Hot Button Marketing For Advisors by Sara Lautman

Strategy Brief

Create Hot-Button Marketing Messages Opportunity

Audience

Objectives

Resources

Every advisor needs at least six hot-button messages in their marketing toolkit. These messages define the advisor's relationship to the market and outline his or her competitive advantages and emotional appeal. Developing these six messages focuses your efforts, enables consistent marketing, and clarifies for clients, prospects, and COIs your value. It helps you build a brand that resonates with clients and showcases your expertise. All clients All prospects COIs Referral targets • Build a suite of marketing messages that define your position to your market • Emotionally connect with clients, prospects, and COIs • Have messaging materials at the ready for every situation • Focus your marketing efforts for consistent, repeatable results • Build a reputation in your target market or community Marketing Messages • Positioning Statement • Elevator Speech • Sound Bite • 5 Takeaways • Professional Stories • Call to Action Worksheets: • Client Interview Questions • Value Ladder Questionnaire • Ideal Client Profile • Pain Point & Solutions Worksheet • Positioning Statement Questions • Positioning Statement Templates • Marketing Message Checklist

Time Frame Compliance Action Plan

February-March 2011 None required at this time • Conduct 10 client information interviews • Complete the Value Ladder Questionnaire • Write out a description of your ideal client • Assess market's pain points • Write positioning statement • Write elevator speech • Create sound bite • Choose 5 Takeaways • Develop 2-3 professional stories • Create a call to action

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Advisor/Client Solution

Client Interview Questions Focus on the Client: •

What are the major trends affecting you/business?

•

What is keeping you up at night?

•

What financial knowledge do people in your business/situation need?

•

What kind of opportunities do you see ahead?

•

What do you think your situation will be this time next year?

•

What bad development has a good chance of occurring this year?

Focus on the Advisor: •

What prompted you to seek out a financial advisor?

•

Why did you choose to work with me?

•

What do you wish I would do better?

•

What do you see as my strong points?

•

How has our relationship affected your thinking?

•

How would you describe me to your friends?

•

How do I compare to my competitors?

•

What 3 words would you use to describe me? Client service? My business?

Advisor/Client Solution

Value Ladder Questionnaire Worksheet instructions: Complete each section as indicated. 1. Who are you? (Background) When someone says, â&#x20AC;&#x153;Tell me a little bit about yourself," you have the option to differentiate yourself and build credibility instead of merely saying, â&#x20AC;&#x153;I am an investment advisor with XYZ firm." Clients are interested in exactly who you are in terms of this business relationship. Take the time to discuss your background, both professional and personal. _____________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________ 2. What do you do? (Unique value proposition) In one sentence, describe what unique value you provide. Use your own words, not a prepackaged marketing phrase. You want to sound unique and conversational. If you are not sure exactly what you do, go through your list of top clients and inventory the unique value you provide to them. If you don't have any clients, craft an answer as if you did. _____________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________

3. Why do you do what you do? (Business beliefs) Every successful advisor is driven by beliefs about financial services, yet few have written them down. What do you believe about investing or managing wealth? Strong business beliefs help you connect emotionally with prospective clients. In fact, they can win business. _____________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________ 4. How do you do what you do? (Process) Clients want to know how you would work with them over time. Given the inherent uncertainty of investing, a clear, branded, unique process helps clients develop a sense of confidence. What is your process? How is it different from those of your competitors? How does it reflect your uniqueness? Is it named? Is it branded? Get started by charting the steps in your process in the table below, outlining the differentiation points and real value of each step. How many steps are in your process?

____________________________________

What do you call your process?

____________________________________

List the steps in your process:

Process Step

What you do

What differentiates your process at this step?

List the real value the client receives in each step.

5. Whom have you already helped? (Client successes) No one wants to be the first. Clients always want to know that you have provided real value to others like them. Looking at your client successes will help you identify patterns in your best relationships. Do you find that you work best with men or women? Entrepreneurs or professionals? Retirees or young professionals? Families or individuals? List one to three client successes, including the key emotional issue, solutions you developed, and the real value you provided to the client. •

Client: Describe the client, even when you are not using the client’s name to protect confidentiality.

•

Key emotional issue: Identify the lynchpin issue that kept this client up at night. Was it a challenge, circumstance, concern, frustration, need, opportunity, or problem or something else?

•

Solution: Describe what solution(s) you delivered to resolve this issue.

•

Real value: What real value did the client receive? How did your solution affect the key emotional issue? Consider both the qualitative (emotional) and quantitative (measurable, financial) real value you brought about for the client.

Client

Key Emotional Issue

Solutions

Real Value to Client

6. What makes you different? (Differentiation) Clients want to know what makes you different. How unique are your company, your solutions, and you, individually? What makes your company different? 1. ___________________________________________________________ 2. ___________________________________________________________ 3. ___________________________________________________________ What makes your solutions different? 1. ___________________________________________________________ 2. ___________________________________________________________

3. ___________________________________________________________ What makes you different? List three core values that anchor you and your team. 1. ___________________________________________________________ 2. ___________________________________________________________ 3. ___________________________________________________________

7. Why should I do business with you? (Real value) An amazing number of advisors fail to state clearly why a client should work with them. Clients want to be told what real value to expect in the relationship. Spell it outâ&#x20AC;&#x201D;what is the qualitative and quantitative real value you provide?

