Every situation, however grim, presents an opportunity. Pradip Agarwal from Kolkata proves this - he has turned the entry load ban to his advantage by approaching those clients who were abandoned by their IFAs because they were not willing to pay a fee. Pallabika Ganguly shares his recipe of success
Pradip Agarwal started off his career as an LIC agent and within four years he was a member of LIC’s Chairman Club, an elite club for 12 years in a row. “It was my hard work and dedication that made me a successful financial advisor in five years. Insurance and mutual funds were the two products which helped me get initial clients and my asset allocation helped my clients garner good returns,” said Agarwal.
He recalls that one of his recommendations, UTI’s Rajlakshmi scheme in 1993 has proven to be a good investment. This goodwill has helped him get lots of references from satisfied clients. He currently has an AUM of Rs. 15 crore and plans to double it in the next two to three years. Starting with LIC and mutual funds, Agarwal has now diversified into equity IPOs, post office saving schemes, real-estate, corporate fixed deposits and tax saving schemes.
“When I started my career, I used to suggest long term bonds and mutual funds because they gave good returns. During those days, mutual fund gave fixed returns and my clients were also satisfied seeing their money secure. I also suggested a few of my HNI clients to invest in real-estate which has delivered good returns,” said Agarwal.
Business Model
Agarwal believes that his clients have stuck to him because of the great care and understanding shown towards them. Today, clients with little to no understanding of investments walk in and leave it to him to make the right decisions for them. A clear understanding of client’s need and delivering on his promises have helped him to meet up to the expectation of his clients. The positive word-of-mouth enables him to grow his client base.
Marketing techniques
Agarwal believes in educating his clients on investments. According to him, clients are not well educated in India making them vulnerable to unscrupulous people who mis sell and then abandon their clients.
The entry load ban has proved to a blessing in disguise. By taking an approach of not charging his clients, Agarwal has been able to serve a lot of clients who have been left behind by advisors as they are unable to pay them a fee.
He usually suggests clients to invest across all asset classes – mutual funds, real-estate, gold and debt. Need based selling is his marketing mantra. Agarwal believes in doing proper needs assessment of his clients before recommending any investments. He probes his clients to know their requirements and manages their expectations such that they have realistic returns expectations.
Advice to new IFAs
Dedication and hard work determine success in this field. Be well versed with the products you are dealing in. Do not get demotivated with failures in the beginning. Persevere because staying power can do wonders in the long run. Focus on building relationship with clients because it will help you increase your client base.