Member Resources
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Recent Issues
1 November 08
Grab these opportunities
Thinking of getting out of this business?
In a recent advisor survey conducted by On Wall Street magazine, more than one-third of respondents, 37%, have considered shifting careers to something completely different.
Which means they'll miss some great opportunities.
As I told you last month, just after the debacle, your clients are looking for reassurance. The same survey of advisors said most of their clients simply wanted a calm and confident advisor right now; fewer than one in 10 wanted changes in their portfolios.
So, where are the opportunities?
First, this is probably the greatest equity buying opportunity you'll see in a long time. If we're not at the bottom of the market we're damn close to it. And that's when to buy!
After last month's market crash Warren Buffet, no slouch where investing is concerned, compared it to Pearl Harbor. Most people thought he meant it was a catastrophy. He could also have meant it was as great a stock-buying opportunity as December1941, for in the 5 war years the Dow-Jones Industrial Index more than doubled.
In the midst of this September's panic Buffett invested $5 billion in Goldman Sachs, and about a weeks later invested $3 billion in General Electric. He's the richest American, worth $52 billion, all made from his investment acumen, so well worth watching.
Buffett has given the world one of his golden rules to investing: Be greedy when others are fearful, and fearful when others are greedy.
So let your clients know this is a time to be in the market, not out of it. Nobody knows when the exact bottom is going to be, (in fact we may already have passed it), but we're very close, so keep buying at the current lows.
For inevitably the market wil rise significantly over the next few years.
This is a great time for clients using dollar-cost averaging because the lower the unit price, the more units they buy, and the more they accumulate.
The next big opportunity is client consolidation. Let your clients know how positive you feel about the stock markets, and how the worst
thing they can do is panic. They need your reassurance, so talk to them.
And the third big opportunity is growing your business.
If over a third of advisors are getting out there'll be a lot of clients who no longer have an advisor, and need one.
And a lot of other investors will be dissatisfied with their present advisor, and looking for a new one, so start making yourself available.
Some of your clients may even tell you of friends who are unhappy with their present advisor, so ask them to refer you to them.
And talk up your positive outlook on the present investment climate with everyone who asks you about it. People prefer to deal with positive people, especially in bad times, so let your views be known.
You've got some great opportunities for wealth accumulation, and business growth in the present climate, so grab them!
And be positive.
Don
1 October 08
What to do now
Though Washington is still deadlocked on a bailout, today the Dow regained
more than 60% of its Monday losses.
So you may be wondering what to do now.
Your clients are wondering, too. Should they buy, sell, or do nothing?
My own opinion is that they should do nothing until the dust settles, and
you can re-assess the situation. We have no idea at this point as to how
it's all going to shake out.
But what your clients really want is your reassurance. They need to know
that you're aware of their concerns, and are also concerned.
So call them to reassure them.
It's in markets such as this that financial advisors prove their true value.
Effective client communication should be your number-one priority in the
period ahead. Use the guidelines in this link to reinforce your value to
your clients.
Don
p.s. If you haven't done so already, subscribe to http://www.horsesmouth.com at this link
and find out how to deal with such problems, and relate well to your clients.
1 September 08
'Do Not Call' legislation's impact on prospecting
Though the 'Do Not Call' legislation limits our telephoning new prospects, it should not be much of a deterrent to most of our prospecting.
I arrived at this conclusion after reviewing my survey of prospecting techniques called "How Do High Earners Prospect?" (For the the full article, click here.)
It lists 15 techniques, showing their effectiveness as rated by high earning and low earning financial advisors.
"Cold calling, by phone or in person" is 12th on the high earners list and 9th on the low earners list, which is why I don't think the DNC legislation will adversely affect most of our prospecting.
"Contacting clients by phone, or in person", which is permissable under DNCL, is 2nd on both lists. In fact you can even call those who've purchased your services or who've made an inquiry or application about a product or service in the past six months,
along with those who have a written contract as you have "existing business relationships" with them. For more details click here.
The top technique of both high and low earners is "Referrals from clients. and non-clients". Contacting such referrals by phone may get you in trouble under DNCL. Instead, contact them by regular mail, which is also more impressive than a mere phone call.
The third technique of high earners is "Printed newsletter, mailed or hand delivered" is only 8th on the low earners list. It should be more popular now as your newsletter can be offered in the contact letter you'll be using for referrals.
"Seminars, teaching classes" is 4th for the high learners, and 5th for low-earners, so it's popular. However, in light of the DNC rules, I suggest you get the signed permission of each participant allowing you to contact them by phone, email, regular post, etc.
The fifth for high earners is "Website focussing on you, and your business", which is only 14th for low earners!
However, these surveys were taken over 6 years ago, so I'd expect many more advisors have learned that the benefits of having your own website far outweigh the costs. And nowadays you can get a fully operational website for a fraction of the cost of just a basic one in 2002.
See a local advisor's website here. See what it cost him by clicking here.
