Summertime and the...

...marketing's easy!

Yes, summer is in full swing. And if you're like many financial professionals, you've throttled back your marketing and lead generation activities - this despite the fact that it's a proven fact that consumers continue to respond to direct marketing campaigns. (See my June 2nd blog post: Debunking the Myth about Summer Seminars).

If you're among the savvy minority of producers who are keeping up their marketing momentum and continuing prospecting efforts throughout the summer months - BRAVO!If, however, you're "taking the summer off" and aren't investing in your marketing, at least take this time to review your marketing results from the first 6 months of 2014. Marketing and prospecting, like investing, is a process and cycle. If you aren't tracking what you're spending your marketing dollars on - and the results of those investments - this is the time to do so. Then, calculate your ROI.

If the ROI on your marketing dollars is 200% or more, you're doing things right and you should use the summer to set in place a marketing plan and strategy to capitalize on your past results. 

If the ROI is less than 200%, something's broken. Identify what's not working and consult with a trusted colleague or marketing professional to help you find out why a specific marketing campaign failed and then put in place a plan to fix it. 

REMEMBER THIS: When it comes to direct mail (be it lead generation, appointment setting or seminar marketing), if consumers aren't responding, they are sending you a clear message: your offer stinks!

There is a myriad of reasons why a campaign fails. Perhaps you promoted a seminar and didn't offer a free meal or held your seminar at a library. What list did you use? Is the list accurate and up-to-date? Did you offer something as an incentive to respond? (Note: a "free consultation" isn't an incentive; a gift card is an incentive!)

If you're not sure what to do, find a person or company with experience in financial services marketing and ask them to review your failed campaigns. If they're worth their salt, they will be able to give you feedback and recommendations that can improve your results.

Bottom line? Use the summer months to develop a marketing plan that will help you finish the year strong. Collect and analyze data from your marketing and use that data to drive your marketing investments. Finally, find a marketing partner to help you with lead generation activities. Focus on what you do best and outsource tasks that take you away from getting face-to-face with motivated and qualified prospects.

Marketing is an investment - treat it like one!

Have a happy and safe summer!

Publish or Perish!

Social media is undoubtedly a powerful tool for business-to-business (B2B) marketing, but businesses that aren’t using it strategically are missing out on opportunities to engage with their prospects and clients and to meet and exceed their business goals. One way to leverage the power of social media is to publish meaningful original content. The culture of search engine optimization (SEO) almost demands such content; thin content and unfocused lists of links once served as ways to boost your search rankings, but search algorithm changes now highlight quality content as the preferred method for improving users’ experiences with search results. To get your piece of the marketing pie—or the marketing cupcake in this metaphor—compose your own content and publish it in optimized digital spaces so you can earn the cherries on top: the clients.

Give your marketing a credible foundation. Content is king, and your content should provide substance to your business as a brand. Differentiate yourself from your competitors and establish your credibility by taking a stance on issues of interest among your target audience and by sharing your expert opinion. Think of the content you share now and why you do so. Is it because you trust the source of information and want to pass it along? Why not be the trusted source of information instead? Speaking of a trusted source of information, Ryan Roslansky, Head of Content Products at LinkedIn, notes that members should publish because the content “will become a part of their professional identity. So if someone looks up your profile, it’ll be there. It’s a great way to show your knowledge and expertise.” Be the expert. Be the cupcake.

Use multiple social media platforms that make sense for your business. Consider your objectives with social media and what others in your industry are doing with it before you select and strategically use your profiles. Do you want to use your content to engage with prospects, clients and industry leaders in real-time dialogue? Use Twitter to quickly interact with those audiences and to contribute meaningful information to industry-focused dialogue. Do you want to use your content to connect with decision makers? LinkedIn is the gold star standard when it comes to professional networking. Publish blog posts about trends, news and issues that may impact your prospects and clients. Identify companies you’d like to meet with and join LinkedIn groups to which decision makers belong.  Do you want to use your content to give your business a more human feel? Facebook provides a digital space to post videos and videos, allowing more personal and/or targeted interactions with your audiences. The platform’s Boosted Posts promote your business to more targeted audiences that you define. While these platforms can be used for a variety of reasons, these ideas serve as the icing on the cupcake when it comes to connecting with your audience.

