Marketing to your client base - set your expectations!

So you've decided to run a sales campaign, promote a new product, re-engage your client base with a new service offer, re-launch your business with a family advice offer to tap into the intergenerational opportunity or simply try and sell more products into your client base and increase the number of connections your clients have with you.

Let's suppose for arguments sake that faced with an opt-in regime and the need to clearly articulate your services you've designed a unique proposition for your clients. Perhaps you plan to engage your clients differently even positively with things like a lifestyle questionnaire or a wealth index.

How many people will adopt this new paradigm of service?

Turn to marketing 101 and understand the adoption of innovations and understand your client base.

Innovators - are who you should aim to target first. These people are typically adventurous, better educated, younger than the norm and financially stable. Who are these clients in your data base? They will be small in number perhaps 2.5% of your clients.

Hence don't expect huge numbers to beat down a path to your door in these initial days.

But don't give up, the next segment you need to target are the early adopters. These people like to be socially accepted and your marketing needs to speak to that need so tailor your communications accordingly. It's worth it as these 13.5% will reap significant rewards for your efforts.

Next who in your data base are the middle class, deliberate and cautious clients, with above average education and income but need something that is proven - tried and tested. This is when you change your marketing message to use social proof that is tell them stories that this has worked well with clients you have already worked with.

This retake on your marketing - version 3 as it stands is worth the effort as typically they make up the next 34%.

So the messages you need:

version 1 - it's cuttng edge, new and a different way of doing things.

version 2 - this is working and there are opportunities to be part of it.

version 3 - this really works and we have proven results for you to examine.

So be it a new holistic way of engaging your clients. A cutting edge product or service. Or a relaunch of your business - tailoring your message and carefully selecting your targets from your client base not only works but is crucial to your success. Knowing what to expect as above will help you keep motivation to keep pushing ahead with your innovation!

Pay $0 for your next financial planning client lead and pay 1x$1 for your next financial planning client base

How'd you like to pay $0 in marketing costs for your next financial planning or insurance lead? That's right, no telemarketing costs incurred marketing to your existing client base or leads that you've paid for or clients that you've purchased.

Speaking of books of clients that you've purchased, just how much did you pay? A multiple of 2 times? 3 times? Surely not 3.5 times? In this market?

How'd you like to pay a multiple of 1 times for your next client base if not less?

This is the reality that financial planning and insurance professionals are creating for themselves by asking the right questions.

It is the people that they are posing these questions to that delivers this reality.

They are conversing with and engaging their existing client base.

Pay $0 for your next financial planning or insurance lead

Pick your top 25 clients and ask:

1) Who do they work for?
2) What community or social groups do they belong to?
3) Who do they employ?
4) Who are the related to?


Let's start with who do they work for or who do they employ.

If they are employers themselves - what about that pay packet they pay staff - (that their staff rely upon) - it can be taken away from that staff member in an instant should that person be unable to work due to illness or an accident away from the workplace. Is that something they as an employer thinks is in the interest of the well being of their staff and is a positive outcome? Of course not.

If they are employed. Contact that employer. Offer that employer a free statement of advice (financial plan/insurance recommendation). Why? So they can experience the service and outcomes that one of their staff has experienced. And upon experiencing the positive outcomes and process - should that not be something of value they could expose the remainder of their staff to?

Pay a multiple of $1 times for your next client base

Pick your top 25 clients and ask:

1) Who do they obtain accounting and business advice services from?


Contact the accountant and yes offer that accountant a free statement of advice (financial plan/insurance recommendation). Why? So they can experience the service and outcomes that one of their clients has experienced.

Maybe they won't buy in to that process that easily. No problem. Send them a sample statement of advice. Make sure it's one that aligns with the accountants niche (if they have one). Highlight in a cover letter / presentation the cross referral opportunities.

If you have constructed your statement of advice in the way we here at PCE have talked about (in our previous posts) then it's most probable they have not seen a document like it in the way it speaks and communicates to the client.

One business we know did just this.

A request came back from the accountant to takeup the free statement of advice. But it was not for the accountant. It was for the accountants mother.

Following the perparation of the statement of advice the recommendations were accepted and implemented. Within a short period of time (6 months) the accountant referred with such regularity that the main adviser based themselves out of the accountants office 2 days a week (7.30am until 5am) engaging with staff and clients.

That adviser now owns 50% of the accountancy practice (bought at 0.90 times).

All that by asking their top clients who did their tax.