You can get your own website there where they offer to handle all the details and design for you at a very reasonable, all inclusive price. Wish I'd had it back when I started making my own websites from scatch!
And if you want more prospecting ideas read over some of the 35 techniques described here.
And enjoy!
Don
p.s. I just re-read one of the 79 ebooks downloadable from New-TIP.com. An easy read here that I think you'll find useful if you're looking for referrals.
15 July 08
New ways to get business from mortgages
I've just been reading a new ebook, Canadian Mortgage Insurance, by Richard Lepinsky, a fellow member of New-TIP, and it's fascinating!
It's fascinating because it opens up selling possibilities that I'd never thought of.
I'd always thought of mortgage insurance as life insurance (usually reducing term) to cover the mortgage.
But Richard points out how Disability and Critical Illness coverage ought to be used for this purpose as well.
And he explains it all with short, to-the-point, case histories.
It's not just an eye-opener for we advisors, it's also an educational tool for clients, prospects and centers-of-influence.
And the author has given New-TIP members permission* to give it to their clients, prospects and centers-of-influence, as well.
But you better read it first, so you can discuss the appropriate case history with your prospect.
Visit here to get more reasons why you should share this ebook with your clients.
And download it from here.
Don
* His email to me said "I think that the more brokers that make use of it, the better."
1 July 08
Sales Secret
When I began to read "The One Marketing Secret That Could Make You Rich" I thought, 'same old, same old'---there's nothing new here
that's worth sharing with New-TIP members.
But as I got into it I realized that this was much more than just one idea, it's a whole marketing philosophy! And that anyone who
followed it was guaranteed to have a successful selling career.
Read it here---it's only 19 pages long---to see if you agree.
Happy Canada Day!
Don
15 June 08
Guide to Free Online Advertising
Nine days ago I told you that much of Barack Obama's success was owed to his use of such new forms of communication as email and the internet, and suggested that you too should consider such techniques.
Especially as so many of them are free!
But where to start? Free internet advertising comes in so many forms that you need a guide to tell you which is best for your purposes.
Fortunately I discovered such a guide (it's here).
What I particularly like about "The Encylopedia of Free Online Advertising" is that not only does it review many techniques, but rates them on a scale of 1 to 5 (5 being best) as to:
Quantity (How many visitors you can get);
Quality (How targeted these visitors can be); and
Time to Delivery (How fast all your traffic can arrive).
This means you can scan the pages of this ebook looking for the top ratings in all 3 categories, not bothering with those with low ratings.
Look it over here to see what I mean.
And enjoy its possibilities.
Don
p.s. It's also a useful future reference on internet advertising.
6 June 08
The Most Fantastic Sale of This Century
Take a guy with an alien name and a different colour, that nobody's heard of, and turn him into a top contender for the most powerful position in the world---and do it all in less than six months!
That's selling---real selling.
Six months ago few people had heard of Barack Obama. And some of those who had thought he must be connected to that other guy with the funny name, Osama. But Obama had even more against him when he decided to offer himself to the Democratic party as a potential candidate for the U.S. Presidency.
Besides his odd name and colour he was unknown and inexperienced. But he did have charisma and sincerity, and a new way of attractingd unlimited financing. Plus a smart team who knew how to turn modern communication methods to his benefit.
And also a talent for turning apparent disadvantages to advantage.
For example, his rival for the Democratic nomination was Hillary Clinton, who had the power of the Clinton machine behind her. So she and Obama were running neck-and-neck through all the primaries, so much so that she thought she could win right up to the final count.
It was the best game show on television! So it attracted everybody's interest.
Some political pundits thought that running the primaries for so long was bad for the Democrats because this gave the Republicans (who'd chosen John MacCain months ago) more time to prepare. It also gave voters time to forget Mr. McCain, because nothing was heard from him or about him during that period unless he was mentioned by Obama or Hillary.
The pundits were wrong, as far as Obama was concerned, because that long primary period gave the electorate time to see him, hear him, and get comfortable with the possibility of him becoming the President. Even the Ku Klux Klan prefers him to Hillary!
So what can we learn from this that can help us in our business?
1. You start out like Obama---nobody knows you---so you need a plan to help them to learn about you, and what you can do for them.
2. Don't rush it. It took months for people to get to know Obama. Assume it'll be the same for you.
3. During those months his name got constant repetition among those that mattered. How can you get similar name recognition among those who are important to you?
4. Obama was selling, of course, whenever we saw him, because that's what politics is, but somehow it didn't seem like we were being sold. So how can you help people to buy from you without them feeling that they're being sold?
5. Obama's team used email and the internet to promote him, and develop relationships Are you using these new communication tools to equal advantage?
You can probably think of a few more lessons to learn from th Aboma success. If so, please let me know.
Live long, and prosper.
Don
p.s. You'll find your own answers to these points in this website.
