The Most Important Ingredient in Your Marketing

Written By : Greg

As 2015 ends and we all begin a new year, it’s a good time to reflect on the success of your practice. Did you accomplish your goals last year? Are you happy with your company’s growth? Have you retained valuable clients and attracted new ones?

Whether you are happy with business over the past year, or less than thrilled with your results, one thing is certain: When it comes to your marketing strategy, there is always room for improvement. When you consider the value of one lucrative client or just one great referral, it’s easy to see how the cost of missed opportunity can be enormous.

How many prospects needed a financial advisor this year, and yet picked up the phone and called someone else? You will probably never know. However, it’s important to remember that you will not be at the top of anyone’s mind unless you place yourself there consistently. When the time comes to make important financial planning decisions, your prospects are going to call the person who seems most familiar. Over the past year, has that person been you? Will it continue to be you throughout 2016? It will be, if you practice consistency.

In the marketing industry, we see a lot of flash-in-the-pan campaigns. They come and go, along with the company names behind them. The campaigns that become successful are the ones that are consistent. If you want people to remember your name and understand what you do, you have to tell them repeatedly. In fact, you have to practically beat them over the head with it!

Create a marketing plan, and stick to it. Keeping in mind that consistency is key, take the time to create a marketing plan for the year. Whatever resources you have – your budget, your time, your knowledge, and anything else you can devote to your marketing strategy – you should spread them over the next twelve months. Don’t give it your all in January and then fade away into obscurity! A good marketing plan will keep you at the forefront of your prospects’ minds all year long.

It’s not all about time. Consistency is about more than making a regular effort. It’s also about spreading that effort across several effective channels, so that you ensure you’re reaching your entire target audience. For example, if you concentrate all of your efforts toward email marketing, you will miss an entire group of people who prefer to interact via Facebook. And if your prospects see your name in multiple places, such as Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter and their email inbox, they are even more likely to remember you!

As we say goodbye to 2015, take a look at your marketing campaign over the past year. Which methods seemed to achieve the most results? Remember the rule: Do what works. And if you want to achieve more results, do more of whatever works, and keep doing it consistently. It’s that simple.

As entrepreneur Jim Rohn said, “Success is neither magical nor mysterious. Success is the natural consequence of consistently applying basic fundamentals.” Your marketing campaign shouldn’t strive to invent the wheel, but to keep that wheel turning all year long. Keep your name and company image at the forefront of your prospects’ minds, and your name will be the first they remember when it is time to make that important call.

Filed under: Financial Advisor Marketing, Social Media for Financial Advisors