Have you ever wondered why it’s difficult to attract successful business owners to your practice? After decades spent working with both advisors and owners, we’ve found that advisors who want to represent owners make two fundamental mistakes:

1. They are focused on making a sale of a product or traditional service (e.g., life insurance to fund a buy-out) rather than on listening and understanding an owner’s needs.
2. They fail to understand that owners don’t buy services because they like the services or even the person selling them. Owners buy services to solve a business problem or seize an opportunity.

If you agree, the question is: What’s the better way for a financial / insurance advisor or CPA or attorney to approach owners?

The answer is obvious: Demonstrate an understanding of the owner’s problems and concerns, then solve them!

Less obvious is how professional advisors demonstrate that understanding and resolve an owner’s business concerns or help them seize an opportunity.

Most advisors can’t do either, and that’s great! Once you know how to uncover an owner’s concerns and have the tools you need to deliver solutions, you can attract and gain successful owners as clients without competition from their current advisors.

Uncovering an Owner’s Concerns

For years BEI-trained advisors have used a short assessment that accurately identifies and prioritizes—for both owner and advisor—an owner’s concerns and needs.

Want to learn more about BEI’s assessment resources? Set up a meeting with us!

Addressing an Owner’s Concerns

Only after owners communicate their business needs and concerns can you recommend actions to address them.

For example, Owner A’s assessment may indicate that she is most concerned about motivating and retaining key employees but not so concerned with business continuity planning. That information tells you where you are needed and where to start.

BEI has created 30-plus recommendations to address the owner concerns identified in the owner assessment. These recommendations describe how and when a course of action is appropriate and the steps you take to create and implement it. Recommendations typically include the use of one or more of your profession’s tools or products.

Two Mistakes. One Solution.

Two fundamental mistakes and two proven tools to help you avoid them: an owner needs assessment and a set of recommendations to address those needs. One practice differentiator—knowing how to address owners’ most pressing concerns—and one source for training and tools: BEI’s program for Owner-Based Planning Advisors.

To learn more about BEI’s Owner-Based Planning program and the upcoming training schedule, follow the link below.

https://exitplanning.com/learn

Business owners are a rare breed. In founding their businesses, they buck the trend of working for someone. They think differently, act differently, and succeed differently from most people. This means that when it comes to planning for a successful future, they also plan differently. They typically don’t want off-the-shelf advice that every other advisor offers them. They want advisors who are different like them, and who can present creative and tailored ideas that speak directly to their needs. Being different can be a competitive advantage for advisors, but what are some of the ways they can successfully differentiate themselves? That’s the topic we’ll be looking at today.

Identify the pain on the owner’s terms

Business owners can be proud people. After all, many of them either built their businesses from the ground up or are continuing a legacy that’s close to their hearts. Because they’ve often shouldered the burden of being everything to everyone, many owners either cannot or will not admit when they have problems that might be bigger than them. Sometimes, owners deny the problems they have.

Advisors must be able to identify an owner’s unique pain on the owner’s terms. Sometimes, advisors can identify an owner’s pain based on their expertise and objectiveness. But a trap that advisors sometimes fall into is telling the owner what their problem is. Rarely do owners want to be told what to do about something, especially something as important to them as their businesses. It’s often not in their nature to take orders, even from other experts. This is an opportunity for advisors to show how they differentiate themselves.

Rather than telling owners what their problem is, advisors should invite owners to tell them what their problem is. The best way to do this is to know which questions to ask, know how to vividly show owners their pain points, and then offer a solution to the problem.

For example, an advisor may know that an owner wants to retire in five years and sell the business to liquidate the nest egg, but that the business isn’t worth enough to support the owner’s lifestyle. Instead of telling the owner, “You can’t really do what you want,” the advisor might ask, “How much do you expect to get from your business, and how did you come to that number?” These kinds of questions prompt owners to think deeply about their assumptions. It also leads them to the answers advisors already know. The key is that the business owner comes to the conclusion and chooses to act, rather than being pressured to act by an outside force. This can differentiate the advisor and makes the advisor more amenable to the business owner.

