This thing on?

Ping-o-lisciois Insurance Marketing

A quick referral lesson for your consideration.
Referrals …  my favorite form of insurance marketing.

One of my networking partners drops me an email the other day and wants to go to lunch. He is going to introduce me to a fellow Independent Insurance broker who he thinks would be a strong Strategic Partner for my firm and I. Odd thing is, I know this firm, and they are good … AND a competitor of sorts. I eagerly agreed to a meet over at one of my fav’s – Yard House in Irvine Spectrum. Crunchy AHI Salad mmmmmm.

Cutting to the chase – the lunch meeting went well [ imho ] and we’re poised to circle back next week and brainstorm on how we will "pro-actively" NOT passively incorporate each others businesses into our insurance marketing plans for the remainder of the year.

I bring this lunch meeting up for two reasons. Sometimes we get so focused on asking [ or is it BEGGING / IMPOSING ON ] our clients for referrals that we develop Tunnel Vision.  Here’s what I mean by this.

Does this resemble how some of your Asking for Referral experiences go?

To Self: How did that Referral Gurus world famous referral asking script go again?

Was it….

..Joe, I get compensated in two ways … blah blah blah …

..Bob, I have a list here of some firms in your industry I’ve been trying to meet can you look here and see if you know any of them …? Blah …

??????????????

Dang – thats so uncomfortable – thats not me … oh forget about it ….

——————————————————————————————–

Shameless Plug:

The Most Powerful Referral System for Agents Ever Developed – No More Begging!
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Frankly, Im of the mindset that ASKING clients for referrals directly – face to face is not the most effective way to obtain quality introductions. Blasphemy you must be thinking … I understand – but hear me out.

Is putting your relationship with your current client into an unbalanced status really the most effective insurance marketing S-Y-S-T-E-M you can come up with for referrals? Unbalanced you say – whatever do I mean? Its now unbalanced. You originally proposed a solution to the clients needs. They reviewed and decided to hire you based upon that solution. They paid you for that solution, you delivered. They are happy. Relationship is IN BALANCE.

Now, you come along and put it OUT OF BALANCE. You are now asking them to do more than they originally bargained for. You are now asking them to effectively put their reputation on the line. Yet, there is little to No Value you can provide to them in return that would put the relationship Back Into Balance if they complied with your request. That is why you get uncomfortable and they get even more uncomfortable [ more times than not ].

Point of these last 3 paragraphs – there is other, more productive approaches to systematically generate high quality referrals. Get out of the box a little bit and think strategically – not just Old School Mantra …

The is another insurance marketing lesson to be learned from this lunch meeting and why it was a significant example. I no longer just look for 1:1 referrals from people. I spend time articulating to my Strategic Referral relationships the type of business people that are great strategic alliances for me and my business. They not only know the types of clients I like to insure but they also know [ because I automatically keep them aprised with a system ] who would make a good Referral Partner.  Someone who is not just a referral – but a continuous Referral Source. 

Don’t just hunt for referrals to sell an insurance policy to. Strategically hunt for other hunters as well. You need to develop a LARGE network of business people who KNOW you, LIKE you, and KNOW WHAT YOU DO. The key to this, is maintaining those relationships effectively over time. I say the only way to "effectively: manage all those relationships is with a S-Y-S-T-E-M.

I had the pleasure to meet one of the most connected businessmen on the planet at one of his talks.  Dr. Ivan Misner – Founder/CEO of Internationally famous BNI / Business Network International. He told us all in his talk, the S-Y-S-T-E-M he uses to manage his enormously vast network.  It’s also in his book "Truth or Delusion" on page 148.  Some of the most prominent authorities on Referral Marketing like Tom Hopkins, Bob Berg, and Bill Cates among others also use this system.  

CLICK HERE to see the system they use.

To your success,

Steve

Shared by Steve
Interesting read from Seth Godin. With all the hoopla surrounding viral YouTube videos, and other such ads, which frankly I can’t see they get a lot of real traction. Traction in this context, meaning people actually taking an action that generates revenue for the viral ad creator … Here’s some examples of viral "products" and "services" that went ballistic because the viral component was built in by design.

