How an advisor landed his first high-net-worth client
Columbus advisor Nick George secured his first high-net-worth client after a CPA observed him handle a shared client engagement and later referred the client.
A first high-net-worth client can provide assets to grow a practice and generate referrals.
Nick George, founder of ClearMind Capital in Columbus, Ohio, entered the advisory industry in 2018. He secured his first high-net-worth client after a certified public accountant observed him working with a mutual client and later provided a referral.
George pursued cold outreach to CPAs, including calls and meeting requests, with limited results. He found many established CPAs maintain a preferred list of advisors and are cautious about adding new names because a referral involves putting their professional reputation on the line.
He also encountered CPAs who lacked clarity about the advisor role. George recalled, “There are more CPAs than you’d think who have no idea what financial advisors actually do.” Without that understanding, CPAs have difficulty identifying when a referral is appropriate, he observed.
The breakthrough came when a shared client required services from both George and a CPA. Instead of pitching his services, George allowed the CPA to observe a live client interaction. The CPA “got to watch how I handle a real situation instead of hearing me pitch it,” George recalled.
Following that observation, the CPA made a referral that turned into George’s first high-net-worth client. He noted that demonstrating work in an actual engagement built trust more quickly than attending networking events. “Trust was established quicker than any networking event I ever went to,” he recalled.
Industry professionals identify several routes to a first high-net-worth client, including referrals from current clients, introductions from other professionals and collaborations formed during client work. Demonstrating competence during live client interactions can lower the perceived risk for potential referrers.
For advisors seeking high-net-worth clients, direct collaboration with professional partners during real client engagements provides an alternative to cold outreach.
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