Why clients pay fees and wait months to see this advisor

What started as a problem for three-year MDRT member Leanne Barbara Bull, CFP, Dip FP, eventually led to why she has a long waiting list of referrals she didn’t ask for. Her prospective clients wait months, pay a fee and drive several thousand miles for their first meeting with her.

The problem of client no-shows

About 20 years ago, like many parents of young children, Bull hired a babysitter when she had appointments. This was all well and good for Bull, except when prospective clients didn’t show up, and she was forced to pay the bill for child care services she didn’t need. Her time was always money, but now she felt that immediately.

Bull wanted a different business model to solve this issue, so she started charging people a fee for their first meeting with her. Other advisors thought she was crazy. No one else was doing that in her area of Bundaberg, Queensland, Australia. At the time, commissions were still allowed in her country. Even fee-based advisors, however, offered a free first visit for prospective clients.

Value propositions

Like any business, the difference is in the value proposition. Bull thought there was something clients wanted more than a free first visit — and that’s unbiased information and future financial security. “My clients feel like they get advice at the first meeting, not sold something,” Bull said.

She informs prospective clients her initial fee is for advice and education so they can make informed financial decisions. If clients want to work with her after the first visit, Bull provides them with a customized plan that meets their goals and provides financial “peace and confidence” in both good and bad markets. Her clients also pay an additional annual fee, with the price depending on the complexity of their case.

Not everyone wants to pay the initial fee to meet with her, and that’s worked out well for Bull. “I found those who did pay the fee always became my clients,” and they are good clients who always referred others, she said.

See more in the 2018 MDRT Annual Meeting presentation from Bull, who is an MDRT Top of the Table qualifier. 

Written by Antoinette Tuscano, MDRT Content Specialist

Learn more about how fee-based financial advisors succeed without commissions

• Watch “How to thrive without commissions” 
• Watch “Fee-based planning: A better method” 
• Read and listen to “The great transition to fees” (For MDRT members only) 
• Read “Tips for switching to fees” (For MDRT members only)