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It’s time to rethink your financial advisor marketing strategy. You know, in hindsight, which of your marketing tactics succeeded and which ones tanked this year? And now’s your chance to tweak your growth plan to achieve a greater return on your marketing dollars next year. So, whether you have used financial seminars in the past to grow your client base, or are thinking about hosting a financial seminar for the first time, here are some tips to help you maximize their value. Let’s go!
There’s strength in numbers
The more, the merrier, right? Here’s a tip – you won’t be as successful in hosting a “one-off” financial seminar as you would be scheduling three or more at a time. By developing a longer-term financial seminar strategy, you’ll create more momentum by getting in front of more prospects consistently. This will open up additional opportunities for you to engage with people in an environment where they’re comfortable.
Request client testimonials
Every longtime financial professional has happy clients. Reach out to them! Some of them should be willing and able to promote your services if you ask. We all know people believe their peers over advertising. In fact, 90% of consumers read reviews before visiting or doing business with a company. And having loyal clients give testimonials at your financial seminars and in your financial marketing will make a positive impression on attendees and turn more of them into appointments.
Timing is everything
The time of your financial seminar is crucial! Will your prospects be working? Stuck in traffic? Reduce any barriers for people to arrive, so you can meet with as many prospects as possible.
A growing number of people aged 55 and up are working part-time or full-time. Why? Some of them haven’t saved enough for retirement. Factor this into your financial seminar planning process. Knowing the traffic patterns in the metro areas where your prospects live and work is also critical. A financial seminar scheduled for 6:30 p.m., for example, should give most attendees time to get there.
Connect, connect, connect!
Pick up the phone and call the people who register for your events. This is a chance to establish a rapport with them before you meet. They may have some preliminary questions or concerns you can address. We know from experience that when financial seminar presenters reach out to prospects ahead of time, it’s proven to boost attendance rates.
Plan well ahead
Whether or not you’re new to seminar hosting, give yourself a minimum of 35 days to book a campaign. The last thing you want is not to have enough time to advertise your financial seminar to your prospects. It makes it much harder to fill up those seats. A last-minute campaign promotion could lower your RSVP rate significantly.
Once you’ve got a good response to your financial seminar invitation, we recommend you do a run-through of your presentation. This way, you don’t sound like you’re reading from a script. Fun fact: one client of ours, who does 75+ events a year, practices his presentations once a week. There’s no such thing as being too prepared.
Still not convinced?
For the risk-averse who want to improve their customer acquisition rates, LeadingResponse has a number of programs featuring guarantees. Learn more about our financial marketing solutions by contacting us.
