Have you ever compared finding a great, profitable prospect to digging for gold? Much like gold mining, finding good prospects that eventually turn into clients takes a lot of digging before you hit “pay dirt.” Strike gold in your practice with these 5 similarities between advisors and gold miners:
- Investment
I’ve talked to several advisors who have worried about marketing costs, which isn’t surprising noting the increasing marketing expenses in the finance and insurance industry. Advisors have been forced to increase marketing budgets even as commission levels fluctuate. Is it worth it?
YES! With the number of baby boomers retiring each year, there is still gold to be found. Advisors that have the courage to invest in their “mining operations” will end up with more prospects and, subsequently, more clients.
Miners can teach us a lot of lessons when it comes to business. The biggest one is courage. With courage comes self-confidence which eases the risk of self-investment. You need to be willing to invest in your practice and increase investments as quickly as you can.
2. Focus
Like miners heading to Alaska in search of a single precious metal due to market demand, focus and specialty are what many prospects are looking for. Targeting niche markets like business owners, women, physicians, seniors, etc., has an advantage when it comes to effectively reaching your prospective client base through marketing.
Although a niche market is a smaller market segment, you’re better equipped to offer the right products to your target demographic, better satisfying the needs of your clients. Having the right product is key; remember, this isn’t a “one size fits all” business. When you narrow your focus, your chances of success increase.
For help on targeting or finding your specific niche, contact your marketing manager.
- Pay Dirt
Marketing is the advisor’s equivalent of stripping the ground of thousands of years of mud to get to the gold-rich pay dirt. But what if a gold miner spent all of his or her time in the same place, using the same methods, and never found pay dirt? Wouldn’t you agree that the miner should change tactics?
So why would you continue to use the same old, tired marketing that everyone else is using? Don’t get complacent with the same mailers or ads and watch your new prospect number dwindle year after year.
It takes fresh, new marketing approaches to excel in our industry these days. Try a new mailer! Go digital! Consider radio and TV as additional marketing vehicles for your practice. While other advisors are saying, “Seminars are dead,” or, “My area is saturated,” you can say “thank you” to those advisors as they eliminate themselves from your competition. If you don’t, that pay dirt may not pay very well.
- Wash Plant
The best comparison between mining and being an advisor is the wash plant and office operations and systems. Like a miner that can find a large, rare golden nugget, you should be able to find a single prospect where everything just clicks. While it’s great when one prospect makes everything worthwhile, you can’t put all your proverbial eggs in one basket.
You need to have a comprehensive system that assists with how many times to call, email, and contact your prospects. You should also have proven referral methods that allow your existing clients to share their positive experiences about you and your office staff with their friends and families. Do you have a solid tracking system to document referrals? If you don’t, contact your marketing manager for details on how to gain access to our tracking tool.
- The Gold
Eureka! As a miner, payday happens when you work hard and strike gold. In your practice, you “strike gold” when you’re compensated for providing the right products to the right people. And just like in mining, you have much better chances of finding gold when you have a team of experienced “gold miners” willing to dig alongside you, bringing with them the tools and knowledge of the terrain to help you succeed.
If you’re interested in finding the right team that fits your practice’s needs, just like you find the right products for your clients, call us today for the tools, knowledge, resources, and products to help you accomplish your goals.