Optimize your digital space.  Merely having online real estate as a place to house your content is not enough in today’s digital age. You want prospects and clients to actually find your content, not for it to be lost among your competition’s attempts to bake their own marketing cupcakes. Search engine optimization is crucial to promoting that space and connecting with your target audience. Your website should be accessible to not only that audience, but also search engine robots; those robots can’t see web pages like your audience can and SEO helps the engine discover what your site is about and what information will be most helpful to users. Your business’ name, address and phone number should be located on each page of your website and on your Google+ Local listing.  This information should be in text format, not in a picture file. Your city and state names should be included in the title tag, meta description and in the content pages as appropriate. Google uses a combination of positive reviews, proximity to the searcher, number of citations and other factors to order local results.  Improve these elements and your local rankings will improve, driving more prospects to your website and other digital real estates where they can view your content. If optimization is something you are unfamiliar with, a marketing expert specializing in digital strategy can help you implement these sprinkles on your marketing cupcake.

Stay current and relevant in your industry. The content you compose and publish can include information on your company’s mission, products and services as well as experience you bring to the industry table. Keep your content professional and targeted; don’t post content that is not focused on building an audience, relationships and a reputation as an expert in the field.   Earn your cherries on top of your cupcake and ask that your company support you in doing so.

Don’t let the dessert ruin the supper! Your online integrity is sacred. Your content should reflect your actual business philosophy and practices. Social media and content marketing are not like movies with building facades but no real substance. In the same way that videos can go viral on the web, your reputation can go viral as well – but that knife cuts both ways. So, put together a strategy for your social media and content marketing, and if you’re not sure how to get started, find a social media strategist to help you. It’s worth the investment and can make the difference between a strategy that drives new customers to your business or the loss of revenue and reputation – both online and off.

By: Susan Gail Taylor, Marketing Coordinator and Copywriter at RME360

New Brand, New Services, New Website

On Tuesday, March 11, 2014, RME officially became RME360!

Our new name and logo reflects our new strategy – providing full-circle marketing solutions for business professionals – both big and small. RME360 reflects how we bring businesses full-circle with: 180 degrees of data-driven marketing solutions and 180 degrees of industry knowledge.

The addition of 360 to our name symbolizes our evolution to a company focused on completing the cycle of a business model that recognizes and embraces the importance of being a technology and data-driven partner. The RME reinforces our legacy and continued commitment to provide clients with the best customer service and to bring them face-to-face with motivated and qualified prospects.

RME360 is committed to delivering marketing and lead generation solutions that have evolved with changing landscape of the financial services industry and technological advances.  In addition to our legacy of providing seminar, direct mail and appointment setting solutions, our digital marketing services include SEO strategies for enhancing search results on the web, digital advertising campaign development and management, email marketing campaigns, and mail-to-web solutions including talking mail and customized microsites, as well as detailed web tracking and analytics.

For nearly 20 years RME has been helping financial professionals create new business opportunities in their local markets. During that time, the company has collected research an analyzed its data of campaign effectiveness and has identified media platforms, marketing strategies and event logistics that have proven most effective in various markets across the country.

Past performance does impact future results. We have made major strides in aggregating 20-years of market data and identifying trends and market-based characteristics.  We are using this data in a way not ever seen in the financial services industry.  We know what restaurant draws the most attendees at a workshop in Denver, or what radio station has created the most leads for an advisor in Dallas.  All of our company offerings are rooted in this data-driven research. This data-driven research is now available to financial professionals and integrated into all marketing recommendations delivered by RME360 in-house consultants. 

With RME360, financial professionals have multi-channel, data-driven options available to build their presence and generate leads in their communities.  They can use any or all of our lead generation solutions and can tap into the expertise our in-house consultants to build a plan based on their specific needs and budget. 

