What’s really important is to feature businesses that are relevant to your clients. For example, if you’ve got a client who’s a doctor or medical group, how great would it be to feature them in your magazine? The benefits here are two-fold: you’re building a relationship with this client, while also letting your community know about a local doctor’s services.
If your firm or one of your key clients supports a local charity, you can create a back cover ad to spotlight that charity. Again, this will mean the world to your client, while doing good for the community. It also triggers the halo effect—meaning that, by associating yourself with something positive, you will be perceived more favorably.
Hortz: What are some of the more interesting case studies on creative applications you have seen by advisors using your magazine?
Acree: We have 45 relationship management coaches working across the U.S. with advisors on creating successful community partnerships ranging across estate planners, attorneys, plastic surgeons, restaurants (a GfK study found that 90% of recipients of the magazine dine out regularly). A key element to partnerships is to develop them to share and access client/prospect databases.
One effective tactic we’ve seen is viewing the magazine as a referral tool, with the advisor’s current book of business as a grid. First, you separate your clients out by industry. Then, consider the connections the people in each of those industries have. From there, it becomes a natural game of “Six Degrees of Separation.” Send the magazine to the professionals your clients know or work with. Then, you can go the extra mile by featuring those people in your magazine.
Another effective technique is using the magazine for seminars. Advisors will customize the magazine to send out after seminars (as a follow-up tool) or even give it out as an item of value at the event itself. There are a lot of options for adding relevant, seminar-related content to the outside covers of the magazine.
We’ve seen clients find success by putting their magazines in high traffic areas. If you’re seeking high-net-worth clients, try partnering with luxury car dealerships. Spotlight the dealership on your magazine’s back cover, with the agreement that everyone who buys a car gets a promotional copy of the magazine. You can also leave your magazine in doctor’s offices, lawyer’s offices, or in other businesses around town. The flexibility of a value-added tool like an upscale magazine allows for creative possibilities that are endless in ways to engage clients and your community.
Hortz: Any advice or suggestions you would like to share with advisors from your experience on building engagement?
Acree: There are a lot of issues facing advisors—from the threat of robo-advisors, to the massive intergenerational wealth transfer set to take place, to advisors losing business by not being connected with both heads of the household. Here’s the thing: advisors can not only survive these changes, but actually thrive. In order to do so, they need to focus more on relationships than on individual transactions or technical expertise. In the digital age, knowledge is easy to obtain. That’s why you need to be able to do more than simply manage money.
You must create raving fans from the clients you already have. Know your clients authentically. Keep in touch with them consistently. We have an advisor client who schedules 30+ different touch points a year (six being from our bi-monthly magazine) with his top clients. Those kinds of client relationships are recession-proof.