we have available today. The “transfer of trust” which is created by positive endorsement and personalised introduction or recommendation results in the highest likelihood of a prospective client choosing to do business with you. Referrals are gold and we […]

13 Feb 2019

Your FREE service is a barrier to getting the right business

From Tony Vidler - Adviser to the Advisers

Most professionals at some point offer complimentary initial meetings or consultations with clients as a “free service”. It simply isn’t true, and that in itself prevents the right sort of clients coming your way. The fundamental reason why this just doesn’t cut it with consumers is because they don’t believe it. Nothing worthwhile is “free”. […]

25 Jan 2019

How to find your Niche

From Tony Vidler - Adviser to the Advisers

Knowing and working exclusively in your niche is nirvana for most professionals. Your niche is that absolute sweet spot where what you are fabulous at overlaps with what you love doing, and it is something that other people value and will pay you for. It is not a simple thing to define…and many professionals fall into the trap of doing what all […]

18 Jan 2019

Why settle for average?

From Tony Vidler - Adviser to the Advisers

Advisers frequently settle for being average, and it is definitely not because they want to be average, but because they don’t really know what it takes to elevate their performance exponentially. They often ask how one professional can be so much more successful than they are and assume that there is some magic at work. […]

13 Dec 2018

The art of giving suitable advice

From Tony Vidler - Adviser to the Advisers

The most challenging area of financial advice which is subject to perpetual testing is the question of “suitability”. WHY was a particular piece of advice appropriate for a particular client? What factors were considered, or even discarded, that led to a particular recommendation as being the right advice? It is an area that holds the […]

28 Nov 2018

Three questions you must answer to define your Uniqueness

From Tony Vidler - Adviser to the Advisers

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 […]

25 Oct 2018

Complicated products have owners manuals, why don’t ours?

From Tony Vidler - Adviser to the Advisers

Let’s face it: our products are complicated as far as clients and prospects are concerned. The funny thing is, nearly all of the products we buy are pretty complicated these days. Even though we men folk tend to ignore them to begin with, most of the complicated products come with explanations about how they work […]

02 Oct 2018

Re-think what you THINK you know about your customers

From Tony Vidler - Adviser to the Advisers

I think that it is time to re-think what advisers think they know about their customers. Insurance is sold, it isn’t bought, right? People don’t value advice, right? Really? If you haven’t had a look at the excellent “World Insurance Report 2016” by Capgemini then you should, as it will probably make you re-think a few industry […]

17 Aug 2018

The 3 barriers to adviser business success (and one can be deadly)

From Tony Vidler - Adviser to the Advisers

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 […]

03 Aug 2018