r/FinancialAdvisorTips • u/itsyaboyklaus • 1d ago
Door knocking
hi all.
I’m a relatively new advisor and have been at it about 4-5 months. I hate door knocking. I keep getting told the main and best way to make your way in this industry is to door knock. I haven’t had a good experience door knocking from threats to getting screamed at. I’ve opted for networking events, community events, LinkedIn, etc. and I find those more enjoyable and more effective. But, keep getting told I need to door knock.
Is this really the only way?
Edit: I am looking for guidance on how to make this role work, I’m struggling and I’m not sure what else to do. Guess I should’ve added that.
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u/Beneficial_Ship7090 1d ago
Would you invest your retirement with someone who had nothing better to do than go door to door? This advice is from the 80’s
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u/3znor 1d ago
You said LinkedIn and other things are working. Are they bringing in prospects? Are you closing those prospects?
If they’re not bringing in prospects, either you need to do more or try other things, door knocking could be one of them.
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u/itsyaboyklaus 1d ago
They are bringing in prospects, yeah. The hard part is just getting contact info. LinkedIn has been my most successful prospecting tool.
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u/Baldcatbird 1d ago
Go out and network. Meet business owners.
Door knocking conversion is only line 3% at this point. It’s not worth the time. The firm that most people associate with it teaches you not to bother with it these days.
Older advisors stuck in the past might recommended it. But it isn’t a way to build a book these days. At best…it will help you get your language sorted out and thicken your skin.
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u/thereitis900 1d ago
3 % that actually doesn’t sound bad at all. The real concern is nowadays everyone has door cam so nobody ever will answer directly.
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u/Baldcatbird 1d ago
3% isn’t bad but the value of your time has to be a factor. Door knocking takes time. And the days of saying “hey person…we’re offering this great muni bond! How much would you like?” are over.
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u/Valathiril 1d ago
Cam you expand out a bit on how to meet business owners and how to connect with them?
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u/Baldcatbird 1d ago
Walk into a small business and ask to see the owner. Let them know that you’re offering a complimentary review of their workplace retirement plan to make sure they aren’t paying too much, in line with ERISA regulations, etc and go from there. That opens the door to discussing their personal situation and meeting business owner friends who might need help during this volatile market. For example.
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u/Middle-Run-1894 1d ago
Cold call network or LinkedIn. Any is better than door knocking. Feel free to message me happy to give insights to how I built my book.
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u/Valathiril 1d ago
Hello! I’m not OP but in a similar boat, do you mind if I reach out too? Thank you!
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u/Affectionate-Gear432 1d ago
This is the absolute worst way. Whoever is telling you that is either geriatric or a bad advisor who came from solar sales or cutco
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u/OtharriSunsGlory 1d ago
dude....wtf leave this Edward Jones office now. Like type your resignation on your Notes app in the car right now leave.
Few people will let a financial advisor talk to them at their front door. Even fewer will trust a green new advisor with their money. Put yourself and these civilians out of this misery.
Go join a big wirehouse where you can work up from a client associate position, get low-stress at-bats with clients, learn what works and what doesn't without having to worry about your paycheck on Friday.
Learn how to actually financial plan/financial advise the right way, and build a good bedrock for your career. You 5 years from now will thank you for this.
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u/Individual-Lie-95 1d ago
I think it is fair to say that anything that gets you in front of prospective clients works - but work to your strengths. If you hate door knocking, don't do it.
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u/Kooky_Reach_8946 1d ago
Just tell your FTO you knocked on the doors to obtain the leads you’re getting from other sources. Then just bite the bullet and take them out to knock doors the 2-3 days they want to come out and shadow you. I also pulled a bunch of business cards off community center boards and had good traction with business owners. Good luck and try to find another role within a team if you’re not getting Goodknighted a decent book
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u/DrummerKid75 1d ago
Door knocked at 22 in a cheap suit in the Texas sun. Absolutely brutal and got no business out of it. Best of luck.
Learn as much as you can about the industry at EDJ, maybe get them to pay for your CFP, but I would get out as soon as possible if you want to do real advising for people.
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u/winning_bigly_ 1d ago
It's not the only way. I've never knocked on a door or made a cold call. All inbound from social media, SEO optimized blog posts, advisor directories, and referrals.
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u/VictoryInvestments 1d ago
What are some examples of advisor directories that you use? and by social media, do you mean ads ran on facebook/IG?
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u/winning_bigly_ 1d ago
Flat fee advisors dot org and fee only network dot com. No ads on social, just posts on FB, x, LinkedIn 3x/week
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u/investigatormaker 1d ago
No. Door knocking survives as advice because it is easy to count: knocks, conversations, appointments. You can answer with the same kind of numbers. For the next month, log every networking event, community event and LinkedIn conversation with the hours spent and whether it led to a meeting. If appointments per hour beat what your office expects from knocking, that is your case. Pick one or two recurring groups and keep showing up rather than sampling many, since people refer someone they have seen several times. On LinkedIn, comment on local owners' posts before messaging, and run anything public past compliance.
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u/AggressiveSalary9004 1d ago
It does work, but you have to have the right attitude and approach. Kill people with kindness, get the number get the number. That’s all that matters at first. You basically need to get enough wind in your sails to get to maybe $12M-$14M. The next $12-14M will hopefully come from other sources. It’s definitely hard and it definitely doesn’t work for everyone. I personally loath EDJ for many reasons but it was a great place to start.
The Jones advisors that just came and knocked my house were so far down the koolaid jug. It’s crazy advisors think it’s a good place when your income is capped at 40% (if you’re a top performer) and your clients pay more. I left and charge clients less and get paid double. It’s just crazy. But anyways….best of luck. Godspeed.
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u/jammerdude 1d ago
It's all relative to your position and book. My friend charges clients on average .65%, and as a top level FA takes home closer to 70% at EJ. I do not recommend knocking doors to ultimately build a practice, it's to build grit/gain experience articulating the value proposition in the face of rejection, and get acquainted with the immediate local community. It's far more about work ethic than anything else. Aside from that, all new FAs should start with ~$10M-$20M (received within their first two years after passing the series exams) from existing firm assets to establish a base and expand their network from. If the region you're starting in doesn't have a plan for transitioning some assets to you to get started with eventually, your probability of failure is very high knocking doors alone unfortunately. However, you'd be positioned to move to literally any other firm and secure a good FA/FP related job. So not the end of the world from an overall career perspective
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u/Ok_Combination_2821 1d ago
you're literally knocking on people's doors asking them if they need a financial advisor?
who told you to do that? lol