Episode 719 - What Really Matters

In this energizing episode of Monday Morning Mojo, Phil dives into what truly makes clients feel valued, and it goes far beyond getting the technical details right. While expertise is expected, it’s the personal touches, the thoughtful gestures, and the genuine connections that turn ordinary service into something unforgettable. Phil shares a powerful real-life example that shows how a small, unexpected act can leave a lasting impression and transform a client into a raving fan. The message is clear: if you want long-term loyalty, focus on how you make people feel.

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Transcript

 Top performers in every field surround themselves with those who inspire them, who seek to build them up, and who push them to reach beyond their current limits. I am Phil Buchanan, executive chairman of Cannon Financial Institute. I designed Monday Morning Mojo to provide you with a weekly spark, a push and motivational insight to live your best life. Thanks for joining.

Good Monday morning, ladies and gentlemen. Phil here with episode 719 of Monday Morning Mojo. I had the opportunity to host a senior leader meeting last week. As part of the exercise, I asked the group of very experienced professionals a simple question. And the question was, in your experience as a client of any service-related business, at the end of the day, what really conveys to you that you are important?

To that service organization. I said, think about doctors, accountants, home repair companies, landscape designers, could be any service-related business for a good five to six seconds. After I asked the question, there was complete silence in the room and finally somebody said, well, it's, it's how I'm treated.

And I said, okay, great answer. Expand on that. And the person got their footing a bit, and they went on to say that, well, obviously you want the outcome to meet or exceed your expectations, but what you really want to know is that you've been understood. You want the service provider to interact with you in a way that that really gives you confidence.

Another person then chimed in with, well, you, you certainly don't want canned, pushy recommendations. You, you want it personalized to you another person then added in. You also don't want any surprises unless they're positive, you know, going above and beyond. Now all of these were were great responses and a final commentator topped it off with, and when something isn't right, you expect them to make it right.

We then turned the conversation towards the world of banking and wealth management with me asking if those same things are what's important to our clients. There was a unanimous nodding of heads. It permeated the room. I then ask, how do we convey those traits and characteristics to our clients? A person quickly said, well, isn't that implied in what we do?

I said, sure, it's implied. But to be meaningful, to move beyond just the suggestion of it, there has to be action and execution. See, clients expect us to get the technical parts of our business right. I always chuckle when somebody says that their investment management process is the differentiator. It's not.

It's expected risk management, trust, philanthropy, retirement planning, they're all table stakes. You have to have those types of expertise and and capacity in today's environment. But what really matters at the end of the day is that our client facing professionals listen. They watch, they connect, they delight our clients.

You know, you're gonna get the technical part of the job, right? 95 to 98% of the time. It's the client assessment of the quality of the interactions and the experiences that they have with client facing professionals that really will determine if they are a client of yours for a few years or for decades and generations.

A pal of mine is an attorney in Columbus, Georgia. He's quite successful and has banking and wealth services with a local institution There. Last week he went through one of the institution's drive through windows to make a deposit. When he opened the canister to insert the check the pen that the organization keeps in the tube to be able to sign deposit slips or checks, that pen came out of the tube and wound up marking up his dress shirt.

He's not one to complain and said nothing to the institution. That night he did post on social media a question with a picture of the shirt. Is anybody as clumsy as me? Now in that post, he never once mentioned the financial institution. The next day, two professionals from that institution walked into his office with a bag.

Inside the bag was a crisp, brand new replacement dress shirt. My buddy was absolutely blown away and he posted immediately again on social media how incredible that institution serves its clients. Now, I did check to make sure with him that the bank had credited the check appropriately to his account.

He said, well, sure, and month to month your accounts aggregate smoothly. He said, well, sure. Wealth management accounts, all balancing that up, he said, yeah, see, all the technical stuff of that relationship was fine. What has elevated his experience and caused him to be a raving, proactive fan of that institution was the fact that somebody was watching and somebody acted. In turn, delighted their client beyond measure. It's very clear to him that he's just not a customer of that organization.

Monday Morning Mojo is a production of Cannon Financial Institute;, executive producer of Monday Morning Mojo is Sarah Jones. Editing and Mixing is done by Danny Brunner. Until next time, I'm Phil Buchanan reminding you to be a force for good.

Have a great week and thanks for being part of the Mojo community.