Jun 13, 2019

Tips For Turning Seminar Prospects into Clients [Plus a Free Download]

Your path to growth depends on following up and following through.

White Glove

After you’ve successfully hosted your tax-efficient retirement seminar, how do you get the attendees into your office? Your next focus should be on continuing to demonstrate your value. As much as you want to get prospects to invest in you, at this point, it is crucial that you avoid pushy sales practices and focus on adding value for the prospective client instead. Follow-up and follow-through correctly, and you’ll earn their business for years to come.

Hereare some tips for turning seminar attendees into clients.

1. Follow Up

Atthe beginning of your seminar, distribute evaluation cards. Ask attendees torate your presentation and gather their name and contact information. Leave a spacefor questions with a note offering a free consultation. Attendees who turn intheir card with a question are qualified leads to follow up with and haveprovided helpful information for making your first conversation a success.

Soonafter your event, follow up with attendees at the contact information theyprovided. If you don't get in touch, commit to following up once more.Aggressive follow up can tarnish your ability to be perceived as a trustedprofessional advisor and not a sales person, so now is not the time to berelentless.

Whenyou call, use these three phases to move a prospect to action:

1. Open the conversation by answering their question from the evaluation card.

2. Transition to a conversation about the impact of the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act on retirement income streams.

3. Conclude by suggesting that they set up an appointment to discuss their situation further, since there are simply too many interactions between assets to discuss via telephone.

Addattendees who don’t set up appointments to your newsletter list or dripcampaign to stay top-of-mind with prospects.

2. Prep For Your First Meeting

Two weeks out, send your prospects:

  • Apersonalized initial consultation letter on letterhead.
  • Aconfidential profile questionnaire.
  • Abudget worksheet. 
  • Adocument checklist that includes everything they need to bring — especiallytheir 1040 — in order for you to prepare their retirement financial plan.

Two daysout, prepare your client packet:

  • A personalizedletter outlining your financial planning philosophy.
  • Privacynotice information.
  • Yourbusiness brochure.
  • Financialplanning agreement.
  • Investmentadvisory agreement.
  • Authorizationto furnish information.

3. Build Trust

Building a strong connection is the most important part of on-boarding a new client. They need to trust you. New clients may be skeptical of how much value you can offer, or they may already have ideas about what's best for their financial plan. In your first meeting, make a point to listen more and talk less. Discover their goals, successes and challenges. Let them ask questions and answer them honestly. Again, you are building a relationship, not “closing a deal.” You build trust with this mantra: helping, not hustling.

Since they were initially attracted to yourservices from your seminar, makesure you address how you can help them with tax-efficiency in retirement planning. Reiteratethat even with the recent Tax Cuts and Jobs Act, middle income retirees can face federal tax rates as high as49.95% oneach additional withdrawal from a retirement account.

4. Demonstrate Value 

Login to Tax Clarity® usingthe login credentials that you used to access the PowerPoint for your seminar.You can run an example case that your prospective client can relate to – showthem how their income streams could interact and negatively impact theirretirement strategy. And then show them how, with your expertise, you can helpbuild a strategy that is tax-smart, keeping more money in their hands.

Theclient-friendly Tax Map graphic clearly shows how ordinary and capital incomesinteract and the value you can add by helping them make better incomewithdrawal decisions.

Run a Customized Report in Tax Clarity 

You can even enter the information from their1040 into the software (it takes about five minutes) and run an analysis oftheir current situation. The report will help you quickly and easily identifyplaces where you can add money to their retirement. Simply click the PDF tababove the Tax Map and generate a customized PDF. Show the potential clienttheir personalized report during your first meeting or review the custom reportin your second meeting, after they become a client. The client-facing report isa great take-home document that demonstrates very clear ways that you can addimmense value to your client’s retirement plan.

Add Value at Every Step

Provide even more insightful information on the topic that attracted prospects to your seminar in the first place, and tailor the information to the potential client’s specific situation. This will help them see the unique value you can deliver.  

Written by: Lauren Laferla, PR & Content Marketing Manager at Covisum

Lauren is a content marketing enthusiast with a love for storytelling - on camera, in writing and through others. She has a robust communications background that includes: public relations, content creation, internal communications, digital marketing and copy editing. She is driven and motivated, Lauren holds a bachelor's degree in English and is an avid reader.

Financial advisors and CPAs should capitalize on mutually beneficial relationship opportunities in this era of new tax laws. Smart advisors know that CPAs can add value to their practice, both by providing tax advice and by referring clients who need financial plans. Being unable to provide tax advice should not stop you from helping your clients build a tax-efficient retirement plan. Enable them to make good decisions by building relationships with qualified tax professionals using our free CPA introduction letter template.

Get started and download Covisum’s free template now.

   

   Fill out the form below. Once you hit "submit" you'll receive an email with the CPA introduction letter to download. Check your inbox after you submit the form.

* indicates required

First Name  *

Last Name  *

Email Address  *

Company  *

Phone Number

       

   

   

AboutCovisum®

As a business dedicated to helping advisors grow their practice, Covisum does not simply provide seminar content and leave you to your own devices. Covisum is here to help you along the entire journey, not just the seminar.

Covisum’s Tax Clarity software visually illustrates the value of a good decision. To learn more about the capabilities of the software, watch this Tax Clarity demo. Plus, as a subscriber, you have free and unlimited access to support. Reach out to help@covisum.com for software or subject matter questions.