Please take a minute to visit our new website (RME360.com) – especially our new corporate video (it’s the first rotator on the site or watch it now by clicking here).

Bob Wilgus is the Director of Corporate Communications and Social Community Manager for RME360.

Prospecting: The Advisor's Definition of Insanity

I titled this blog post, Prospecting: The Advisor's Definition of Insanity because it holds true for both successful and struggling producers:

For successful advisors: If they always do, what they always did, they always get what they always got – a perpetual flow of prospects to see every single month of the year.

For struggling advisors: If they always do, what they always did, they always get what they always got – feeling frustrated, empty appointment calendars and constant pressure to close the few prospects they do see.

I’ve been in the financial services industry for almost 25 years and if there’s one thing that continues to amaze me it’s how so many financial advisors struggle with (and it goes by many names): lead generation, prospecting, marketing, etc.

Every year, financial professionals are surveyed and every year prospecting tops the list of biggest challenges or concerns. And every year I sit back in my chair, scratch my head and say out loud – “Why?”

There are several lead generation programs, like seminar marketing and direct mail, which have been working for decades. They are proven and effective ways to present your value proposition and services to a specific, targeted group of prospects. If done correctly and consistently (and I’ve seen the proof of this for the last 13 years), direct marketing is the best way to generate a constant flow of prospects – every month!

Now, I know times have changed and rapid growth of the internet and social media have added a new layer to the “marketing mix.” While having an active presence on social media and an optimized web page are now critical parts of a successful financial practice, they do have one major weakness when compared to direct mail: there are no financial “filters” on the world-wide-web. Yes, prospects can read an email you send them. They can search (and hopefully) find you when they do a Google search for a financial advisor. They can even “like” or “follow you on Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn. But I have yet to see if these platforms filter by financial group, if they have money to invest or buy a life insurance or annuity product. That means when you do get an internet-generated lead. You, or a staff member specially trained to manage these types of leads, will have to pre-qualify each prospect.

With direct mail, you can target your message and offer to a specific demographic profile: age, household income, zip code, IPA (income producing asset) and dozens of other “selects.” Does this profile guarantee that this prospect will buy from you? Nope. Do you know a lot more about them, demographically, than an internet-generated lead. Absolutely! (Note: Having an active social media and web presence is still critical with direct mail because most of the prospects will “Google you” before they respond – so don’t abandon social media and your website all together!)

So, back to the core question: Why do so many financial advisors struggle with generating leads? There are several ancillary reasons, but in my experience the primary reason is – generating leads costs MONEY!

Marketing is an investment – not an expense! If you ask a fellow advisor who has been consistently successful and has a growing practice, they will all have one thing in common when it comes to marketing and lead generation: they invest money every month to make sure they have a consistent flow of prospects. They might have different models, but they understand there’s a direct correlation between their firm’s success and consistently funding their marketing and lead generation plan.

The new year is quickly approaching. This is a great opportunity to infuse a new mindset about marketing, prospecting and lead generation. Ask yourself this final question: A year from today, which definition of insanity would YOU want applied to your firm – then make it happen.

Bob Wilgus is the Director of Corporate Communications and Social Community Manager for RME360. You can reach him at: bob.wilgus@rme360.com

Leverage the power of testimonials – written, recorded and live at your seminars!

Whether looking for a new dentist, contractor, plumber or even a pet sitter, millions of consumers visit Better Business Bureau and Angie’s List and other consumer advocate-oriented websites to read comments and reviews before making important purchasing decisions. Even more consumers will ask their friends and neighbors for referrals – all because they value advice from trusted sources and want avoid making the wrong decision and wasting time and money.

Knowing that, consider joining many of the best marketers in the country by personally inviting some of your best clients to provide a testimonial letter, attend your seminars or record a video testimonial. Tell them to be honest about their experience of working with you. Encourage them you to tell their story in their own words – not scripted.

A personal testimonial can do more to help you generate new prospects, set more appointments and gain more clients than almost any other non-marketing technique. Why? Because consumers are more likely to believe a fellow consumer when it comes to making such an important decision – like choosing a financial advisor.