15 May 08
Two Useful Ebooks
Two ebooks that can benefit both you and your clients are:
Enhance Your Financial Intelligence, (get it here), and
Protect Your Computer, (get it here).
They have some commercials, but are well worth reading, and have give-away rights, so you can share them with clients, qualified prospects, and centers-of-influence.
As you read each one, think of the clients that would appreciate
it, and email it to them. If you don't have their email address,
phone them and tell them you've an ebook you'd like to share with
them, and you need their email address to send it to them.
You could also offer the financial ebook as a bonus to attract
subscribers to your newsletter, or website.
In short, use them in ways that will enhance your image with
those who already know you, or will attract new people with whom
you can build a relationship.
But start by reading them.
Don
14 April 08
Tax Return Ideas
If you're like me you file your income tax return using a program like QuickTax. But, despite its usefulness and accuracy, maybe you missed something, and need a one page summary of it.
For these reasons I prepare a one page summary in an Excel spreadsheet using the data I inputted to Quicktax. Then I print it out, and check off its figures against those on the tax slips and receipts I originally used in QuickTax. This time I had to make two corrections before I submitted our returns.
One actually saved me a bit of tax!
Why am I telling you this? Because CRA (Canada Revenue Agency) is auditing individual returns of middle-income Canadians looking for minor errors.
Last year, they asked me for the receipts for all the charitable donations my wife and I had made in 2006. Fortunately, I had them stapled to a spreadsheet printout on which they were all listed so it was easy to comply.
The problem with a tax audit, I'm told by friends who've had them, is that once CRA finds even a minor error, they've re-tagged you and they keep coming back to you year-after-year looking for another mistake.
Even if they find nothing in future years it's still a time-consuming irritation.
So, take a little extra time to ensure that nothing is missing from your return, and you have accurate records to satisfy any over-eager tax auditor.
Don
p.s. One disgruntled Canadian taxpayer submitted his return with this letter attached:
Dear Revenue Canada or whatever your current name may be:
Enclosed and/or attached, you will find my 2007 tax return showing that I owe $3,407.00 in taxes.
Please note the attached article from the Toronto Globe and Mail; dated 12 November, wherein you will see the Canadian Department of National Defense is paying $171.50 per hammer, and Fisheries and Oceans Canada has paid $600.00 per toilet seat for its icebreakers.
As payment, I am enclosing four (4) toilet seats (valued @ $2,400) and six (6) hammers (valued @ $1,029), which I secured at Canadian Tire, bringing my total remittance to $3,429.00.
Please apply the overpayment of $22.00 to the 'Help Stephan Dion Election Fund,' as noted on my return.
You can do this inexpensively by sending them one (1) 1.5' Phillips Head screw (see aforementioned article from The Globe and Mail detailing how the Department of Public Works pays $22.00 each for 1.5' Phillips Head Screws). One Philips screw is enclosed for your convenience.
It has been a pleasure to pay my tax bill this year, and I look forward to paying it again next year.
Sincerely,
A. Taxpayer
1 April 08
How To Attract And Sell Ideal Prospects
Read this short ebook from Lew Nason, How To Attract And Sell Ideal Prospects(it's here).
It's worth reading, because Lew has been helping agents and advisors to achieve long-term success in financial services industry for over two decades. His unique perspective, on how to truly help clients, has enabled scores of agents and advisors reach the top levels of their profession.
There's another marketing message in this ebook. As you read it you'll see that he's giving you useful information that concludes with his promotional material. You can do the same.
Let's say you have some good information on a retirement savings product you want to promote. Think of a title about retirement, say "When Can I Retire?". Now you need a good story to go between the title and your promo, so write it yourself, or look for it on the Internet by Googling your title.
Voila! You now have the content you need for an ebook that you can give away on your website, or offer to email to prospects and clients.
Which is what Lew did.
Go thou, and do likewise.
Don
p.s. Don't know how to publish your content as an ebook? Email me and I'll tell you how.
1 March 08
Three New Sales Aids
1. GOOD TOOL GETS BETTER. The "How Much Do You Need To Retire"
spreadsheet sent you a few weeks ago has been improved with a
page showing how much to save each year in order to end up
with the total needed for a comfortable retirement.
A calculator is also in it for any other amount your client
may be saving for.
Check it out on the "Save" page here.
2. GREAT SALES AND MARKETING ARTICLES. John Wilson put me onto
an ebook of worthwhile sales articles I thought you'd like
at Marketing Strategies.
3. TAX FREE SAVINGS ACCOUNT (TFSA). Our Finance Minister gave
us this new savings vehicle that allows Canadians to save up
to $5,000 a year with no tax on its income until withdrawn.
Contributions to a TFSA are not tax-deductible, but its
earnings will NOT be taxed even when withdrawn. Contribution
room can be carried forward to future years, and funds can be
withdrawn at any time for any purpose, or used as collateral
for loans.
Worth telling your clients about as it will become another
useful tool in your kit.
Enjoy!
Don
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