Enjoy,

Steve

Viral marketing is an idea that spreads–and an idea that while it is spreading actually helps market your business or cause.

Two kinds of viral marketing: The original classic sort in which the marketingisthe product and which a self-amplifying cycle occurs. Hotmail, for example, or YouTube. The more people use them, the more people see them. The more people see them, the more people use them. The product or service must be something that improves once more people use it.

A second kind has evolved over the last few years, and that’s a marketing campaign that spreads but isn’t the product itself.Shepard Fairey’s poster of Barack Obama was everywhere, because people chose to spread it. It was viral (it spread) and it was marketing (because it made an argument–a visual one–for a candidate.)

Something being viral is not, in an of itself, viral marketing. Who cares that 32,000,000 people saw your stupid video? It didn’t market you or your business in a tangible, useful way.

Marketers are obsessed with free media, and, as is often the case, we blow it in our rush to get our share. We create content that is hampered or selfish or boring. Or we create something completely viral that doesn’t do any marketing at all.

I wrote the first mainstream book about viral marketing. It’s free (still) eight years (and millions of downloads) later.

Download 2000Ideavirus.pdf

I haven’t updated it or made it pretty, but I think the core ideas stand up pretty well. (I even talk about the Zipf’s Law and the long tail, but didn’t realize it at the time).

Here’s how the book itself is an example of viral marketing:

1. I posted the PDF for free. Three thousand people downloaded it on day one.

2. The file is small enough to email to your friends. I encouraged people to do just that.

3. Some people mailed it to fifty or a hundred people. It spread.

4. That’s just viral. The marketing part? I released a $40 souvenir hardcover edition. People knew the idea but didn’t like the format or my design skills. So they paid a lot for a book they had already read. It went to #5 on Amazon (#4 in Japan). We sold the rights in dozens of languages. And thepaperbackrights. And it helped me get speaking gigs.

BUT! 5. That’s not why I did it. If I had done it as a clever way to sell books, it would have failed. It would have failed because I would have somehow tried to track it, or added friction, or tried to profit in some way from the idea. I was way too dumb at the time to have done it right if my goal was to do it ‘right’.

The critical element of viral marketing is this: it’s built in. It was built into Hotmail and built into YouTube. The more people used the camera on their cell phones, the more the idea spread, the more people wanted a camera.

If you want to do viral marketing, you can try to come up with a viral ad, but you’ll probably fail. You’re better off building the viral right into the product, creating a product that spreads because you designed it that way.

Viral marketing only works well when you plan for it, when you build it in, when you organize your offering to be spreadable, interesting and to work better for everyone involved when it spreads. If I don’t benefit from spreading it, why should I spread it? I won’t. If you don’t benefit from your users spreading the idea, it might spread, but it won’t help you much. So both elements have to be present.

The reason for this post is that viral marketing is getting a bad name, largely from clueless marketing agencies and clueless marketers. Here’s what they do: they get a lame product, or a semi-lame product, and they don’t have enough time or money to run a nationwide ad campaign. So, instead, they slap some goofy viral thing on top of it and wait for it to spread. And if it doesn’t spread, they create a faux controversy or engage a PR firm or some bloggers and then it still doesn’t work.

Being viral isn’t the hard part. The hard part is making that viral element actually produce something of value, not just entertainment for the client or your boss.

Be sure to visit Seth’s Blog for more insightful info – great blog !

This is simply a fantastic idea … Simple & Fantastic!

Sometimes is the simple and easy things that generate the best R O I for your marketing time and expense.  Rad this little system and marvel at its simplicity and effectiveness.

This would take about half an hr to implement in the Ultimate Referral Marketing System.

Enjoy!

Steve

Here is a simple postcard to get them buying

This is a sample postcard for an art gallery (it doesn’t matter that this is not your business – it only matters that you take the idea and MAKE it fit your business).