BEI is the foremost expert at showing advisors how to identify an owner’s pain points on the owner’s terms, which is a great way to differentiate themselves. We provide questions and materials that let advisors drill into what keeps owners awake at night. Our tools and strategies lay out the best ways for advisors to lead business owners to important conclusions about their futures without telling those owners what to do. These skills are great ways for advisors to show owners how they’re different in the best way possible, leading to deeper conversations and relationships.

Vividly show owners their pain points and then offer solutions

The questions that advisors ask allow them to gather the information they need to vividly show owners their pain points. It’s one thing to talk about pain points, only to let them escape into the ether once the advisor and owner conclude the consultation. It’s another to show owners where their pain lies and then offer to solve that pain. Again, the key for advisors is to lead owners to the conclusion, not force the conclusion upon them.

BEI offers advisors assessments that show owners their pain in vivid detail based on what the owner tells the advisor. This flips the script for most owners: They aren’t having a solution offered for a problem they may not think they have. Instead, they get to see what they themselves have said concerns them about their futures. Once owners see their pain in a place other than inside their own brain, the first question they often ask is, “Well, how can I fix that?”

This is where it’s the advisor’s time to shine, especially when they can access BEI tools and strategies. Advisors can offer the tailored solutions owners want at the owner’s request through BEI’s planning software. For problems outside of the advisor’s expertise, BEI gives advisors access to experts from other fields who can solve the problem and build referral networks in the process.

Stay in front of them with useful content

Sometimes, getting advice can feel transactional to business owners. Advisors who can stay in front of owners with useful and relevant content deepen their relationships with those owners and differentiate themselves in the process. But advisors tend to get busy, and hiring a dedicated marketing team can be too costly or simply the wrong fit. How can advisors stay in front of owners under these confines?

I talked with a client business owner yesterday who contacted my partner in charge of the account. He told me one of the reasons he’s decided to start planning is from reading [BEI’s] newsletters!

Takeaways

• Successful business owners want tailored solutions because each situation is unique.
• Advisors must know how to identify the owner’s pain on their terms to offer different solutions, which can differentiate them in turn.
• Once they’ve identified the pain, advisors must know how to show owners their pain, offer/find solutions, and stay in front of those owners to ease the pain.
• BEI has tools and strategies that make advisors stand out to business owners.

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As we celebrate Women’s History Month, it’s a perfect opportunity to spotlight the lasting contributions of women in the financial sector! While navigating through the intricacies of the financial industry, women have not only shattered glass ceilings but have also introduced innovative approaches and perspectives that have enriched the industry. 

Throughout this post, we’ll highlight two entrepreneurs making a lasting impact on the business world. Join us as we explore the emotional complexities of Exit Planning with the host of Charis Your Life® Podcast and Fulfillment & Life Transition Coach, Charis Santillie, CFLC, CFT, and Dr. Allie Taylor, Founder of ClearWater Insights!

Emotional Intelligence in Exit Planning: Insights from Charis Santillie

For business owners and their advisors alike, business planning requires both financial and emotional intelligence, combining economic strategy with personal resilience, strength, and empathy. Charis Santillie’s poignant narrative on our podcast “Why We Plan” sheds light on the intricate dance of emotions business owners navigate as they contemplate and execute their exit strategies. Santillie, with her rich background in entrepreneurship and coaching, underscores the critical role of emotional intelligence in this process.

Understanding the Emotional Maze

Santillie’s insights from the recent Why We Plan podcast episode,The Emotional Maze of Exit Planning with Charis Santillie, CFLC, CFT resonate deeply with our mission at BEI. Her personal journey, marked by her family’s challenging exit experience, has fueled her passion for assisting entrepreneurs through their transitions. Her approach, deeply rooted in neuroscience, emphasizes the necessity of recognizing and managing fear—a prevalent yet often unacknowledged emotion during the exit planning phase.

The Role of Advisors

Santillie expertly highlights the indispensable role of advisors in navigating the emotional aspects of Exit Planning. Advisors, equipped with empathy and an understanding of the psychological dimensions of exits, can significantly influence the outcomes of these transitions. By integrating emotional intelligence into their practices, advisors can better support their clients through the complexities of letting go and moving forward.