And, to take it further, consider: Your Qualitative (Emotional) Real

Your Quantitative (Measurable) Real

Value

___________________________________ ___________________________________ ___________________________________ ___________________________________ ___________________________________ ___________________________________ ___________________________________ ___________________________________ ___________________________________ ___________________________________ Source: Leo Pusateri, Pusateri Consulting and Training, LLC

Copyright ÂŠ 2011 Horsesmouth, LLC. All rights reserved. It is forbidden to copy or transmit this report in any manner. Unauthorized use, reproduction or distribution of the material contained in this report is a violation of federal law and punishable by civil and criminal penalty. For permission and more information, contact reports@horsesmouth.com.

Advisor/Client Solution

Ideal Client Profile Worksheet instructions: Complete the following to arrive at your ideal client profile. 1.

Demographics of the ideal client Age range:

________________________________________________________________

Family situation: ________________________________________________________________ Residence:

________________________________________________________________

Occupation/Industry :_____________________________________________________________

Valuations and motivations: Lifestyle:

__________________________________________________________________ __________________________________________________________________

Behavioral type: _________________________________________________________________ __________________________________________________________________ Values:

__________________________________________________________________ __________________________________________________________________

Motivations:

__________________________________________________________________ __________________________________________________________________

3. Emotional connection: What personality traits are important to you?

4. Needs and challenges: What problems will your ideal client face?

5. Aspirations and goals: What are your ideal client's goals?

6. Client connections: Describe your ideal client's social networks and referral potential:

7. Net worth and assets: Net worth: __________________________________________________________________________ Investable assets (minimum): ___________________________________________________________ Investable assets (maximum): ___________________________________________________________ Income: ____________________________________________________________________________ Other assets: _________________________________________________________________________

Ideal Client Profile (write it out):

Advisor/Client Solution

Pain Points & Solutions Worksheet Worksheet instructions: First, list the issues facing your clients discovered from your Client Information Interviews. Then choose five pain points relevant to your business and the solution you can offer. Pain Points: Client

Pain Point

Pain Points & Solutions:

Pain Point

Solution

Issue 1 Issue 2 Issue 3 Issue 4 Issue 5

Advisor/Client Solution

Positioning Statement Questions Worksheet instructions: Answer these questions to find ideas for your positioning statement.

1. What kind of advisor are you?

2. What is your look? 3. What is your style?

4. What are your technical skills? 5. What is your subject matter expertise?

6. What problems do you solve? 7. How do clients perceive you?

8. What is your reputation? 9. What are your values and passions?

10. What kind of people do you like to work with? 11. What motivates you? 12. What impact do you want to make on people?

13. What do you want to be remembered for?

Copyright ÂŠ 2011. Horsesmouth, LLC. All rights reserved. It is forbidden to copy or transmit this report in any manner. Unauthorized use, reproduction or distribution of the material contained in this report is a violation of federal law and punishable by civil and criminal penalty. For permission and more information, contact reports@horsesmouth.com.

Advisor/Client Solution

Positioning Statement Templates Worksheet instructions: Try these formats to develop your Positioning Statement.

Version 1:

Competitive Call-Out (Daniel Janal)

Sample:

"I am a financial planner who helps retiring business owners equitize all their years of hard work. Unlike other financial advisors, I offer expertise in succession planning and asset diversification for family business owners."

Draft yours:

I am a _________________________ who helps (Category)

______________________ get/achieve/reach/do (Target market) (circle one) ________________________. Unlike other ____________________, (Primary benefit)

(Category)

I ____________________________________. (Primary difference)

Version 2:

3-Benefit Callout (Katherine Vessenes)

Sample:

"We have a team of experts who help boomers reduce their taxes so they don't run out of money in retirement."

Draft yours:

We provide ______________________, ________________________, (Benefit)

(Benefit)

and _______________________ for ____________________________, (Benefit)

(Target market)

so they can ___________________________________________________________. (Satisfy their deepest desire)

Version 3:

Positioning Framework (Geoffrey A. Moore)

Sample:

"For retirees managing a bewildering array of retirement and investment accounts, Wealth Capital Management is a retirement income specialist that transforms assets into tax efficient income streams that will effortlessly fund the retirement years. Unlike most financial firms, our strategies are custom-fitted to each retiree's unique goals and family dynamics.

Draft yours: • • • • • •

For (target customer) Who (need or opportunity) The (product name) is a (product category) That (statement of key benefit/ compelling reason to buy) Unlike (primary competitive alternative) Our product (statement of primary differentiation)

Write your version Write a draft of your statement below. Be brief and concise, but connect emotionally with your ideal prospect.

Copyright © 2011. Horsesmouth, LLC. All rights reserved. It is forbidden to copy or transmit this report in any manner. Unauthorized use, reproduction or distribution of the material contained in this report is a violation of federal law and punishable by civil and criminal penalty. For permission and more information, contact reports@horsesmouth.com.

Advisor/Client Solution

Marketing Message Checklist Item

Activity Conduct 10 client information interviews

Complete the Value Ladder Questionnaire

Write out a description of your ideal client

Assess your ideal client's pain points based on your interviews

Write your positioning statement

Write your elevator speech

Create a sound bite

Choose your 5 Takeaways

Develop 2-3 professional stories

Why you are an advisor

Who you help

How you help (case study)

Due Date

Create a call to action