Collaboration . . . Are you kidding!?!

This past week, I have been diligently following several LinkedIn conversations that started with questions like:

"If you're a trusted advisor who believes in collaboration and leveraging relationships to best serve your clients, how do you work with other advisors?"

What!?!

The conversation included statements like:

I believe we all have clients that can benefit from all our help. I"m here to help.
Client centric collaboration begins with team building. Shepherding is part of the function of seeing client's needs through to fruition.
...you're all doing what fewer than the top 10% are not, which is engaging in dialog. This is the first step in collaboration.

What!?!

How about asking the real question. I find it easiest to work with other advisors in driving business. However, my experience has been that we have a great conversation and then nothing happens. Or . . . I send a client to my new collaborative relationship and never get anything in return. Or . . . we conduct a seminar together, but it is all me who puts prospects in the seats.

It does not have to be this way. These relationships must begin with specific expectations about the reciprocal nature of the alliance. Lead sharing, work quality and technical support all play a role. Once we agree on these details, our next step is to determine how we will get started. Will we begin with:

A letter to our respective clients introducing the new relationship.
A seminar
A webinar
Demonstrating good faith and scheduling that first appointment with a client
Surveying each other's clients.

It really does not take much to see the value of strategic alliances. Once you are educated on each other's business and expertise, we become "reps" for each other. Referrals are yours to lose. The numbers are pretty simple. 1 qualified referral from each of 4 strategic alliances per quarter yield a very successful year.