It’s leveraging the reality that word-of-mouth by a client carries more credibility in the eyes and mind of a potential client than all the awards and designations this wonderful business can bestow on us.

And if that isn’t enough, you can also use this as an opportunity to share new concepts and solutions with these clients. Solutions that might not have been available when you last met with them. Call it cross-selling. Call it cementing an already-strong client-advisor relationship. Just do it!

NOTE: Based on your licences,  there may be restrictions and guidelines on using testimonials. Please refer to your compliance department to make sure you're following the rules! 

Bob Wilgus is the Director of Corporate Communications and Social Community Manager for RME360. You can reach him at: bob.wilgus@rme360.com

Successful Advisors and Successful Farmers have a lot in common.

I grew up in a small rural town in Massachusetts. There were many small and medium sized farms in the area and my first job was working at a tobacco farm. I was reflecting on my October 30^th post calling for November to be "Pay It Forward Financial Planning Month” and I was searching for another way to make the case to help at least one prospect who didn’t meet the “ideal client profile.”

Then it hit me! Letting a field go fallow!

Leaving a field to lie fallow simply means leaving a field to be unseeded and unspoiled for a season or more. Farmers let fields lie fallow because it is one of the best ways to allow the land to replenish its nutrients and regain its fertility without resorting to the application of fertilizers. It also helps prevent erosion as the roots of the plants left to grow on the land help to hold the soil in place against the ravages of wind and rain.

How does this apply to working with prospects who might not have the “minimum” amount of money to justify you working with them? Well, all I have to do is take definition above and swap out some key words.

Paying it forward simply means empowering a prospect to grow their savings independently and support and educate him/her during this maturity. Advisors who help prospects that don’t have large amounts of investable assets is one of the best ways to allow the prospect to establish basic saving, investing and planning skills, replenish its their financial and retirement assets and regain their confidence without resorting to making the prospect have to make significant  – and often premature financial sacrifices. It also helps prevent losing this client to other advisors (once the amount of assets have grown to a level where they are now a target of competing financial advisors) all while helping protect the clients financial position against the uncertainty of the market and economy.

Makes sense, doesn’t it?

I hope you’ll consider making November "Pay It Forward Financial Planning Month.”

Unleash the Power of Common Courtesy in your Prospecting

In the never-ending task of lead-generation and prospecting, many sales people are forgetting an underused concept—common courtesy.

In a survey conducted by PCPL (Daytona, FL based market research company, only 50% of financial advisors had “any” form of sales lead and follow up program and only 1% are sending ANY form of communication to a lead past the initial request for information.

When you look from the client’s perspective, the evidence continues to mount – lack of respect and common courtesy is a serious problem.

This, along with other striking facts were uncovered in a survey, Aggravating Circumstances, funded by The Pew Charitable Trusts, Public Agenda takes a detailed look at what Americans are thinking about courtesy, manners, rudeness and respect.

According to the survey, not only do eight in 10 Americans in the study say a lack of respect and courtesy is a serious problem, but six in 10 say things have become worse in recent years.

With the buying public’s awareness and sensitivity about respect and common courtesy, today’s salespeople need to set themselves apart from that perception by moving away from high-pressure messages and towards simple courtesy-based message.

Just saying “thank you” or a quick note or post card to a prospect can be the difference between a dead lead and an appointment.

In fact, according to the Pew Survey, just under 50 percent of those responding said that people only say “Please and Thank you” some of the time!

What does this all boil down to? OPPORTUNITY.

It’s time to re-think the way you communicate with your prospects and clients. Yes, it’s business. Yes, it’s helping people make informed financial decisions, but clearly the buying public is telling us that common courtesy is lacking when it comes to how they are being talked to. This simple gesture can make a difference!

HAPPY HALLOWEEN!

Happy Halloween from everyone at RME! 

If you're out and about tonight, watch out for the little ghouls and gobblins Trick or Treating!