The best way to future proof your brand and business is to double-down on your client relationships, to lock in customer loyalty, and transition your business to a relationship-mindset.
That’s the view of Australian consumer futurist Amanda Stevens, who spoke at the 2023 MDRT Annual Meeting in Nashville last month.
The annual event attracted around 4,800 attendees from around the world, and during her presentation, Stevens offered the audience a range of practical ideas and strategies on enhancing their client relationships.
She says a Japanese word ‘omotenashi’ sums up the opportunity. It means to be of service, to be of service without expecting anything in return, to look wholeheartedly after your guests.
Stevens says embracing Omotenashi has a boomerang effect and is the way to future proof your brand.
She says to bring this to life, you must start with curiosity and engage in a more curious way with your clients.
Stevens notes that when we ask more questions and “stay in a curiosity mindset” it gives a deeper sense of your client and their needs, and enables you to connect and to build commonality.
While technology is revolutionising how advisers are doing business, Stevens believes the future of the client experience “…exists at the intersection of high tech and high touch – that is where you create magic in your client relationships”.
She also pointed to milestone marketing, saying that celebrating and rewarding clients for their milestones such as birthdays and anniversaries, is one of the easiest ways to connect at a deeper level.
…Radical generosity… will have a boomerang effect on your business…
Advisers, she says, are privy to a lot of information about their clients, the type of information other sectors would love to have access to.
She suggests advisers celebrate their clients, live in their clients’ world, make a big deal of their successes and wins (and if they are doing a charity run, sponsor them).
“Radical generosity … will have a boomerang effect on your business,” she said.
Her final point was around ceremony. She told the audience that it’s their opportunity to create a sense of ceremony with clients.
“There are tens of thousands of people who can do exactly what you can do, but no one can do it the way you do, and no one can make your clients feel the way you are able to make them feel,” she said.
Stevens says advisers should be more curious, build commonality, customise the client experience, celebrate with clients, and find a sense of ceremony “…so your clients know this is an experience they literally can’t get from anyone else”.