Weall know the 80/20 rule which says the top 20 per cent of our clients give us 80 per cent of our profits. But as far as practice management is concerned, I think it should read the bottom 20 per cent of our clients give us 80 per cent of our aggravation.
So many advisers who know they get 80 per cent of their profits from the top 20 per cent of clients will still spend 80 per cent of their time with the clients who give them most of their aggravation and little income.
Why? Simple. In this country, and not uniquely to financial services, the people who get the most attention are the loudest, not the most deserving.
One of the best practice management exercises you can do is to analyse how you allocate your time as if it were a resource like money. What is the relationship between the amount of income a certain client gives you and the percentage of time you spend with them?
When was the last time you had a coffee or a beer with one of your top clients for no other reason than just to catch up? Why not? Answer — too busy. Too busy putting out fires and dealing with the customers who give you 80 per cent of your aggravation but probably only 20 per cent of your income.
Next week block off a couple of chunks of time to meet with or talk to a couple of your top clients. If you get a good response, do it the following week and the week after that until you are spending at least 50 per cent of your time with the top 20 per cent of your clients — then check your bottom line and smile!
Martin Grunstein is a speakeron customer service.