Inside the Castle: A Dive Into the Owner’s Inner World with Allie Taylor

During a recent webinar hosted by BEI, Taylor delved deep into the psyche of business leaders, exploring how emotional intelligence and a thorough comprehension of one’s own motivations can drastically influence the success of an exit strategy.

Her approach, which builds on her foundational work presented at the BEI National Conference, offers a fresh perspective on how advisors can better serve their clients by integrating psychological awareness into their practices. Taylor’s presentation underscored the importance of advisors recognizing several complex challenges owners face when considering an exit. For more on the many psychological forces impacting owners and their exits, check our recent blog: Navigating Psychological Forces in Business Exits: Insights for Professional Advisors.

https://exitplanning.com/webinars/?wchannelid=sw5zip1zi8&wmediaid=mhthkb9rv9

The Bottom Line

Successful Exit Planning transcends financial calculations to include the deep emotional dynamic between an owner and their business. As BEI continues to empower the next generation of advisors and business professionals, we encourage each and every member of our BEI Network to consider the emotional side of Exit Planning. BEI is committed to empowering advisors across the country to become the indispensable asset to their clients, schedule a call with us today to learn more about our intuitive platform!

As we celebrate Women’s History Month, it’s a perfect opportunity to spotlight the lasting contributions of women in the financial sector! While navigating through the intricacies of the financial industry, women have not only shattered glass ceilings but have also introduced innovative approaches and perspectives that have enriched the industry. 

Throughout this post, we’ll highlight two entrepreneurs making a lasting impact on the business world. Join us as we explore the emotional complexities of Exit Planning with the host of Charis Your Life® Podcast and Fulfillment & Life Transition Coach, Charis Santillie, CFLC, CFT, and Dr. Allie Taylor, Founder of ClearWater Insights!

Emotional Intelligence in Exit Planning: Insights from Charis Santillie

For business owners and their advisors alike, business planning requires both financial and emotional intelligence, combining economic strategy with personal resilience, strength, and empathy. Charis Santillie’s poignant narrative on our podcast “Why We Plan” sheds light on the intricate dance of emotions business owners navigate as they contemplate and execute their exit strategies. Santillie, with her rich background in entrepreneurship and coaching, underscores the critical role of emotional intelligence in this process.

Understanding the Emotional Maze

Santillie’s insights from the recent Why We Plan podcast episode,The Emotional Maze of Exit Planning with Charis Santillie, CFLC, CFT resonate deeply with our mission at BEI. Her personal journey, marked by her family’s challenging exit experience, has fueled her passion for assisting entrepreneurs through their transitions. Her approach, deeply rooted in neuroscience, emphasizes the necessity of recognizing and managing fear—a prevalent yet often unacknowledged emotion during the exit planning phase.

The Role of Advisors

Santillie expertly highlights the indispensable role of advisors in navigating the emotional aspects of Exit Planning. Advisors, equipped with empathy and an understanding of the psychological dimensions of exits, can significantly influence the outcomes of these transitions. By integrating emotional intelligence into their practices, advisors can better support their clients through the complexities of letting go and moving forward.

Inside the Castle: A Dive Into the Owner’s Inner World with Allie Taylor

During a recent webinar hosted by BEI, Taylor delved deep into the psyche of business leaders, exploring how emotional intelligence and a thorough comprehension of one’s own motivations can drastically influence the success of an exit strategy.

Her approach, which builds on her foundational work presented at the BEI National Conference, offers a fresh perspective on how advisors can better serve their clients by integrating psychological awareness into their practices. Taylor’s presentation underscored the importance of advisors recognizing several complex challenges owners face when considering an exit. For more on the many psychological forces impacting owners and their exits, check our recent blog: Navigating Psychological Forces in Business Exits: Insights for Professional Advisors.

https://exitplanning.com/webinars/?wchannelid=sw5zip1zi8&wmediaid=mhthkb9rv9

The Bottom Line

Successful Exit Planning transcends financial calculations to include the deep emotional dynamic between an owner and their business. As BEI continues to empower the next generation of advisors and business professionals, we encourage each and every member of our BEI Network to consider the emotional side of Exit Planning. BEI is committed to empowering advisors across the country to become the indispensable asset to their clients, schedule a call with us today to learn more about our intuitive platform!

