I'm not crazy. During tough times, it takes more than the ordinary to get through. It takes the extraordinary.
Hyperbole about service, value and experience are not enough. It takes a drastic shift to get people to change their state of mind, and try something new.
Look for areas in your business where you can give something away. I know this goes against what you want to do. Your survival mentality says you should raise fees, rates, and commissions so you can stop the flow of red ink. You feel that you need to get more from fewer clients to stop the hemorrhaging in your practice.
The problem is if you try to get more from your existing clients, they will start to feel pressured. I'm not saying you shouldn't try to manage more of your clients' assets, or that you shouldn't try to grow your book with the people you already have. That is a must. What I'm saying is don't try to get them to spend more for the same services that they've already been getting.
So what should you give away? Things of real and perceived value. But you can't give away something you've been giving away, and make it look like you're doing something new.
For example, if you've always offered a free initial visit, you can't start giving that away because you always have.
What about a calculation or report that's easy to do with your amazing whizbang software? Sure, you may have charged for this in the past but now it's too important for your clients not to have the information.
What about having FREE days? Take your traditionally slowest business day and offer FREE meetings that day to all clients. If they want to buy or sell an investment, they must pay for that but your time will be FREE. Break it up into 30-minute sessions and once the day is full, people will have to wait until next week, or pay the traditional fee if they expect you to squeeze them in, perhaps after regular hours.
Look for other ideas. It could be fun! What else can you give to your clients to help your business grow and prosper?
Rainy days are here! As a business owner, I've always been told to take some cash generated by the good times and stash it away for the tough times. Here's another way to look at it: by offering some things for free, you're reinvesting from the good years to make it through the leaner ones.
Martin R. Baird, author of "The 7 Deadly Sins of Advisor Marketing" is president of AdvisorMarketing.com , the premier Internet-based source for free marketing advice, tools, and information for self-driven, success oriented, financial advisors who demand information that helps them market their practice. Reach him at 480-991-6421
Give It Away - To learn more about this author, visit Donald F. Pooley's Website.
Like this article? Share it with your friends
 |
Related Businesses - Evan Elite Authors |
|
Leanne Hoagland-Smith
Are your sales where you want them to be? Will you be one of the few who achieves sales success or one of the many who have failed to change? So what are you doing to change those results? Let’s be honest, with companies moving globally and at lightening speeds, the traditional business solutions are outdated and dead. My approach moves your business out of its comfort zone and secures your competitive advantage now. If you are seeking to increase sales, build customer loyalty, create a culture of great attitudes or just achieve some sleep filled nights, then we should talk because my clients have experienced exactly those types of results. Learn more about customer loyalty at http://www.processspecialist.com/customer-loyalty.htm Give me a call at 219.759.5601 for a free strategy session. P.S. If you are seeking a motivational speaker, sales trainer or small business expert that will leave your audience smiling and remembering, please feel free to contact me at 219.759.5601. - Visit Leanne Hoagland-Smith's Website |
|
The Evan Elite Authors program is currently in beta phase. For details please contact us.
|
|
|
Donald F. Pooley
(Visit Donald's Website)
Don Pooley, the author of this article,
allows you to publish
it if you include these credit lines:
Copyright 2005, Donald F. Pooley, Inc.
Don Pooley CLU, CFP, CHFC, "The
Advisor's Advisor" has shared
his marketing know-how with audiences of
life insurance men
in all major Canadian cities, London,
Australia, Chicago, New
York, San Francisco, Hong Kong, and
Singapore, and now in his
free ezine. To get more ideas on marketing
your services, plus
free ebooks, subscribe now at www.eTIP.ca/
a>
|
|
|
|