The world of financial sales is dreaded for its competitive nature and long sales cycles. It’s one of those fields where your clients tend not to be super versed in what it is you are helping them to achieve; this means managing client expectations can be a pain in the butt.

Especially when some people think they can hand you $30,000 and magically become a millionaire overnight.

Well, fret not.

Like every other career, financial sales doesn’t have to be a total nightmare. It comes down to mastering a handful of skills that can ultimately define the trajectory of your career and whether you’ll end up with a list of disgruntled clients, or folks who trust you as an outstanding advisor. 

Here are 3 skills to learn before venturing into financial sales (the last one is the definition of a game changer)👇

Strong, Personal Relationships Are The Way to Go

Newsflash: It’s called ‘Financial Advisor’. Not ‘That one dude who sells me financial products’. That means your job is to advise, to guide. No one is letting you guide them with their money unless you’ve built a solid relationship with them, wherein they can see that you have their best interest at heart. 

If you’ve got that part figured out but still find that you’re struggling, take some time to work on your online presence. Anyone can do it these days and it’s one of the surest ways to attract new business. Also, be sure to incorporate CRMs into maintaining your relationships with your clients.

Review Your Pipeline Objectively

If you spent the whole day combing through your CRM, didn’t close a sale, but feel exhausted, chances are a change is in order. Start rating your potential deals with scorecards and take no prisoners when you come across deals that don’t look promising. 

Pipeline clutter is a sales killer. Think about it: what’s the point in having a huge pipeline if you aren’t closing? Take a long, hard look at your pipeline to better determine the probability of closing each deal. We suggest using a CRM that has custom fields and allows you this kind of flexibility.

Things to look out for: 

• Deal timing: A timeline for closing and implementation. 

• Budget: Are there any constraints you need to be aware of? Does it need to be spent in this financial year?

• The relevance of your contact: Are you even speaking to the decision maker?

Have You Created a Structured Sales Process?

This might sound self-explanatory (and it kinda is) but you’d be surprised how many sellers overlook the power of having a structured sales process. Not only does it ‘increase efficiency through refinement and economies of experience’ (according to Donald Wangunyu, CEO, Fourfront Management Division of Standard Investment Bank, but it provides excellent guides for new reps coming along. 

Even better, having a structured sales process allows for differentiation within the market, meaning your company wins big even in cases that don’t involve closing a sale. 

Sales Q&A

Any tips for a nice guy starting out in financial sales?

Read more here.

It’s Time For That Dream Sales Job…💼

Looking for a new job opportunity in Sales? Search for the latest and greatest jobs here.

Looking to hire someone with great Sales experience? Post your job on The Sales Jam Job Board, here.