It’s hardly news that that the most attractive market for your financial and insurance services and products are successful business owners. Yet, it can be difficult to attract and engage these owners as clients because they are laser-focused on their businesses. These owners are often deeply immersed in the day-to-day operations, strategic planning, and decision-making processes of their businesses. To effectively engage owners, financial and insurance advisors must approach owners through methods that recognize the specific needs and constraints of successful business owners.

In order to engage owners in planning, you must use an approach with owners that aligns what you have to offer with what owners want: To grow and protect their businesses. Owners are far more willing to meet and engage with you if you can demonstrate how you can help them. Is that something you are doing effectively today?

It might be obvious that a process called “Owner-Based Planning” would do precisely that: Help owners do what they want to do by growing and protecting cash flow and business value. What isn’t so obvious is that financial and insurance advisors trained in Owner-Based Planning more effectively engage more business owners clients than those who are not. But to work with more owners, you need to change or alter your approach to attracting and engaging them.

In this blog, we’ll cover how utilizing Owner-Based Planning can help.

A New Approach to Engaging Business Owners

At BEI, we are firm believers in the effectiveness of targeted marketing and client engagement, which entails delivering the appropriate messages to the right individuals with consistency, and then delivering customized solutions to your prospects. For owners, their time is a precious commodity, and they are highly selective about how they use it. That’s why we’re providing you with a three-step approach to connect with owners.

Step One:  Focus your marketing on providing information about how to grow and protect value. Clearly articulating the value of your offerings and the efficiency of your services is essential to capturing owners’ attention.

Our Owner-Based Planning Advisors use brandable newsletters (“Business Briefs”) whose topics include:

• When Business Value Stalls
• All Business Value is Not Equal
• Using Owner-Based Planning to Build Business Value

Our Advisors also use brandable white papers that describe in greater detail topics like using value drivers to increase the value of a company and filling gaps in business continuity plans.

Our marketing tools and resources seldom mention life insurance or investment planning. Instead, the emphasis is placed on the ways owners can build and safeguard the value of their businesses – a topic that universally captures the interest of all owners.

Step Two: Help owners identify and prioritize their company-related concerns or challenges using a software-based Assessment. Common challenges include developing and retaining management, growing cash flow, and involving family in ownership.

Step Three:  Address the concerns identified in the Assessment. We’ve created over 30 recommendations for action designed to address various owner challenges. Nearly all of them require the purchase of one of your products or services. These tailored solutions are not only a critical component of attracting and engaging successful business owners, but also reinforce the necessity of your firm’s products in growing and protecting their business.

Once owners understand that you—unlike your competitors—have the expertise and tools to help them grow and protect business value, engaging them is that easy.

https://exitplanning.com/event/bei-strategies-for-success-using-phantom-stock-incentive-planning-to-exceed-goals-and-roi

Did you know that collaborative expertise can lead to a remarkable increase in business value? In today’s fast-paced and evolving business world, the synergy of collective knowledge isn’t just beneficial – it’s essential.

There has been a lot of discussion lately in the business planning space around the topic of growing and protecting business value. Wealth and insurance professionals are increasingly recognizing the value of collaborating with growth advisors and business coaches to unlock profit and value growth for their business owner clients. This collaborative approach is driven by the understanding that achieving sustainable success in the business world requires a multi-faceted strategy, blending financial expertise with strategic guidance. 

In a recent BEI webinar, Founder John Brown met with George Sandmann, Founder and CEO of Growth Drive LLC., to discuss this topic. During the presentation, there was some time spent diving deeper into business growth and what elements of growing and protecting value are important to advisors when working with business owners. Simply put, when it comes to business value, collaboration is key. 

The Three Dimensions of Business Growth

One of the key focal points of this collaboration, and as discussed in the aforementioned webinar,  is the emphasis on the three dimensions of business growth: predictable profits and cash flow, predictable growth, and predictable equity value. By working together, wealth and insurance professionals, growth advisors, business coaches, and other members of the advisor team, create a holistic framework that addresses not only short-term financial gains but also long-term sustainability and value creation.