This was a whopping $100 investment – and made them a healthy $3,000 profit in 5 days (mailed out to 120 people). These numbers may seem small to you – but to this business it was huge … their biggest EVER. And after they implement the follow-up campaigns and lead generation sequences, they will see 10 times these numbers.

The postcards were done with a gold foil invitation look … and went out to their existing customers (and NO, you cannot use e-mail postcards to replace this – invest the money and do it properly! My offline marketing returns many times better response than online only (by 400% and more).

=================== Front of postcard ===================

A FREE $50.00 Gift Certificate has been gifted to YOU

By at

I was just reflecting, as most of us do with the _____ (insert your holiday or reason why here) _____ upon us, about people, and especially my most loyal and appreciated customers. I thought about some ideas of how I could say thank-you … What’s better than giving away money?

Come see us in the next 2 weeks with this $50 gift certificate. I will have some new help around the store to take care of your projects. Finally get that picture framed that’s been under your bed or in the attic.

It’s my way of saying Thank-You for your loyal patronage!

================== Back of postcard ==================

Welcome to the Michelangelo Club. You will be the first to hear of (and benefit from) all the new offers for our Michelangelo members … Look for them in the mail … Enjoy your FREE GIFT.

See you this week …

PS … Come see me in the next 3 days and I will add an extra $5.00 to your gift certificate!!

Thank-you for your loyalty over the years and welcome to the Michelangelo Club.

What to do with your $50? (make that $55 if you come in soon)

• use it for custom framing
• use it as a down payment
• please allow up to 4 weeks to complete the project

When you come in – let me know your e-mail address for future Michelangelo specials coming up this year!!!

******

That was VERY simple – they wrote it up in half an hour – had it printed and mailed in the next 48 hours. There is nothing difficult about that – and yes, there are ample ways you could improve the offer. The point is – IT WORKED. The point is not for you to critique it or poke holes in it – rather to find a way to make it work for your business.

There are undoubtedly more ways you can get your existing clients back to buy – to buy more often – and to become more devoted purchasers (through clubs like this).

So … what offer can you make to your clients?

The ideas are endless if you put some thought into it and find ways to get them back to buy.

Find a few ways to make these lessons work for your business …

http://www.makepeacetotalpackage.com/troy-white/balancing-life-and-business-while-building-your-fortune.html#more-376

From – Troy White Editor, Small Business Mastery Supplement to THE TOTAL PACKAGE

From Steve

As you go through the hints and tips all the “gurus” provide – there’s a common underlying theme,  appreciation [see item #4 below] .. but How exactly?

What shall I send, when?

Wow.. this is time consuming to keep track of !

Well, the Ultimate Referral Marketing System has helped me tremendously in solving these issues.  If you want to be able to actually IMPLEMENT the following referral generating strategies – you’re going to need a system!

Good luck all and enjoy these ideas from Evan Carmichael

Youngentrepreneur.com presents …

Growing a business through referrals can be one of the most effective strategies an entrepreneur can embark on. Referred clients are more loyal, buy in greater quantities, buy more frequently, are less price sensitive and cost less to acquire than clients who come through traditional advertising / marketing avenues.

So how do you go about getting more referrals for your business? Here are five quick tips you can follow.

1) Just ask. Most entrepreneurs don’t get more referrals because they don’t bother asking for them. You would be surprised at how frequently an existing client would be willing to give you a referral but they don’t because they either a) don’t know you are looking for more business or b) don’t think about it because they have so much happening already in their lives. Simply by asking for referrals you will dramatically increase the amount of new business from word of mouth connections.

2) Wait for the thank you. When is the right time to ask for a referral? I prefer to wait until a client has had a positive experience with me and thinks highly of my business. What I wait to hear is the words ‘thank you’ come from them. If you have gone beyond the call of duty to help them and they have expressed their gratitude, now is the perfect time to ask them for a referral. They recognize your value, are in a positive frame of mind, and are likely to help return the favor you have just given them if they can. Try to train your mind so that when you hear the words “thank you”, you ask for a referral.

