Ask the expert: How to find new customers

The question was: I want to find new annuity customers right here in my community. Any ideas? The answer is: As the president of a national marketing company, I am fully aware of the challenges that annuity producers face when trying to find new customers. Recent surveys place this challenge as the number one concern for producers nationwide. Here are some tips that all advisors looking to grow their business can use: 1. The best and most profitable lead a producer can get is a referral from an existing client. Your success with these leads should always be higher than any other type of prospecting program. If you are not aggressively asking your current clients for referrals you are leaving a tremendous resource untapped. 2. Seminars are also a great way to generate large numbers of potential new clients. Many companies now offer turn-key systems that take care of everything from mailing the invitations to booking the venue and handling the responses. 3. Direct mail is an often overlooked but highly effective way to generate possible new clients. Many of these programs cost significantly less than other programs like seminars, but still provide great results. 4. Online annuity leads are a growing industry and are proving to be a successful way to generate new clients. Certain vendors leads are search driven so the client has to actually have been looking specifically for information on annuities. Some companies also go as far as to tele-verify the leads to ensure the prospects actually want information on annuities. 5. Align yourself with a professional network that includes certified public accountants, tax advisers and estate planning attorneys. Both the professionals and the clients they work with on a daily basis might be in need of expert advice on annuities. Many other things can be used as a way to find new customers such as radio shows and advertisements in newspaper and other local publications. My advice is to get in touch with a national marketing organization that sponsors specific programs to help you prospect. Van Lumbard
President
Ann Arbor Annuity Exchange
Ann Arbor, MI
www.annuity-exchange.com
[email protected]