Predictable profits and cash flow: Profits and cash flow are crucial for the stability and day-to-day operations of any business. Wealth and insurance professionals bring their financial acumen to the table, ensuring that businesses have the necessary financial foundation to weather uncertainties and capitalize on opportunities. Growth advisors and business coaches contribute by helping business owners develop strategies for consistent growth, aligning with the overall financial objectives. Finally, predictions on profits and growth can drive the direction of the planning so it’s important to have a realistic and accurate representation of what profits and cash flow will look like within a forward-looking timeframe.  

Predictable growth: As the second dimension of growth, predictable value is what is used to underscore the collaboration between professionals. Business owners seek not only immediate success but also sustained growth over time. Growth advisors play a vital role in crafting growth strategies that align with the unique goals and challenges of each business. They provide insights, market intelligence, and actionable plans to drive continuous expansion and lead owners to the growth required to exit or transition on their terms. 

Predictable equity value: Equity value is particularly crucial when considering Exit Planning conversations. Business owners often face the question of how to extract value from their businesses, whether through a sale, merger, or insider transfer. Here, the collaboration between wealth and insurance professionals, growth advisors, and business coaches becomes instrumental. By building and enhancing the equity value of the business, they set the stage for a successful exit, ensuring that the business owner maximizes returns when transitioning out of the business.

Collaboration is Key 

Exit Planning and Owner-Based Planning conversations become more comprehensive and strategic when the focus is on building business value. Business coaches, with their expertise in strategic planning, guide business owners through the intricacies of exit options. Whether selling to a third party, passing the business to family members, or implementing an employee buyout, the emphasis on building equity value ensures a smoother and more lucrative transition.

Moreover, business advising is increasingly recognized as a team sport. The collaboration between wealth and insurance professionals, growth advisors, and business coaches exemplifies the collective effort required to address the multifaceted challenges businesses face. Each professional brings a unique perspective and skill set, creating a synergy that goes beyond individual expertise.

Conclusion

In conclusion, the collaboration between wealth and insurance professionals, growth advisors, business coaches, and other advisors is a strategic move towards unlocking profit and value growth for business owner clients. By addressing the three dimensions of business growth and incorporating planning conversations into the equation, this collaborative approach ensures a comprehensive and sustainable strategy for long-term success. Business advising, as a team sport, exemplifies the power of collective expertise in navigating the complex landscape of business growth and value creation.

Owners tend to focus on growing their companies and give little thought to business risk. They may assume their Property and Casualty (P&C) business insurance adequately covers their risks. Their assumptions may be correct. Or not. It’s beyond the purview of most advisors, including Owner-Based Planning (OBP) advisors, to provide advice on commercial casualty coverage. Instead, we suggest advisors emphasize the importance, and benefit, of having an experienced P&C professional review existing coverage.

Business Risk Cannot Be Overlooked

But there are also uninsurable business risks, that if overlooked can threaten and even destroy a profitable company. OBP advisors have the tools, products, and training to address many such risks. These risks include:

• • The death or disability of a key employee or owner.

• • A key employee who quits (or is fired) and steals valuable employees, vendor relationships and important customers and starts up or joins a competing business.

• • The theft (usually by an employee or vendor) of trade secrets, intellectual property, including customer information, pricing policies and more.

• • Property and casualty insurance lacking adequate coverage of insurable risks such as employee embezzlement and harassment lawsuits.

• • An outdated or non-existent Employee Handbook lacking provisions such as:
    • benefits,
    • disciplinary policies,
    • employee rights, and
    • • confidentiality concerns.

How Owner-Based Planners Can Address Risk

An important aspect of Owner-Based Planning is helping owners to first understand these risks and then to recommend a solution. For example, one recommendation deals with acquiring key person insurance to provide cash should a key employee or owner die. The insurance proceeds can be used to replace the lost revenue and profits caused by the key employee’s death (or disability), as well as to hire a well-qualified replacement. Another recommendation the BEI software provides is to design and implement an employment agreement for key employees containing non-solicitation and non-disclosure provisions. This would  prevent key employees from leaving, taking customers, trade secrets and the like. Part of this employment agreement is to create an informally funded non-qualified deferred compensation plan in order to motivate and retain key employees. Compensating for the loss caused by a risk event is essential when insurance is available—whether P&C or life insurance. Avoiding non-insurable risk through well-drafted agreements is also critical. OBP advisors are trained and have the tools, including the aforementioned recommendations, to explain risk exposure and how to minimize or avoid it.