3) Become and introducer. Always try to think outside the box for your clients and help them in ways they don’t expect. I make introductions for them to other people I know who can help them. When reporters contact me for stories I try to involve my clients as well. If I spot an article or read a book I think might help my clients I’ll save it for them and gift it to them the next time we meet. I am always looking for ways to help my clients because by becoming an introducer you are more likely go get more of those ‘thank you’ moments. If you help a client land new business, for example, through one of your introductions, they are likely to thank you for your efforts which brings up a perfect opportunity to ask for a referral.

4) Recognize their efforts. Another important factor is to recognize the people who have given you referrals. This can be in the form of a specific contribution (a percentage of the sale for introducing a new client), but the people I work with typically don’t like to feel like they are being paid to sell their friends. They prefer to feel like they are helping their colleagues as well as helping me. So how do you recognize them? What I do is every quarter assign a certain % of my revenues towards thanking the people who have helped me with my business in the past quarter. I use the money to buy them gift certificates of various kinds and write a handwritten message with each reward. They always enjoy receiving the gifts and it’s another way to encourage them to send you even more referrals. (Note: I also do this for the people who I employ.)

5) Stay Top of Mind. This final element is important for every business owner to follow. If you want people to refer you to their friends they need to be thinking about you. To get them to think about you, you have to find ways to stay top of mind. If a client hasn’t heard from you in a couple of months it’s unlikely that they will have you at the front of their mind – they have busy enough lives to live without having to worry about you. Find ways to keep in touch. You can use a newsletter, host events, call to catch up, suggest a lunch, invite them to a party you are going to, send them information you have found valuable recently. The goal is not to sell them but just to remind them that you are there and that you value the relationship with them.

Referrals are not as scary as you might think. Get into the habit of following these five strategies and you will have new business being sent to you in no time!

Evan Carmichael
YoungEntrepreneur.com Blog Manager

See this article here: http://www.youngentrepreneur.com/blog/2007/09/12/how-to-get-more-referrals/

Shared by Steve
John Assaraf’s blog is pretty nifty stuff. Here’s a post I came across of his that’s very timely.

There’s just a never ending blitz of data coming at business owners daily about ONLINE MARKETING – especially about SEO [Search Engine Optimization] tactics.

This was just a refreshing piece that I enjoyed, and illustrates one of the benefits of using a tool like the Ultimate Referral Marketing System.  Online technology for Offline Relationship marketing.

The Business Insights Blog from OneCoach – 14th Edition

The world of the Web is truly amazing, but let’s not forget about the offline world.

It’s easy to get sucked into Web traffic solutions and search engine optimization, but there’s still a massive audience, if not bigger, who’s not on the Web, with deep pockets, who might want your product. Don’t cut yourself off from that offline world, because it holds opportunities to enlarge your power and extend your reach.

Direct mail is still possibly the most powerful and persuasive way of doing business no matter who you are. The most obvious obstacle with direct mail is the cost. But if you implement a piece that really penetrates your market, then the results can be very lucrative. In order to create that stellar piece, you’ve got to conduct testing to find out which one of your sales letters is actually going to work. Because of the potential high cost for such a campaign, you must test before you dive in.

In addition, your direct mail piece doesn’t need to be a postal-size Rembrandt – you don’t need stunning imagery or a big sales letter or brochure. A simple postcard can be very effective; it gets read by everyone including the mail person delivering it. A specific type of postcard marketing involves a two-step approach by putting a teaser on the card which is answered on your Web site (getting your message out there and increasing site traffic).

With this two-step approach, you can ask a question that the recipient can only answer by visiting your Web site or going to your directed resource. This is an example of hypnotic marketing. It’s also the perfect situation for presenting a hook to get them to visit and read your longer sales copy.

You may want to do a little market research to find out the average number of direct mail pieces that people receive in your target area. Some regions are so flooded with direct mail that people aren’t even scanning or glancing at these piles but sending them directly to the trash. When you really need to stretch your marketing bucks, it’s smart to look at areas of low competition first. This is also an opportunity to take on college marketing interns to personally deliver your direct mail pieces right into the hands of your ideal clients, such as managers versus administrative assistants.

