And How to Get a Reaction Instead
One client is sitting around a campfire with friends.
They’re talking about the future.
“What if we bought land…”
“Built something together…”
“A place for family… maybe even a sanctuary.”
It’s a real conversation among real people.
A few days later, this same client is in a Pitch Lab session.
A financial advisor comes up with this short pitch:
👉 “I help tech employees retire early and buy land.”
My other client smiles.
👉 “My friends were just talking about that.”
That’s the reaction you want.
Not a polite nod.
Not “interesting.”
👉 “We were just talking about that.”
Most financial advisors focus on:
“Financial planning.”
“Retirement strategy.”
“Building wealth.”
But no one wakes up in the morning thinking:
“Today’s the day – today I’m going to create my financial plan.”
So instead of explaining what you do, say something your potential clients are already saying to each other.
“Let’s retire early.”
“What if we bought land…”
“Wouldn’t it be amazing to retire near our cousins…”
That’s what starts conversations.
Your Turn
What are your clients already talking about?
Not in meetings, but with their friends.
What would make someone say:
👉 “We were just talking about that.”
Q: Why do people tune out my pitch?
A: Because it sounds like a category, not a conversation they’re already having.
Q: What gets a reaction?
A: Familiar language – using words that people actually say or think.
Want help finding that phrase?
I’ll work with you to create 10-word pitches you can use immediately to start conversations.
That’s very clear, Andy. But it requires a new way of thinking with respect to compliance. Is there an implication that the advisor is guaranteeing the client will buy the land or relocate? I believe a lot of us would be thinking we’d need a pop up sign over our shoulder with the disclosure statements to go with these pitches that get the reactions we want.
Consider this conversation:
“I heard from my friend that if I become your client, I will retire early, buy land, and be really happy.”
“Well, I can’t guarantee that.”
“No? Then why did they say that? What can you guarantee?”
“I can’t guarantee anything, but I help my clients work through the possibilities and tradeoffs in attaining what’s most important to them.”
[“Humph. Should I ask what I’ll be charged to be put through all this ‘analysis,’ i.e. head scratching?”]
“I see. Makes sense, I guess. Maybe I’ll get with you some time to find out more.”
You raise a good point, and this is worth considering.
When people sit down with a financial advisor, they get into a conversation about goals, possibilities, tradeoffs, priorities, and what they want their future to look like. At the end of that process, people are looking for a plan or a path – not a guarantee of a particular outcome.
The intent of this language is to start a real conversation by referencing goals that people already think and talk about.
That said, I can absolutely see how a particular compliance department might prefer softer phrasing like:
“I help tech executives explore the possibility of retiring early and buying land.”
And I always encourage advisors to run this kind of messaging by their compliance departments.
The bigger idea is that generic phrases like “financial planning” often don’t trigger recognition or curiosity, while more specific and conversational language gets people talking about what they actually want out of life.
And those are the kinds of conversations that lead to meaningful advisory relationships.