How Addressing Risk Protects Business Value

The result of this planning for the owner is 1) an incentive plan to motive the key employee to grow the company and remain long-term, 2) an employment agreement for the key employee in part to protect the company from harm, 3) key employee insurance to replace the loss of the key employee, and 4) informal funding of the incentive plan. Having the knowledge gained through BEI training and the software design tools and  recommendations makes a real difference in the success of your owner clients. One last point—do you know of any advisors who proactively reach out to their owner-clients with recommendations such as these? You can differentiate your practice by incorporating BEI Owner-Based Planning which provides branded recommendations, assessments, white papers, newsletters, meeting agendas and more. Email in**@ex**********.com to inquire about Owner-Based Planning solutions and events from BEI.

Two recent surveys of over 50,000 owners and CEOs found that 83% of owners want and feel they need to grow their business.[1]  Our experience of over 40 years working with successful owners confirms that owners will engage the advisors who can help them get what they want. That’s why we created Owner-Based Planning for Advisors (OBP): A suite of training, marketing tools and deliverables that equips you to help business owners grow and protect business value using your professional services and products.

In addition to helping owners meet a pressing need, Owner-Based Planning sharply differentiates your practice from competitors.

Where do you begin?

Successful advisors promise and deliver the assistance owners need to grow cash flow and business. In doing so they powerfully differentiate their practices from their competitors.

If you are a financial advisor and you promise to help owners safely grow their investments, your value proposition is identical to every other investment advisor.

The same is true for insurance advisors: Promising to provide funding in the event of an owner’s death or disability does not meaningfully differentiate you from every other insurance advisor—including the owner’s current advisor.

As an OBP Advisor you differentiate yourself from your competitors because you offer a service that other financial and insurance advisors can’t: You will help owners dramatically grow and protect the cash flow and value of their businesses.

How do you help owners grow and protect business value?

The critical component of building value is a skilled and motivated management team. You can help owners by helping them incentivize their key employee(s) to 1) consistently grow revenue or cash flow, and 2) remain with the company long-term.

Protecting business value involves protecting it from unnecessary risk and providing for the company’s continuity if the owner dies or becomes incapacitated. As an OBP Advisor, you can promise owners to help them do both.

Owner-Based Planning is the Key to Differentiation

Promising to help owners protect and build business cash flow and value can seem to be outside the bounds of your typical practice area. However, growing and protecting business value uses the tools and products that you already offer. By approaching owners with the proposition of helping them achieve their growth goals you differentiate your practice and open the door to using the services and products you’ve always relied on.  

With OBP marketing and planning tools, you can:

• Attract and engage successful owners to your practice using branded marketing materials, including assessments, white papers, and newsletters.

• Create a simple action plan that consists of recommendations for actions owners can take to grow and protect value. Recommendations might include deferred compensation plans, employment agreements, continuity planning arrangements for sole owners, etc. BEI has created 29 written such recommendations for use by OBP Advisors.

• Use your services and products to implement recommended actions. For example, a recommendation to create a phantom stock plan or other deferred compensation plan includes informally funding with insurance or financial investments.

• Become an Owner-Based Planning Advisor who deploys marketing materials, tools, and deliverables to help your clients and grow your practice.

In future blogs, we will detail additional OBP recommendations, so you can see exactly how they incorporate both financial and funding products and services. We encourage you to learn more about how the OBP planning process and tools differentiate and enhance your practice by joining our next webinar on January 23 at noon EST with BEI Founder, John Brown.

Exploring Advisor Success: Introducing BEI’s Owner-Based Planning System

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[1] Sandman, George, quoting International Exit Planning Association BERI survey and data generated using CoreValue Software in The Growth-Driving Advisor, copyright 2023.