Make It Rain, Solve the Pain: How Advisors Win High Net Worth Clients with One Simple Conversation

Episode Summary

In this episode, Adam Figura sits down with Derrick Kinney — a sought-after business growth expert, former top 1% financial planning firm owner, and USA Today and Wall Street Journal best-selling author — for a tactical conversation on why so many talented advisors get overlooked and how to fix it with the words they say. Derrick argues that high net worth clients view most advisors as interchangeable, and that the real differentiator isn’t products or credentials but the ability to name a prospect’s painful problem in seconds. He unpacks his signature “You Know How” framework, the “five and five” exercise for identifying your ideal client, and why advisors should stir problems rather than solve them in a first meeting. The conversation also explores the legacy fears that keep affluent business owners awake at night, the role younger advisors can play in generational wealth transfer, and the daily disciplines that drive real growth. Advisors walk away with a practical playbook for turning ordinary introductions into ideal-client relationships.

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⏱️ Chapters (Timestamps & Key Topics)

00:01 – Welcome & Guest Introduction Adam welcomes Derrick Kinney — business growth expert, former top 1% firm owner who built and sold his practice, Forbes Top Advisor, and best-selling author — and frames the episode around helping advisors stop being overlooked.

01:37 – Why Advisors Struggle to Articulate Their Value Derrick explains the common mistake of selling on product features and benefits. Because most people assume all advisors are the same, it’s the advisor’s words that must create the difference in the prospect’s mind.

02:35 – Make It Rain to Solve the Pain Derrick introduces his core idea: until you connect with a prospect’s pain, specialized products and services are just table stakes and commodities that won’t separate you from the competition.

02:44 – The Two Personal Trainers: A Lesson in Positioning Derrick tells the story of two equally qualified personal trainers — one who says “I’m a personal trainer” and one who paints a vivid picture of the busy business owner’s struggle — to show how a verbal picture wins the client.

05:35 – Discovering the “You Know How” Framework Derrick shares how saying “financial advisor” made prospects’ eyes glaze over, and how leading with “You know how so many people worry about running out of money in retirement — we help them fix that” made people lean in instead.

07:20 – The Five and Five Exercise Derrick walks through an exercise to identify your ideal client: list your five most recent clients and your five favorite clients, then ask what problem each came to you to solve. The pattern reveals who you actually serve — and who you want to serve.

08:48 – “You Know How” in Action: Real Examples Derrick offers concrete scripts for business owners selling a company, high earners who feel they’re falling behind, and women facing unexpected life events — each simple enough that a third grader could understand it, yet specific enough to make a prospect say “yes.”

10:25 – Shifting from Products to Human Connection Derrick reframes the early conversation as a race to build rapport, not impress with knowledge. Simple questions — where someone is from, what they do for fun, what’s behind them on a Zoom call — open the door to a real relationship.

12:45 – The Fears High Net Worth Clients Don’t Talk About Derrick reveals that many affluent business owners worry less about money management and more about legacy: whether their kids will mishandle the business or the inheritance, and how they’ll be remembered across generations.

13:45 – The 24-Year-Old Advisor and the $10 Million Rollover Derrick recounts coaching a young advisor who felt judged for her age. By repositioning herself around generational wealth transfer, she connected instantly with a business owner who rolled over roughly $10 million two weeks later.

17:14 – Stir the Problem, Don’t Solve It Derrick explains why solving every problem in the first visit kills urgency and leads to prospects ghosting. The purpose of the initial visit is to stir the problem, not solve it.

18:10 – Visit vs. Meeting: Why Words Equal Wealth Derrick makes the case for calling it a “visit” rather than a “meeting” — warm and inviting versus cold and clinical — and reinforces that with high net worth clients, the words you choose set the tone.

19:37 – The Listening Hustle Derrick describes the “listening hustle”: letting prospects see you take notes by hand or on screen. Few things make a person feel more valued, and it gives the advisor a roadmap of the exact concerns to address.

21:02 – Three Changes to Attract Affluent Clients Derrick prescribes three immediate moves: pre-schedule at least three hours of prospecting each week, prioritize face-to-face and voice-to-voice contact, and use technology to free up time for human connection rather than replace it.

22:50 – KPIs and Knowing Your Why Derrick recommends tracking weekly KPIs — face-to-face interactions, hours out of the office, referral asks made mid-visit when energy is high — and grounding the work in a clear sense of why you do it.

23:47 – “No Fee, No Me” and the Power of One-Liners Derrick shares the mantras that guided his career as a top fee-based advisor, explaining how memorable one-liners like “if you want to make it rain, connect with pain” keep advisors focused on the prospect’s problem first.