All in all, you can look at your marketing campaign as a fishing boat. Each marketing element – newsletters, news releases, radio spots – can be considered a line in the water. And with every additional line in the water, you increase your chances of catching a big one.
Next in this series: How much time to spend on marketing.

This post is the sixth in a series of excerpts from OneCoach CEO John Assaraf’s interview with copywriter Joe Vitale, author of The Attractor Factor and Life Missing Instruction Manual, The Guidebook You Didn’t Get at Birth. For more information about Joe Vitale, visit his site atwww.mrfire.com.

Shared by Steve
Hi everyone … another interesting FEED post by Seth Godin. I wanted to share this short note with you because – like he points out, I’ve lost a favorite little store or vendor I really liked.

Now I miss them a great deal. What did I do to spread the word about them? Rarely anything. Shame on me.

Imagine if ALL you clients somehow got the point that “My Agent – who has been there for me since I was on my parent auto policy, or since I was the beneficiary of my Father’s Will etc … and they might not be there next year.”

So as creative Referral Marketers, how do we utilize what we’re going to read below to gently inform our clientele of this, and spin a marketing opportunity out of the concept?

What if we were to more frequently add P.S. messages or closing sentences to correspondence with something like … “It is through your generous referrals and trust that our business thrives through the most challenging of times.

Please don’t keep Us/Me a Secret …

We appreciate the trust, confidence and loyalty you’ve shown our firm over the years. We will strive to continually earn and keep it, and that of the friends, family and associates your refer to us!”

A little wordy … and a bit over the top – but it was for emphasis and idea. You get the point.

I like to put a little something heart felt and impactful from time to into to some of the drip campaigns I’m using with the Ultimate Referral System.

Enjoy …

IWantSandyis folding, as are a number of web companies. So is that restaurant you loved down the street. Users are outraged. Outraged!

When you find a service or establishment or product that gives you joy, it’s tempting to keep it to yourself. Perhaps it’s uncomfortable to recommend it to a friend (after all, you might seem silly) and even more uncomfortable to recommend it to a stranger (after all, you might seem like a shill).

Plenty of people hesitate before spreading the word about a political candidate or a business or amedical device. We’re worried that we’ll look silly, or that the place will end up being too crowded and now we won’t be able to get in. Or perhaps we’re concerned about losing our uniqueness…

Anyway, the outcry that accompanies the closing of one of these businesses should be enough to remind you that your hesitation has a cost.

It’s simple, I think. In a world where consumers have so much power, we now have two responsibilities:

• If you don’t like what an organization stands for, work actively to spread the word and force them to change

and

• If you will miss a product, a service, a book, a site or a professional when they close up shop, stand up, speak up and bring them masses of new business.

We get what we promote.

Venture Beat:

Everyone loves talking about Twitter’s business model — because there isn’t one yet, and they’ll keep talking about it until there is one.

But it’s becoming more clear that while a business model is of course important, Twitter is perhaps the perfect example of a company that can afford to take its time in finding the one that is perfect for it.

That’s because other businesses are building so much on top of the micro-messaging service and using it for their own services.

Less altruistically, some businesses have discovered that Twitter is an effective way of communicating with consumers.

Dell says Twitter has produced $1 million in revenue over the past year and a half through sale alerts. People who sign up to follow Dell on Twitter receive messages when discounted products are available the company’s Home Outlet Store. They can click over to purchase the product or forward the information to others.

Photo byTwitter.

One of the tools that took Facebook into the stratosphere … virology, appears to be at play here for Twitter, users, followers, tweets .. whatever

Word of Mouth Viral marketing circa 2008 … Tweet Tweet!

Check out the last sentence of this interesting blog post. Then, checkout how you can use it similar web 2.0 technology on your site[s] …

Go Viral Young Broker, Go Viral <– click and check out how these guys create a Viral Tidal Wave …

Enjoy,