Is your calendar filled with stale client appreciation events – the same ones you offered last year? What if you don’t want to host the usual shindig every other financial advisor around town is throwing? Do you want to challenge the norm and branch out into a new experience? What can a financial advisor do to innovate their next event?
A good start is this post! Impact has a few ideas to make your next client appreciation event something your clients have never experienced before.
A Unique Local Travel Experience
A local experience is more than reserving a night in the Regal chain theater — it’s about establishing your presence in your community. Why drive an hour out of town when you can enjoy what your own city has to offer? Big cities will have more options, of course, but even smaller towns have local color which makes them unique. Your local government’s website will have links to different attractions and features which you may not have known were there!
An Impact advisor recently took their clients on just the kind of experience we mean. Their clients were treated to a train ride throughout the Appalachian countryside, served full meals in authentic vintage dining cars. When’s the last time you rode on a train in style?
Your event needn’t be a train ride, either. When’s the last time you visited your city’s art museum? Do you have a botanical garden nearby? How about a museum of natural history? Each of these can host your party, and likely has a space just for events like yours. Keep your options open — you’ll be surprised at what your city offers.
Take in a Live Show
Movie and theater events are a popular choice for Impact’s financial advisors. These client appreciation events are easy to plan and bring the advantage of a guaranteed start time from the theater. But there’s only so many films everyone can agree on, and if they’re too popular you might not be able to reserve an evening while it’s still in theaters.
Conversely, live performances are always unique to that evening’s experience, and are performed at multiple levels (think regional theater up into professional touring companies). They also bring the element of exclusivity to your client appreciation event; anyone can go see that film whenever, but you have to be there for a one-night only musical in the city. (Hard to turn down an invitation to an exclusive live event, don’t you think?)
You also expand your entertainment options — instead of just one movie, you could see a stage show, a play, a comedian, even a full orchestra. Branching outside the “movie night” mold gives you a rich vein of local culture to use for your next event.
(Not a Steak) Dinner
The steak dinner is a staple of the financial advisor circuit, and for good reason. It remains the prime example of luxury dining throughout the country.
That said, the steak dinner is also a typical dining experience. It’s unlikely that any of your clients haven’t dined in one before, or even recently. Why not expand some horizons and find some new food destinations?
As shows like Chef’s Table have shown, there has never been a better time to try international cuisine. Don’t be afraid of breaking out from the norm — something new and exotic is the exact appeal clients might be looking for! You might have to do a bit of legwork, but exposure to new ideas is part of the point. Also, the place doesn’t have to break the bank. Every city has a range, from white tablecloth to killer street food. Find the zone that’s best for you and lock it in!
For example: the prestigious Michelin guide just came to Atlanta, Georgia, our home base. Their list of starred and recommended restaurants covers a huge swath of Atlanta’s culinary diversity. Read the guide to get inspired about a new type of cuisine, or look up a city near yours and see what’s available!
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