How to handle; She said she was already working with someone

This referral objection is more complicated than most others because it depends on how happy that person is with their current provider and how enthusiastically you were endorsed. If someone is on the fence with where they currently do business, a strong endorsement can go a long way to having them consider hearing from you. Sometimes they need repeat requests or to be invited to meet you in a non-threatening environment.

If you run into this quite often, your best bet is to address it with your clients before they ask.

“I’m sure your friend Margie already has financing with another bank. However, perhaps you could share that the reason people work with me is because:
Benefit A
Benefit B
Benefit C

And see if she’d be open to hearing from me some time?”

I recall a recent meeting I had with an estate planning attorney and a financial advisor who were grappling with this. A specific example was being discussed about a client who already had a relationship with an advisor.

My point was that:

a) The original advisor did not specialize in working with privately-held companies worth between $10-100 million.

b) Not all people with same job title are created equally! Were all the teachers you had at school equally effective instructors? Would you ask most third grade teachers to evaluate and edit the content of a Ph.D. dissertation? If the original advisor were that competent, he or she would not have recommended the current (inappropriate) insurance coverage to begin with.

c) Robert Cialdini’s Rule of Authority states that we look to experts to show us the way, so the attorney’s enthusiastic recommendation of this other advisor would make a big difference!

Please forward this tip onto someone important in your business network.