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Getting Started - Building Your Marketing Plan For The 21st Century Practice
by Kirk
Lowe
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There is a growing shift among Financial Planning Professionals towards integrating
technology into their traditional marketing and communications strategies.
"It's not so much the idea or novelty of trying something new, something technologically
driven." said a financial advisor who recently provided feedback."It's
the philosophy of integration and the synergies between the various traditional and
technological components that have given me a clearer vision of how I can implement
effective and efficient strategies to build my business."
With any new strategy there needs to be a starting place:
1. Research marketing
and communication strategies that will fit with your vision and practice. This
might include finding a personal marketing coach and a marketing consulting firm
to work with. It might be as simple as reviewing past campaigns, analyzing what went
right, what went wrong and what could have been done better. As with any marketing
plan, it needs to be reworked from time to time, not to simply have one in place
but to have an effective plan in place.
2. Complete a written Marketing Plan. As any successful advisor will tell
you, planning is paramount and so is the time and effort you put into creating your
marketing plan.
3. Build your email list. When contemplating introducing the Internet into
your marketing and communications strategy you will need to have the appropriate
information to do so. This includes email addresses. There are several strategies
that will not only help you build your email database, they will help you introduce
your new initiatives and your reasons why.
Building You Email List:
Include your web site's URL and how to sign up for your email newsletter on all literature
that leaves your office. This includes business cards,audiotape promos, radio ads,
telemarketing campaigns, direct marketing, seminars invitations and every live opportunity
you and your staff have to promote your new initiatives.
4. Personal Identity Branding will be a key part of your plan. "Everyone
has a brand, like it or not. You have one. It may not be the one you want and you
may not be nurturing it, but it's yours nevertheless," says Marketing Coach,
John Melchinger. "Not to shape your brand rigorously and nurture it is to leave
it to your public to decide. That is the much less effective alternative."
5. Make sure that you have the resources to fully commit to your plan. Don't
plan beyond your abilities and resources; plan just below. These resources include
you and your staff's time, your budget and your expertise. Outsourcing may be a great
alternative to help here.
6. Itemize your various current marketing campaigns and material to help you better
understand where and how you can integrate your new initiatives. This might include
using your email newsletter and web site to provide details about upcoming seminars.
You can then use a direct mail campaign to promote the seminar along with your web
site, email newsletter and other initiatives. Before, you might have used the direct
mail-out to simply promote your seminar, now you're promoting much more. This is
part of the synergistic effects you'll find when integrating technology with traditional
marketing.
7. Start small and grow big. Build your strategy over time so that you are
more likely to stick with it. Getting in over your head will only de-motivate you;
keeping it simple, then building on that will help you stay motivated. It is your
commitment to your long-term plan and vision that will best lead you to long-term
success.
8. Consider outsourcing whenever possible. This will give you more time to
do what you do best, meeting with and selling to your clients and prospects. Even
if you have a good mind for marketing you should still consult a specialist.
Kirk Lowe runs a marketing consulting business, Freedomarketing. They work
specifically with financial advisors helping them build their businesses through
integrating technology with traditional marketing and communications. Kirk recently
wrote an eBook, "Building Your Business
In The 21st Century - For Financial Advisors"
which is available for FREE on the web site.
"Our services are more than a "Turnkey Solution", they're Chauffeur
Driven Solutions'" says Kirk, "We not only help develop and design, we
actually implement your marketing strategies and campaigns for you". Their services
include web design, eMarketing (eNewsletters, eCards and eReferral
Campaigns)
and marketing consulting. To learn more about these services go to www.fawebprofiler.ca or sign up for the
monthly eMarketing Newsletter "faFreedom".
Kirk
Lowe
Freedomarketing
416.828.5475
kirk@freedomarketing.ca
www.fawebprofiler.ca
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