One of the most common questions I get from advisors is "How can I find more leads"? You need to first evaluate the lead generation methods you currently use and improve them, or select alternative ways to market your business.

Many financial professionals I speak with believe that they can grow their business if they have more prospects to see. There’s truth to this. Without prospects to see, you are unemployed. If you don't have anybody to serve, then you're out of business. Unfortunately, many of those same professionals are poor at prospecting and are struggling to get more clients. Often it comes down to lack of direction, focus, and commitment to prospecting efforts.

Updated: Nov 2020

The holidays means one thing in sales: stalls. All of the salespeople that came before us didn’t do us any favors by accepting the “call me after the holidays” excuse from prospects. During this time of the year, it’s the go-to stalling method for prospects.

One of the biggest untapped opportunities for financial professionals today is leveraging all the technological advances available to you such as social media marketing, video production services and web-based leads. To be successful in today’s technology driven world, you need to have a compelling online presence for your financial services business.

I recently attended a conference with about 40 other investment advisor representatives. As successful business entrepreneurs, they hold themselves to a high standard and are passionate about their profession. Oh, and did I mention that they toss around the acronym "IMO" like it's a swear word?

When my firm first started hosting workshops, our attendance was average, and the amount of attendees scheduling visits with us was about 40 to 50 percent. Learning five important lessons from workshop prospects increased the number of attendees meeting with us to nearly 80 percent.

Since the industrial revolution, traditional selling has been trained and practiced by almost every industry and business model known to mankind. It appears many of us have been taught to sell in a very similar way, but this traditional sales approach has begun to present some serious problems.

A First Impression Kit is an essential tool for your business. It can impress your prospects and clients by making you look professional. A First Impression Kit is a package of your marketing materials that has consistently branded pieces. Each piece has your logo and your unique look and feel. 

I don’t think there’s a workshop PowerPoint on the planet that directly results in sales of financial products. So far, I’ve never seen a financial presentation end with the presenter passing out applications for financial products and attendees getting out their checkbooks to buy. Solid workshop and seminar presentations can result in the right fit prospects raising their hands to meet with you.  

Being rejected by a prospect does not have to be a total loss. There are many things that can be learned from a prospect who said "no" and a chance you could improve your financial services business.