Centers Of Influence Marketing
2005 can be your most successful year ever. All you have to do is set goals and work smart to achieve them.
One smart strategy you may be familiar with is focusing some of your energy on centers of influence.
Grant Hicks is a marketing consultant for financial advisors, and I think you will enjoy his article in this arena...
"Success comes to those who set goals and pursue them regardless of obstacles and disappointments." Napoleon Hill
Center of Influence Seminars
By Grant W. Hicks co-author of the newly released book "Guerrilla Marketing For Financial Advisors"(Trafford Publishing 2003)
Concept: Hold a luncheon seminar with accountants, lawyers and other centers of influence such as mortgage brokers, realtors and business associates. The purpose is to share ideas on tax advantaged investing, estate planning and mutual topics of interest. These topics are what successful financial advisors help clients with such as estate planning, tax minimization or wealth transfer for business owners.
Objective: The primary objective is to gain valuable referrals from a network of accountants, lawyers and other centers of influence. The secondary objective is to build a team network of professionals to support clients in all areas of financial planning. You always want to build relationships with a team of professionals. In order to educate other professionals about valuable client planning ideas.
In turn they will be able to share these ideas with their clients. Set the agenda to use real client examples and case studies to apply ideas in and informative and practical way to create true-life scenarios. Also, to communicate and work with a team of professionals to further enhance your clients overall tax, estate and financial plans.
Strategy: Bring in a guest speaker such as a mutual fund wholesaler or insurance expert to share different tax and estate planning ideas. Topics include insurance planning, estate planning, retirement planning, tax or your area of expertise.
You can do special seminars just for accountants or lawyers only. One such seminar is having a trust officer come out and speak about estate planning experiences and advanced techniques to organize affairs through trusts, estate freezes and other planning vehicles.
Another theme is to set up an educational series and have a schedule to send to your centers of influence along with a survey of topics that they are interested in hearing about. Another variation is having a dinner. A dinner may be more formal way to build the relationship. A breakfast is also very convenient for most professionals.
Grant's Tip: When you do these types of seminars, plan for 1 hour and buy lunch for them. All invites should be followed up by phone and confirmed the day before the seminar. Try to target eight in total, which may include, accountants, lawyers, realtor, mortgage broker, insurance broker or other members of your professional team or network. Show these professionals that you have tremendous resources within your company and industry and that they can tap into these resources as a member of your team.
The uniqueness of the idea is that the investment or insurance company can share their company's view on tax reduction and what they try to do for the investor in developing their products for the marketplace. For example, you can use their company materials to explain what they are doing about taxation.
The attendees now have a better understanding of the company's position on taxation. Ask people to stay after the presentation to ask the wholesaler specific questions on taxation and estate issues which can be addressed in further meetings. The participants usually agree that they now have a clearer understanding of the mutual funds company's position towards tax and estate planning.
Potential Results: The benefit of ongoing relationships and referrals from these professionals in the future and positions the financial advisor to be known for ideas and education. Referrals from other professionals will be triggered by case study examples of where they can help their clients and enhance their professionalism.
A secondary benefit is to get the professionals as clients as well. These professionals may also be referring additional business to each other as a result of this meeting. The key to making it successful is follow up, feedback, additional seminars and referrals.
Cost: The cost for lunch for 10 people approximately $100
(8 centers of influence, yourself and the wholesaler)
Meeting room costs. Invitation costs Total $100
By
Grant W. Hicks
co-author of the newly released book "Guerrilla Marketing For Financial Advisors" (Trafford Publishing 2003)
My Very Best To You,
Brian Maroevich
Author, Amazing Prospecting Letters
www.Insurance-Leads-Advisor.com
© 2004-2005 www.Insurance-Leads-Advisor.com
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