5 Myth’s of Financial Advice Marketing

Posted on January 17, 2019 by Mike Kaselnak
  1. Flawless work is enough—NO! Flawless work is expected! It’s the bare minimum. If you think that delivering outstanding results will attract new customers, you are sorely mistaken. It will keep your current clients happy, but will not attract new ones. Why, you ask? Because EVERYONE claims to have outstanding results… the public doesn’t know who to believe and who not to believe… so they don’t believe anyone. If you want to thrive, you have to have a systematic and proactive way to get the word out about the value you provide.

  2. Marketing plans that work are hard to create—the best plan is short and easy to follow. Here are the 6 steps:
    1) Write down EXACTLY what you are trying to accomplish IN DETAIL. Who are you trying to get in front of… how many people… what do you want them to do?
    2) Describe the benefits you are offering in your marketing. Why would someone want to take advantage of your offer? Why does it matter to them? Can they get it elsewhere?
    3) Describe the exact person you want to get in front of.
    4) Describe the thing you do better than all your competitors.
    5) What is it that you want people to think when they hear your firm’s name?
    6) How much are you willing to spend to get in front of each prospect?

    Figure these things out FIRST… and your marketing plan will unfold before you.

  3. The internet offers unlimited marketing opportunities—Yes and no. Because internet marketing has a lower price point… many marketing organizations and advisors have rushed into it. Unfortunately, just like seminars, dinners and everything else advisors have used before… it works great until everyone starts doing it. After it gets crowded… it still works… you just have to look different than everyone else.

  4. You must find a client’s pain—We’ve been told by guru’s to ask silly questions like… “What keeps you up at night?”… “If you had a magic wand, what problem would you solve?”

    These questions make you sound like a used car salesperson. People are sophisticated when it comes to sales pitches. They can see questions like those from a mile away. Also, if they really had pain… they wouldn’t have waited for your marketing piece to finally address it… they would have reached out to someone a long time ago to fix it. Remember, we want clients that have money… and clients with money don’t have overwhelming pain.

  5. Best Practices Work—Yes and no. They work until everyone does them… and then they stop working. To be successful today, you must do 2 things…
    1) You must market in a way that is different from all your competitors
    2) You must hone your sales skills so that when you get in front of someone… even tire kickers and plate lickers… you can get them to move their money to you. When was the last time you taped your meeting with a client and figured out what you could have done better? If you haven’t done this… you AREN’T getting any better.

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Solve the Puzzle of Getting that Big Hitter to Respond

Posted on January 10, 2019 by Mike Kaselnak

Do you have one person or a group of people that if you landed them… it would be a huge boost to your business? If you are willing to invest a little effort and 6-weeks of your time… here’s a creative way to get them to pay attention to you.

A non-profit created a very successful fund-raising campaign using a puzzle. Here’s how you can use the same idea to get your big prospects’ attention.

  1. Create a simple graphic that illustrates or states your Unique Selling Proposition.

  2. Google “Personalized Puzzle” and you’ll find several companies that will create a puzzle for you. The cost is around $15.

  3. Make sure to use the “children’s” version of the puzzle so that your puzzle has bigger, and fewer pieces. Around 30 pieces would be good.

  4. Send the first 3 pieces of the puzzle that would make up one of the corners. You should insert a cover letter that lets them know when they are able to solve the puzzle… to either call or email you the complete word (or idea) of the puzzle… and you’ll give them a $100 gift card to a popular, local restaurant. Let them know you’ll be sending them pieces every week for the next 10 weeks.

  5. Here’s what’s happening…
    1) You are getting them to interact with you via the puzzle
    2) You are approaching them in a way nobody else ever has… you are different and are standing out from your competitors.
    3) You are getting them to actually THINK about your proposition. REALLY think about it. IF you have a great idea or proposition… you are golden!
    4) You are getting them to reach out to you (when they finish the puzzle)… instead of you reaching out to them. The chemistry is completely different when they are chasing you vs. you chasing them. In a GOOD way!
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Double Your Response Rate with a Tool That’s Sitting on Your Desk

Posted on January 3, 2019 by Mike Kaselnak

Want a simple way to double the chance somebody will respond to your letter or request?  Then capitalize on the fact that people need to feel they are getting personal attention.  In several tests (neurosciencemarketing.com), it was found that when a handwritten, yellow sticky note was attached to a letter or advertisement… the response rate more than doubled. 

Here’s the odd thing… handwriting the note ON the actual letter or advertisement did boost response… but only by 50%.  Handwriting the exact same note on a yellow sticky note affixed to the letter boosted response by 100%.  And it gets better… the responses with the sticky were also more thorough and prompt!

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Want a terrific AND totally compliant way to use testimonials?

Posted on December 13, 2018 by Mike Kaselnak

We all know testimonials are VERY effective… but Registered Reps have to be very careful about using them… and RIAs aren’t allowed to use them at all…

OR ARE THEY?

You should have a small group of client Ambassadors that you treat like gold.  You should identify your most influential and persuasive clients.  Meet with them and ask if they’d like to become a member of your Ambassador’s Club.  Of course they will want details…

Ambassador’s Club is an exclusive club of who you feel are your very best clients.  Because they are your best clients you’d like to have regular private events and get-togethers with them…

  • Wine tastings
  • Dinners at nice restaurants
  • Party bus to the ball game, concert or play
  • Private backyard barbecues
  • Etc.

