Mahler’s Advice to Advisors: Listen Better

Six years hosting a radio talk show on financial planning taught top advisor Carl Mahler some important lessons about client care. The first was how to listen.

"Buckle up, shut up and let them talk. They want you to listen to them," was part of the sage advice Mahler offered his peers Tuesday during his 42 Years in the Trenches and Still Learning presentation at the Raymond James Financial Services (RJFS) National Conference in Las Vegas.

Mahler, a medic for six years during the Vietnam conflict who now heads the Pinnacle Group, a financial planning firm in Midlothian, Va., is a true pioneer in the financial services industry, having entered the fledgling business in 1969.

"Things have changed a little," he said with a laugh. "All the information in our industry was in a secret vault on Wall Street. Now, the public has it all."

But perhaps the biggest change, and challenge, for advisors is creating a differentiation strategy to separate themselves from the crowd. "A recent study group at RJFS found that today everyone is saying the same thing: What and how we're saying it isn't working. So, we need a differentiator to make people see us differently," he explained.

Coaching has been invaluable to Mahler in his quest to separate himself from the competition. He has gained valuable client-care lessons from numerous coaching firms, a course he strongly endorses for other advisors. "I've learned a great deal from coaching," he said. "It's a great resource and will make you a better player. Also, the Raymond James culture fosters a give-and-share attitude and the firm has great resources. Use them."

Mahler's fundamental strategy is five-fold:

1. Create a simple, elegant practice.
2. Act as the client's personal CFO.
3. Segment your clients.
4. Use a WOW! Factor approach. It's a differentiator.
5. Systematize your practice. Clients should know what to expect.

Mahler also learned that the most successful advisors spend 60 percent of their time in front of clients. The average is 10 percent. "I know I spend way too much time with emails and in the office, and not where I should be, with clients," he conceded.

That has led to an epiphany of sorts for Mahler. "Clients want more from us than ever before. They want someone they can entrust their assets to and who understands them," he told the audience. "But you can't be everything to everyone, so we have to work with select people and grow our business qualitatively. Our clients have to be the focus of our lives when we're with them." L