Log inTelford Mann Blog Featuring Toby Trinder Part Three
In the past fortnight, my training has largely been focused on the advisor element.
I have also spoke for the first time with a client in a face to face meeting. It was a first meeting with a new potential client and if he proceeds, in the long run the idea will be for me to be his advisor. The element of the meeting I held was to show the client our model portfolio factsheets which highlights our track record since our inception in 2006. As you could imagine, I was quite anxious before the meeting but once I was in there, I felt fine. I felt confident enough with my knowledge of this area, and the mock meetings I had done in previous fortnight clearly instilled an element of ‘muscle memory’ so that I covered everything I needed to.
In terms of my observation of client meetings, I have still been doing my own preparation before these meetings to identify key areas of discussion. I have also started completing my own version of we a form we call a CRDN (Client Review Discussion Note) which has all of our current information on the client and updating this inline with any changes that come up in the meeting. In addition, I have been completing my own version of meeting notes, these are done on an app called BigHand whereby I dictate into the iPad outlining the key discussion points in the meeting which is then sent to the client and stored to our records for reference and compliance. This is something which is much harder than it seems!
My mock meetings have also moved on somewhat further. I have taken a mock client through the completion of a CRDN, this is good practice as it gets me asking the appropriate questions we need to update our records or whilst remaining engaging, and also getting used to filling in the document correctly for our records. I have also done mock meetings on the client service and proposition element. This is a component that is usually completed on a first meeting, whereby we would outline to the client our service and how we can help, including any fees involved with this. This has been quite a tough part to practice, as it requires a sales element whilst knowledgeably and transparently outlining our services and fees in a client friendly manner and instilling them with trust and confidence in what we do.
I now go into a 2-week block of hard-earned rest period allocated by my rugby team and TM have been kind enough to grant me the same time away from the office. The plan for when I return will be to continue where I left off in terms of meetings observation and start looking into organising reviews for our corporate clients.
Keep an eye out for future updates from Toby Trinder regarding his journey in the Telford Mann Blog.