“Ask yourself honestly: which tier am I? Am I willing to do the work to jump to Tier 4 or 5?”
— Joe Templin · 30+ years in financial services · 10,000+ client meetings
The Honest Truth
These levels aren't about feeling. They're about systems.
Most advisors believe they’re a tier higher than they actually are. That’s not a character flaw — it’s human nature. But it’s the single biggest reason practices plateau.
Read each tier carefully. Be honest. The goal isn’t to feel good about where you are — it’s to see the gap clearly enough to close it.
Tier 0
Survival
Tier 1
Sporadic
Tier 2
Stuck
Tier 3
Established
Tier 4
Producing
Tier 5
Machine
Where do you sit on the Introduction Machine spectrum?
0
Tier Zero
Survival Mode — No System
No System
Tier Zero is for those who rarely ask for — or get — introductions. If you’re wondering how you’re going to get your next appointment because you have nobody to call, this is you.
- Making cold calls because there’s no one else to contact.
- Buying leads and hoping the math somehow works out.
- Running tabling events and raffles just to scrape two or three appointments.
- No system. No repeatable process. No pipeline.
Path forward:
Start doing anything systematically. Even an imperfect system beats no system. Most Tier 0s can jump to Tier 2 quickly once they commit to a process.
1
Tier One
A Few Introductions. No Consistency.
Sporadic
You get a few introductions a week — mainly from people you know well enough to beg, or from clients who genuinely like you. Your activity is sporadic and hope is your strategy.
- You’ve had success with friends and family — but they’re starting to dodge your calls.
- You celebrate keeping a single meeting in a day.
- 90% of your day is spent not in front of clients — in worry, cold LinkedIn, or whatever.
- Production spikes when you get a lucky referral, then flatlines for weeks.
Path forward:
Consistency. You don’t need better tactics yet — you need to show up and execute the same process every single day.
2
Tier Two
Doing "OK." The Most Frustrating Level.
Stuck
Tier 2 is doing “ok” — and that’s exactly the problem. Just enough to hang on but just enough to be frustrated because you know you can do better.
- You ask for referrals and once a week someone gives you a handful. The rest is sporadic.
- You feel uncomfortable asking, so you skip it in most meetings because “it didn’t feel right.”
- You end most weeks in the single digits on introductions.
- You are so close to breaking through — you just don’t have the process yet.
Path forward:
3
Tier Three
Established — But Not Flush.
Established
You’re asking most of the time and getting one or two introductions per meeting. You have enough leads to run your practice — but not enough to feel comfortable.
- Probably making MDRT or President’s Club, yet still feel tight every week.
- The quality of introductions isn’t at the level you believe you deserve.
- You still feel the pinch of scarcity even though you’re technically succeeding.
- You can stay slightly uncomfortable, or evolve from salesperson to business person.
Path forward:
4
Tier Four
Producing. Not Yet a Machine.
Producing
You’re consistently getting two or more introductions per meeting because you ask every time. You have an abundance of people to call — but few of them excite you.
- Probably making Court of the Table. Not worrying about money except for the big things.
- Among the production leaders in your office. You get the trips.
- Getting introduced because clients like you — but you’re still in the same client strata.
- You see peers doing 3× with less stress at every conference, and you feel it.
Path forward:
5
Tier Five
You Are the Introduction Machine.
The Machine
You have systems that run almost on autopilot — getting you as many introductions as you want, to the people you want, with no concern about the process. All is clicking.
- Your concerns are about managing time to maximize results — not whether introductions will come.
- You take the time you want for family, community, and other passions without guilt.
- Your practice feeds itself. Every client is a source. Every meeting is an opportunity.
- The machine runs. You oversee it.
Where The Intro Machine takes you.
Not overnight. But systematically — in under 90 days.
$250
Per Introduction
Let’s talk numbers — because I’m a physicist and I believe in them. If you earn $125,000 this year and received 500 introductions, each introduction was worth $250 to your income. That’s not a metaphor. That’s division. Get just two more per week — and that’s a $10,000 raise.