Many advisors struggle with ways to deepen relationships with  top clients .

Naturally, you provide a more in depth plan and meet with them more frequently. And of course their calls are returned promptly and their issues attended to first.

The challenge is that many top clients see this treatment  as their due – and you’re not going to impress someone by merely delivering what they expect.

That’s why many advisors try to build personal relationships with their most important clients by connecting at a social level – perhaps by inviting them to dinner, to attend a play or a hockey game  or by hosting them to a round of golf.

Despite the best intentions on the part of advisors, often these attempts to deepen relationships fall short - despite the expenditure of significant amounts of time and money.

First, your top clients are very often pressed for time – and another social invitation may be as much of an imposition as a relationship builder.

Beyond this, chances are that million dollar clients enjoy high end dinners and rounds of golf on their own. As a result, it’s possible to spend a substantial amount of money without making a meaningful impact or getting an appreciable return.

Remember, there are two costs to hosting top clients to an event that’s ho hum. First of course are the dollars you spend.  But perhaps the bigger cost is the lost opportunity build deeper relationships with your most important clients – you only have so much face time with key clients, and you can’t afford to squander that time on a routine experience.

Focusing on unique experiences

There’s a simple test of whether a client activity is a good use of time and money – will your clients vividly remember this three and six months from now?

If the answer is no or if you’re not sure, chances are that the time and money you spent won’t give you the relationship building payoff you’re looking for. To make an impact, you need to create unique experiences that strike a chord with clients and that they’ll recall many months from now.

Here’s a simple four step process to doing things that make an impact with your top clients.

First, make a list of your top ten clients.

Second, beside each one identify their passions. Are they foodies or wine lovers? Do they love opera, ballet or classical music?  Are their favourite charities related to third world countries or to helping troubled youth in the city you live in?

Next, try to put clients into common groups – find two or three client couples that share a common passion.

Finally, seek out a unique  charitable or fundraising event in your community that caters to that passion, to which you can invite these clients as your guests.

This doesn’t have to be a high priced dinner – in fact often the big ticket events tend to be too large and impersonal to have an impact. Instead seek out smaller, community based events where your dollar will go further and where the experience will be more personal.  What you’re looking for are events that are high impact, not necessarily high cost.

Three examples of events that resonate with clients

As examples to get you thinking, here are three locally based experiences that will strike a chord with the right clients – two in Toronto, one in Vancouver.  The cost of hosting four client couples to these events varies from $750 to $2500 but for the right clients that investment can deepen relationships in a way that conventional entertainment just can’t.

If these ideas inspire you , consider seeking out similar events in your own community.

Hands across the nation – for clients who want to support underdeveloped countries

A year ago, Cathy and Chris Fuchs of White Willow Benefits Consultants introduced me to a downtown Toronto fundraising event in aid of Hands Across the Nation, a grass roots charity that supports local projects in Mali and Bolivia.

Their annual fundraiser is among the best fundraising values I know of;  at a cost of $85 and including entertainment and great  food provided by the Escoffier Society,  it’s guaranteed to resonate with clients with an affinity for projects in underdeveloped countries. As it happens,  tickets are still available for this event , which takes place this coming Wednesday March 23 – a link with information is below.

http://hatn.org/wine_gourmet.htm

The Stop – for serious foodies

The Stop Community Food Center is a downtown Toronto facility with the mandate to provide the local community with access to healthy food. One Thursday each month, their award winning chef hosts a dinner to support their programs. The cost is $75 for food alone or $120 with wine pairings – no more than you’d pay for a conventional dinner, but with much more impact. And for a really unique experience, for $100 people get to help prepare the meal and experience life in a professional kitchen.

http://thestop.org/event/14-apr-2011

UBC Opera Ball – for opera lovers

Last Thursday, I attended the annual fundraiser for the University of British Columbia Opera Program. Over dinner, I sat at one of fifteen tables on the stage of the spectaculour Chan Center, while students from the program performed.

No one at my table had attended this previously, so we were all unsure what to expect – but were universally  blown away by the remarkable talent and energy of students in this program. Each table of ten costs $1500.  For $750, next year two Vancouver advisors can split a table of ten and each invite two client couples. For the right clients, that $375 could be an outstanding investment in relationship building.

Chances are that you aren’t located in Toronto or Vancouver – and even if you are, these events might not be a fit for your or your clients.  What’s important here are not the specific examples, but the principle of deepening client relationships by doing things which break through the clutter and stand out.

And note that almost every major university has a music program, which often host remarkably professional  performances and relatively inexpensive fundraisers – and inviting the right clients to these is not just much lower cost than conventional professional  performance, but also typically more fun and higher impact.