Creating Service Standards That Build Trust and Long-Term Relationships

When people ask me, “Sandro, what do you sell?” it’s a question that often catches them off guard. Most financial professionals immediately think about products — life insurance, investments, or retirement plans. But the truth is, none of us really sell products. What we actually sell is confidence, reassurance, trust, and long-term relationships.

Why Service Standards Matter

When I first started out, I was young and inexperienced. I couldn’t sell experience, and I couldn’t claim to have decades of success behind me. But what I could sell was the promise of a long-term relationship built on consistency and trust.

Clients don’t just want a financial plan; they want to know what you stand for. They want to know what they can expect when they put their future in your hands. That’s where service standards come in.

The Service Charter

Very early in my career, I created what I believe was one of the first service charters in the UK. It was a simple written document that outlined a series of promises I made to every client. Nothing flashy, nothing over the top — just clear commitments I knew I could keep no matter how busy I became as my business grew.

It included things like:

• How long I would take to respond to emails

• How many times the phone would ring before someone answered

• The principles of care my team and I would always follow

These may sound like small things, but small things matter. By putting those commitments in writing, I turned verbal promises into tangible standards that clients could trust.

The Power of Consistency

There’s a temptation when we meet new clients to promise the world. We want to impress, to stand out, to make ourselves more attractive. But the danger is this: if you make promises you can’t consistently keep, you eventually break trust — and trust, once broken, is hard to rebuild.

That’s why I always encourage professionals to write down what they stand for. Keep it simple. Focus on the fundamentals. Then make sure you deliver on those standards every single time.

Consistency isn’t glamorous, but it is powerful. It engenders trust, strengthens relationships, and gives clients the reassurance that they’ve made the right choice.

Final Thought

If you don’t already have a service charter or defined standards, start small. Write down the principles you want every client to experience when they work with you. Make those promises realistic, keep them visible, and most importantly — deliver on them consistently.

Because in the end, it’s not the product you sell that keeps clients with you for the long term. It’s the service you deliver and the trust you build along the way.