EVENT SUCCESS

7 Habits of Highly Successful Client Appreciation and Referral Building Events

Did you know that the single greatest reason why financial planners lose clients each year has nothing to do with their skills or the services provided? According to statistics gathered by Sandler Sales Training Institute:

78% of respondents said the real reason they changed suppliers was
" they didn't feel appreciated" - their business was being taken for granted.

For the last 10 years I have been hosting client appreciation events on behalf of financial planners across Canada. I’ve discovered that there’s no secret as to why some planners host wildly successful events and understand the importance of this invaluable marketing vehicle, while others adamantly stress such events are a complete waste of hard earned money.

Interestingly, the financial planners who have been unsuccessful in the client appreciation/referral building game, rarely consider that they might be personally responsible for their lack of success. (As human beings we tend to displace our responsibility for the state of our life and business by looking to blame outside forces. For example, I’ve hosted two identical events, back to back, on a Monday and Tuesday night at the same restaurant, in the same month, with the same wine seminar, with the same wines, food and wait staff. The first event was highly successful, and we were forced to add additional seating at the last minute. The second bombed, with many of the advisor’s clients showing up late. The difference? The second advisor, like others before him, believed his lack of success was due to …

• It’s the wrong time of year
• It’s the wrong location and/or the wrong time slot
• It’s the wrong day of the year
• It’s the terrible weather
• It’s the speaker

Why would one advisor’s clients all show up early, while the other advisor’s clients all show up late or not at all? I suspect this has something directly related to how the advisor relates to his/her clients with respect to making promises to return phone calls or keeping appointments.

While hosting an event seems like a good idea, to be successful it’s important for the advisor to pay attention to the details. There are 7 habits that a financial advisor can possess to host a highly success client appreciation and referral building event.

1. Creating Invitations: When creating invitations for your event, be sure to include a sentence telling your clients that they are invited to bring two friends along with them.

   Advisors need to make themselves referable, not just by exceeding service expectations, but by going the extra mile and ensuring clients understand that their business is valued. They need to create a methodical process for reminding clients that they are open for business. When, in a recent study, we asked top-producing financial advisors about the changes they are making to their client communications strategies, the message was clear; they’re focusing on tools and events that make clients feel special, and that educate them and reflect their individual interests, such as appreciation events, small workshops and personalized newsletters. Tools on the way out include generic corporate newsletters and large-scale seminars.
   - Investment Executive by Julie Littlechild and Dan Richards

2. Sending Out Invitations: Send out three times the amount of invitations for the desired attendance. For example, if you desire 100 guests, send out a minimum of 300 invitations. Send the invitations out at least 1.5 months in advance.
   
3. Invitation Follow-Up Phone Calls: Do two sets of follow- up calls. Do the first set about two weeks after the invitation has been mailed. The second set of follow-up call should be done one week before the event. On the last calls, it is vital that you ‘talk’ to every client, and not leave messages. During the call, you must request a confirmation for attendance, and let the client know that they are accountable to their confirmation. (You can tell the client that it is important to confirm exact numbers to ensure that you will have enough seating, food, etc.) Also, stress, gently, that your client must be on time.
   
4. Guest Speaker’s Role: Request that your guest speaker stand at the door and personally greet EVERY client with a handshake and an introduction. (This simple act creates an immediate ‘positive’ energy in the room before the event begins.) Also request that your speaker STAY for the entire event and not ‘slip’ out after he/she has finished speaking. After many years of keynote speeches, speakers tend to lose interest in being personally connected with an audience, and they can become ‘detached’. On one level this leaves clients with the impression that your speaker does not respect you, the advisor, enough to remain at the event. It also tells your clients that your speaker really doesn’t care about them either. Request that your speaker stand at the door at the end of the event and shake hands with your guests to thank them for attending. (If the speaker you desire cannot or will not take the time to do these simple tasks for your success, consider finding yourself another one who is not a ‘prima Donna.’ It’s far better to pay for a lesser-known speaker who STILL cares about others than on spending your hard-earned money on someone who believes they are untouchable.
   
5. Your Role: You should always be the person to introduce your speaker, not your assistant or manager. Do not take this task lightly. Consider this introduction as a rich opportunity to thank your clients. It is also an opportunity for potential referrals in the room to get to know you more personally -- not necessarily by what you say, but by how you are behaving with your existing clients. As the old adage goes, “I cannot hear what you are sayings, because who you are speaks too loudly.” Many financial advisors hire speakers and, on some level, hope that the speaker will help maintain or build business. The speaker’s job is to speak. Before the event begins be sure that there is one seat left ‘free’ at EVERY table. During the event do not sit with one guest, your staff or your family. Take that free seat and sit at every table. You might ask your speaker to do the same. When chatting with potential referrals, ask them about THEIR lives and about their friendship with your clients. This is an opportunity for you to learn about them. Do NOT try to sell your services.
   
6. Have a survey available at every place setting. The survey is a way in which you can obtain detailed information about your referrals and also let your clients know you’re interesting in knowing if they likes this particular type of event.
   
7. Follow-Up Calls: Within the first three days after the event, be sure to call all clients and thank them for their attendance. This is also a great opportunity for you to personally thank them for their business. Let your clients know that they have contributed toward your success as a financial advisor.