Wouldn’t it be ideal if you could get a database [list] of all the people [ideal clients of course!] thinking about seeking financial advice in the next 6 to 12 months?
Have a look at the diagram below; it’s called the Educational Marketing Spectrum. Every single one of your prospects falls somewhere on this spectrum.
On the left-hand side, point A is where the prospects first start thinking about solving a problem they have or a solution they need.
At the other end, point Z is where they decide to seek your advice and pay your fees.
In between is best described as ‘prospect fact-finding’. Here they will do some research, they’ll jump on Google, they’ll ask a friend for advice, they’ll probably ask one of their trusted professionals too, for example, their Accountant. As they progress from A to Z, their emotions get engaged, and the likelihood that they’ll make a decision increases rapidly because we [80% of us!] ‘buy’ on emotion and then justify with logic later.
As they progress along the spectrum, they decide to solve the problem. How long does that take? For some, it can be a matter of days, weeks or months. However, I know through the research I do, it can take some prospects years. They decide on a particular adviser, and at point Y, they’re about ready to make a decision; and point Z, they do.
Here’s what you need to know right now. Most Financial Advisers are ignoring this spectrum and not communicating and educating their prospects about the value of their advice. They assume that all prospects are at point Y or Z and move in for the kill there and then. Move in for the kill might not be the right terminology!
The bad news
At any given time, only 1-4% of your market is at point Y and ready to engage. So there’s a massive mismatch. It doesn’t matter how excellent your offer is, it’s the wrong offer to 96 – 99% of your ideal market that’s why people aren’t responding as quickly as you’d like.
The good news
The whole marketing thing is straightforward. There are only two kinds of offers you can make.
There’s the incentive [business] offer, which is for people at the far right-end. That’s what you might do in a seminar-type environment or when you are seated face to face in their Accountants office or your office after a couple of meetings. You make them an excellent offer which is perfect because by then they will know you, like you and trust you.
Now, to appeal to everyone else on the spectrum, you need to make an altogether different type of offer – the information offered.
There are lots of different kinds of information offers you can make along the spectrum. For example:
- Report
- Podcast
- Web recording
- E-brochure
- Case studies
- Success stories
All of these are low cost, low-risk opportunities for your prospects. Marketing is about lowering the risk for the person to take the next step in the process, so by drip-feeding educational based information, you are guiding them through the process empowering them to make the right decision.
Provide your prospects with low-risk education offers and keep them engaged and close to you until they are ready to make a move to contact you [rather than someone else or no-one at all!].
Of course, all of this assumes you have a database [a list] of prospects. If you don’t, you need another type of strategy altogether.
For more information, please contact me directly, rachel@srscc.com.au