25:27 – How to Connect with Derrick Derrick points listeners to LinkedIn, where his team posts daily, and to his newsletter, accessible through his website, plus limited one-on-one coaching.

26:08 – Closing Adam thanks Derrick for the practical takeaways and wraps the episode.

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✅ Key Takeaways

• Stop selling features — start naming the pain. High net worth prospects assume every advisor is the same. Your words, not your products or credentials, are what create the difference in their mind.
• Lead with “You know how.” Open with “You know how [ideal client] [struggle with painful problem]? We help them fix that.” It invites prospects into a problem they instantly relate to, instead of triggering the glaze-over that follows “I’m a financial advisor.”
• Run the five and five exercise. List your five most recent and five favorite clients, then identify the problem each came to you to solve. The pattern shows who you actually serve — and lets you decide who you want to serve next.
• Keep your message third-grade simple but specific. Pick one painful problem your ideal client will instantly recognize. You solve many problems, but prospects can only hook onto one at a time.
• Win the rapport race before you talk products. Treat the early conversation as if you had nothing to sell. Ask where someone is from, what they do for fun, or about what’s behind them on Zoom — what’s there is usually what matters to them in real life.
• Address the legacy fears, not just the money fears. Many affluent business owners worry most about whether their kids will mishandle the business or the inheritance. Position yourself around generational wealth transfer to connect where it counts
• .Use younger advisors as a generational-wealth asset. Pairing a younger advisor with affluent families builds trust with the next generation early, making the likelihood of assets leaving the firm almost zero.
• Stir the problem; don’t solve it in the first visit. Solving every concern up front kills urgency and invites prospects to ghost you. Surface the problem, then ask, “Is that something you’d like my help with?”
• Choose your words deliberately — call it a “visit.” A “meeting” feels cold and clinical; a “visit” feels warm and inviting. With high net worth clients, words equal wealth and set the tone for the relationship.
• Do the listening hustle. Let prospects see you taking notes. It makes them feel valued and gives you a roadmap of the exact concerns to repeat back and confirm.
• Block prospecting time and track your KPIs. Pre-schedule at least three hours of prospecting each week, measure face-to-face interactions and referral asks, and ask for referrals mid-visit when energy is high — not as a tired afterthought.
• Let technology buy you more face time. Tech should free up five to ten hours a week so you can get out of the office and connect in person or voice-to-voice — not so you can stop prospecting altogether.

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🎧 Quotes from the Episode

• “Until you make it rain, that’s how you solve the pain.” — Derrick Kinney
• “Most people believe that all financial advisors are the same. And it’s up to you to say the words to create the difference in their mind.” — Derrick Kinney
• “You know how so many people worry about running out of money in retirement? We help them fix that.” — Derrick Kinney
• “You want to stir the problem, not solve the problem.” — Derrick Kinney
• “A meeting is like going to your proctologist — it can feel cold and impersonal. But a visit is warm and inviting.” — Derrick Kinney
• “There’s almost nothing that makes a person feel more valued and important than seeing someone else take notes on what they’re saying.” — Derrick Kinney
• “Face-to-face wins the race, and voice-to-voice is the best choice. If you want a business that’s booming, focus on the human.” — Derrick Kinney
• “You see you’re a financial advisor — so what differentiates you? You have to differentiate yourself.” — Adam Figura

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📇 Contact Information

Guest: Derrick Kinney Business Growth Expert, Speaker & Coach USA Today and Wall Street Journal Best-Selling Author LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/derrickkinney (posts daily) Newsletter: available via his website

Host: Adam Figura Horizon Financial Group Email: afigura@horizonfg.com

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Resources Mentioned

The “You Know How” Framework — a positioning formula: “You know how [ideal client] [struggle with painful problem]? We help them fix that.”

The Five and Five Exercise — list your five most recent and five favorite clients to identify your ideal client and the problem you solve

Derrick Kinney’s daily LinkedIn content and email newsletter

Derrick Kinney one-on-one coaching (limited, exclusive availability)

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⚠️ Disclosure

The views depicted in this material are for informational purposes only and are not necessarily those of Cetera Advisors, LLC. They should not be considered specific advice or recommendations for any individual. Neither Cetera Advisors, LLC nor any of its representatives may give legal or tax advice.

Pete Bush, Bill Bush, and Andy Bush are registered representatives offering securities and advisory services through Cetera Advisors, LLC, member FINRA/SIPC, a broker-dealer and registered investment adviser.

Adam Figura is a registered administrative assistant of Cetera Advisors, LLC, member FINRA/SIPC.

Today’s guest is not affiliated or registered with Cetera Advisors, LLC. Any information provided by our guest is in no way related to Cetera Advisors, LLC or its registered representatives.

Cetera is under separate ownership from any other named entity.

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