If they are interested, you ask them if they would be willing… as an “Ambassador” to take occasional emails or phone calls from prospective clients who want a reference.

First, it is completely fine to give the name and contact information when someone asks for a reference (which is now a legal testimonial)… AND what do you think these people that you treat like gold are going to say about you?

Second, these are folks that could rotate through any seminar you do to tout your incredible service and trustworthiness at the end of the seminar to boost appointment ratios.

Lastly, some of your Ambassadors will give you referrals all on their own… and, we can never get enough referrals.

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Get Your Mail Read… and, make a killer case for your offer

Posted on December 10, 2018 by Mike Kaselnak

Advisors have two problems… their marketing is ignored by great prospects… and the few that look at it are not impressed.  You can solve both problems with a little ingenuity.

Combine 3 things:

  1. Technology
  2. Personalization
  3. And expand your message with brilliant proof and pictures

Find your target market and then…

  • Hand address an envelope to them (if you are too busy to do this, there are lots of services that will hand write them for you.
  • Insert a blank card with a VERY small message on it… include a small cheap magnifying glass (you can get a pack of 144 for only $7.42 on Amazon). The message should be small enough that they need the magnifying glass to read it.
    • You can create your own message but for an example you could use…
      • A domain like, Youaregettingscrewed.com (buy domain for 99 cents on GoDaddy)
      • Create personal URLs for each person you will send this mailing to, so the teeny weeny message would say—They could be paying you 10X more on your account… instead, they are keeping it… look here youaregettingscrewed.com/bobsmith
      • You would then have a landing page that would demonstrate… in this case… that cash accounts in brokerages generally are paying 0.1%… and you could get him/her more than 1% in your cash account.
      • Then track who goes on line and immediately call them… don’t wait for them to call you.

A firm that used this concept (though not the same message) landed appointments with 12% of the recipients!  Is that worth jumping through a few hoops?

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Make it really “Sticky”

Posted on December 4, 2018 by Mike Kaselnak

Business cards are a waste of money… UNLESS you make them sticky (more about that in a second).

Think about it… what percentage of business cards do you hold onto.  Okay, now divide that number by 10… and that’s the percentage of people that will hold onto your business card.

So, how DO you get people to hold onto your cards?  Make them sticky, by making them different.  You can do this a number of ways:

  • Put information on them they will want to keep (if that means you need to make your card bigger… EVEN BETTER! It means it will stand out from the rest.)
  • Make it something they can use
    • A multi-function survival tool
    • Coasters for tables
    • A puzzle
    • A mini flashlight
    • A ready made herb garden
    • Or a surprise they will want to keep sharing (check out the two links below for some fabulous ideas!)
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Grab Your Prospects by the Nose

Posted on November 26, 2018 by Mike Kaselnak

Do you want people to actually keep your mailers, letters and postcards… instead of throwing them away?  And maybe even share it with their friend, neighbor or relative?  Because… the longer they keep it around… the more likely they are to act on it.

Here’s a way to do it for free.

Instead of putting a normal stamp on your mail… opt for the USPO’s new “scratch and sniff” stamp.  It costs just a bit more, but makes it more memorable once they realize you sent them scratch and sniff.  When  you scratch the stamps it smells just as the picture shows… various popsicles… from mango and orange to root beer and cola.

You can tie it together to your offer with things like…

  • Better than an ice cream headache
  • Things aren’t always as they seem
  • Sometimes you need to pay attention to the extra value inside

These are just a few ideas… or come up with one of your own!  To find the stamps simply Google the phrase “scratch and sniff first class stamps”.

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Unique Invitation Gets Investors Attention

Posted on November 14, 2018 by Mike Kaselnak

If everyone’s marketing looks the same… you are going to get diminishing returns on your marketing.  You’ve GOT to do something different to catch people’s eye.  That’s why I love this mailer!  It taps into what’s happening in the news… throws in an interesting tidbit that will get people talking… and has people re-evaluating their current investor relationships.

You can get it here, courtesy of 5Q Group.

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Quick Way to Boost Inquiries from Your Website

Posted on November 7, 2018 by Mike Kaselnak

There is a simple, easy and free way to move yourself up the search page for when somebody searches for financial help online.  What do you do?  You simply put your address on every single page of your website… not just the contact page.

The more the search engines see your address… the more likely it will move you up the list when people either ask for “nearby” help… or when their computer or phone has their location identifier on (which is most times).

There you go simple and no-cost!

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More than Triple Your Prospects Rate of Return… INSTANTLY

Posted on October 25, 2018 by Mike Kaselnak

Most brokerage cash accounts are paying 0.1 to 0.3% interest. It is very simple, even in the low interest rate environment that we are in to find an FDIC insured savings account paying around 2% interest. Presto! You’ve given them a 1000% boost on their income.

You can now use the distrust you’ve instilled, in that their current advisor has been taking advantage of them to get the money moved to you.

To take advantage of this… create a postcard with the message on the front side…

Your broker doesn’t want you to see this postcard

And then on the backside write a handwritten note…

Hi [Name], if you have a cash just sitting in a stock brokerage account, there is an easy way to get triple the interest on it using an FDIC insured account.  Give me a quick call and I can fill you in.

Thanks! And look forward to speaking with you.

[Your Signature]

When they call, ask them what they are earning on their cash account.  If they don’t know, it’s almost guaranteed that it is a pittance.  Tell them you have a way them you have a way to triple what they make on their cash account… with FDIC and you’d love to show them how.

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