Everybody loves apple pie. Just look at that photo: don't you want a slice right now?

If you baked pies, selling would be simple. You’d pack your site and your marketing goodie bag with photos: plain crust, lattice crust, cream, meringue, a la mode. You’d tell an engaging story about how you came to sell these very special pies. And, you’d make sure your packaging reinforced the story.

You need to sell pie.

You may know the story of the adman who figured out how to sell twice as much shampoo: he added one word to the label. Lather. Rinse. Repeat.

Or when Alka-Seltzer changed their packaging: they simply removed the separator between the 2 tablets in the pouch (accompanied by a catchy new jingle). Bingo! Sales doubled.

It's arguably harder today. Apple multiplies their sales through continuous innovation: brand new products we didn't know we needed, followed by even better versions which bait us to trade up.

Your mother probably told you to “treat others the way you’d like to be treated.” But she got it just slightly wrong. The best advisors treat their clients the way the client wants to be treated.

Think about it. Each of your clients is an individual with distinct preferences for communicating, leading people and managing their business (not to mention their advisors).

No, you needn’t bend to every wind. But have you built in enough flexibility in your style and business model to meet the needs of your core clientele? Side benefit: as you adapt better with your clients they in turn want you around more often.

Remember Don Quixote? He was busy attacking windmills while imagining himself fighting giants. He believed he was achieving a grand and glorious vision as he ignored reality.

It’s a risk we all run when we’re trying to stake our territory in a fast moving, challenging economy. Instead, ask yourself some key questions.

Who am I competing against? Is it really competitor A, B or C? Or is doing nothing your real competition? Let’s face it. For lots of services, inertia is a powerful thing: financial advisors, accountants, actuaries, estate planners. Why should your client make a change? Maybe the real fight is getting them to know they must act.

Gen. Stanley McChrystal. BP Plc Chief Executive Officer Tony Hayward. They have sparked some spirited discussions with crisis communications and leadership experts. How could savvy, high-visibility pros go so wrong?

Clearly, they both would have benefitted from a little more aiming and a lot less firing. But it would be a shame if our only lesson from their stunning blunders is to be afraid to take a risk.

Professional advisors are by nature risk-averse. Most of us were trained analytically. We want predictable, accurate results most of the time. It’s what clients pay us for.

(more…)