New Leads are the lifeblood of every business.
Without new prospects that can be turned into New Clients – your book will slowly (or maybe not so slowly) churn and total revenue will head in one direction.
There are many different options when it comes to acquiring leads – and most of these are Paid Options.
In order to know what’s working or which player needs more practice,
it’s helpful to consider what role each player plays in the Sales Process.
How exactly do we Get a New Lead and turn them into a New Client?
After running a Follow-up Service for Solo Financial Advisors for the past 6 years – this is how we have defined each role.
Player 1: The Marketer (FMOs & IMOs)
The Marketer is the FMO or IMO you are purchasing the Lead from.
These come in all different flavors – but some standard examples we would put here are:
- Seminars (Federal Employee Retirement, Wills & Trust/Estate Plan Workshops, College Planning)
- Radio/TV Leads (Wealth Beyond Wall Street, The Annuity Leads, Smart Money Radio)
- Internet Leads (Facebook, LinkedIn)
Good Marketers will do the following 3 things well.
- Find prospects with a potential need or interest in your services. This is a basic level of Qualification.
If you are selling Snow Shovels – this should NOT be a list of people living in Arizona.
We want prospects with an actual need and desire for your solution.
- Acquire good/valid contact information for these prospects (cell phone, email and address information).
While additional details like Income, Assets, or Age is helpful – without verified contact information – there’s no way to interact with the prospect.
- Get them to the Event/Appointment.
The Marketer should handle all pre-event communication and getting ‘seats’ filled.
If the Seminar is on Tuesday at Noon – the Marketer should make sure the prospect knows the when, where, who, why and what for the event.
Or if the Lead comes with a pre-booked appointment – what time is it, and what else do they need to bring.
Player 2: The Skilled Salesperson (you/Advisor)
Depending on the process the Lead is in – you may be introduced to them at different points.
Sometimes the seminar will be conducted by the Marketer and you’ll be introduced at the end.
Other times – the Marketer is scheduling an Appointment and the next step is for the Lead to meet with you directly.
At some point – you’re up to bat.
And this is where your people & sales skills come into play.
Your role in the Sales-process is:
- Be the Expert.
- Know the pain you solve.
- Breed competence/confidence.
Do you know your products inside and out?
If not – why would a prospect choose you rather than another advisor that does?
Your client wants to feel like their money & future is in good hands (with an expert they can trust).
- Qualify the Prospect.
The Marketer should have at least made sure our Snow Shovel prospects are in Colorado and not Arizona.
But your prospects are going to need more qualification than that.
This is part of your role.
Do they have a problem they want to solve?
Are they a good fit for your product(s)?
If yes, then…
- Set Next Steps + Deliver
After your initial meeting – set clear next steps for the prospect.
Do you need to put together an illustration for them?
If so – let them know when they will receive it and make sure it is delivered on time.
Do you need to meet again?
If so – book that meeting now while you have them on the phone or in office.
You should know the steps of your sales process and keep the prospects moving down that path.
- Close
This is its’ own bullet for a reason.
We’ve seen plenty of agents that expect the Marketer to hand over pre-sold leads.
We all love lay-down business – but it rarely works that way.
You make the commission when you Close (this is why you get paid the big $ 😉).
Therefore that responsibility lies solely with you.
Player 3: The Follow-Up Team (Systems)
The final player in the Sales Process is your follow-up team.
For a lot of Solo Advisors (the proverbial 1-Man/Woman-Shop) – you wear this hat as well.
And while we’ve had a client or two that was great at this piece of the process – the reality is you can have a much bigger impact in your business/bottomline by focusing on Player 1 and Player 2.
If you have your Lead Sources dialed in (Player 1) then you should be far too busy moving prospects through your sales process (Player 2) to effectively do the follow-up on those leads (Player 3).
Your Follow-Up Team has 3 main responsibilities.
- Post Event Follow-Up (Book Appointments/Make sure nobody falls through the cracks!)
Some of your prospects showed up to the Event but didn’t book an appointment.
Your doctor and dentist don’t book their own appointments and you shouldn’t either (unless you’re already on the phone with them).
You paid money for the Lead in Step 1 – and should make sure all interested parties have a chance to meet with you.
Your Follow-Up Team contacts those leads while the event is still fresh in their minds and books appointments for those that are interested.
- Confirm and/or Remind for Appointments
We’re all human.
As such, humans have a lot of things going on.
Consequently, we sometimes forget an appointment.
Your Follow-Up team should confirm your Prospects & appointments.
- Help you Track Long-Term Follow-Up
Not everybody is ready to move forward today.
Sometimes the sales cycle will take 1 week.
And other times it will take 1 year.
Different Prospects require a different cadence of follow-up.
Your follow-up team should have a system for reminding you when the prospect needs a follow-up at the End of August (or 3 months later).
- Provide Legitimacy to Your Business
Your prospect wants to feel comfortable trusting their financial affairs to you.
As a Solo Advisor – you want said prospect to feel comfortable trusting their financial affairs to you.
If they don’t feel comfortable – they may choose another Advisor to handle it.
While there is nothing wrong with being a solo advisor – having a Team will make your prospect feel like they’re interacting with a bonafide Business (rather than a thirsty salesman 😈).
So you want your follow-up Team to provide First Class treatment to your prospects.
- Are they Native English Speakers?
- Do they understand Sales and your Sales Cycle?
- Are they able to intelligently interact with your prospect in their preferred communication method?
- Can they represent you/your business professionally & ethically?
It’s tempting to try and outsource follow-up to an Email List or Robo-Dialer – but I can guarantee you the prospect doesn’t want that.
Your prospect wants to act with a Real Capable Human.
One who can help them schedule time on your calendar.
If you want First Class clients; you need to give them a First Class experience.
Summary: Tying It All Together
There are 3 Players in your Sales Cycle.
The Marketer brings in the Leads.
You put the Leads through your Sales Process (and build relationships).
The Follow-Up Team helps you maximize the return on those Leads by making sure nothing falls through the cracks (systematically executes effective processes).
All 3 are Vital – without one of these pieces the sales process will suffer.
Business will struggle.
Money will be lost.
Ready to see if Evolvd can help you?