The material I am attempting to access (name ofcontent) has been contributed to this website by Covisum, which isnot affiliated with White Glove. I understand that White Glove is notresponsible for the Content and does not necessarily endorse the statements oropinions expressed therein. In proceeding to access and/or downloadthe Content, I understand and agree that certain information, including my nameand email address, will be shared with White Glove and Covisum, to be heldunder the terms of their respective privacy policies. WhiteGlove’s Privacy Policy may be accessed at https://whiteglove.comprivacy/. Please visit https://www.covisum.com/ for moreinformation regarding Covisum and/or its privacy policy.

White Glove

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Tips For Turning Seminar Prospects into Clients [Plus a Free Download]

After you’ve successfully hosted your tax-efficient retirement seminar, how do you get the attendees into your office? Your next focus should be on continuing to demonstrate your value. As much as you want to get prospects to invest in you, at this point, it is crucial that you avoid pushy sales practices and focus on adding value for the prospective client instead. Follow-up and follow-through correctly, and you’ll earn their business for years to come.

Hereare some tips for turning seminar attendees into clients.

1. Follow Up

Atthe beginning of your seminar, distribute evaluation cards. Ask attendees torate your presentation and gather their name and contact information. Leave a spacefor questions with a note offering a free consultation. Attendees who turn intheir card with a question are qualified leads to follow up with and haveprovided helpful information for making your first conversation a success.

Soonafter your event, follow up with attendees at the contact information theyprovided. If you don't get in touch, commit to following up once more.Aggressive follow up can tarnish your ability to be perceived as a trustedprofessional advisor and not a sales person, so now is not the time to berelentless.

Whenyou call, use these three phases to move a prospect to action:

1. Open the conversation by answering their question from the evaluation card.

2. Transition to a conversation about the impact of the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act on retirement income streams.

3. Conclude by suggesting that they set up an appointment to discuss their situation further, since there are simply too many interactions between assets to discuss via telephone.

Addattendees who don’t set up appointments to your newsletter list or dripcampaign to stay top-of-mind with prospects.

2. Prep For Your First Meeting

Two weeks out, send your prospects:

  • Apersonalized initial consultation letter on letterhead.
  • Aconfidential profile questionnaire.
  • Abudget worksheet. 
  • Adocument checklist that includes everything they need to bring — especiallytheir 1040 — in order for you to prepare their retirement financial plan.

Two daysout, prepare your client packet:

  • A personalizedletter outlining your financial planning philosophy.
  • Privacynotice information.
  • Yourbusiness brochure.
  • Financialplanning agreement.
  • Investmentadvisory agreement.
  • Authorizationto furnish information.

3. Build Trust

Building a strong connection is the most important part of on-boarding a new client. They need to trust you. New clients may be skeptical of how much value you can offer, or they may already have ideas about what's best for their financial plan. In your first meeting, make a point to listen more and talk less. Discover their goals, successes and challenges. Let them ask questions and answer them honestly. Again, you are building a relationship, not “closing a deal.” You build trust with this mantra: helping, not hustling.

Since they were initially attracted to yourservices from your seminar, makesure you address how you can help them with tax-efficiency in retirement planning. Reiteratethat even with the recent Tax Cuts and Jobs Act, middle income retirees can face federal tax rates as high as49.95% oneach additional withdrawal from a retirement account.

4. Demonstrate Value 

Login to Tax Clarity® usingthe login credentials that you used to access the PowerPoint for your seminar.You can run an example case that your prospective client can relate to – showthem how their income streams could interact and negatively impact theirretirement strategy. And then show them how, with your expertise, you can helpbuild a strategy that is tax-smart, keeping more money in their hands.

Theclient-friendly Tax Map graphic clearly shows how ordinary and capital incomesinteract and the value you can add by helping them make better incomewithdrawal decisions.

Run a Customized Report in Tax Clarity 

You can even enter the information from their1040 into the software (it takes about five minutes) and run an analysis oftheir current situation. The report will help you quickly and easily identifyplaces where you can add money to their retirement. Simply click the PDF tababove the Tax Map and generate a customized PDF. Show the potential clienttheir personalized report during your first meeting or review the custom reportin your second meeting, after they become a client. The client-facing report isa great take-home document that demonstrates very clear ways that you can addimmense value to your client’s retirement plan.

Add Value at Every Step

Provide even more insightful information on the topic that attracted prospects to your seminar in the first place, and tailor the information to the potential client’s specific situation. This will help them see the unique value you can deliver.  

Written by: Lauren Laferla, PR & Content Marketing Manager at Covisum

Lauren is a content marketing enthusiast with a love for storytelling - on camera, in writing and through others. She has a robust communications background that includes: public relations, content creation, internal communications, digital marketing and copy editing. She is driven and motivated, Lauren holds a bachelor's degree in English and is an avid reader.

Financial advisors and CPAs should capitalize on mutually beneficial relationship opportunities in this era of new tax laws. Smart advisors know that CPAs can add value to their practice, both by providing tax advice and by referring clients who need financial plans. Being unable to provide tax advice should not stop you from helping your clients build a tax-efficient retirement plan. Enable them to make good decisions by building relationships with qualified tax professionals using our free CPA introduction letter template.

Get started and download Covisum’s free template now.

   

   Fill out the form below. Once you hit "submit" you'll receive an email with the CPA introduction letter to download. Check your inbox after you submit the form.

* indicates required

First Name  *

Last Name  *

Email Address  *

Company  *

Phone Number

       

   

   

AboutCovisum®

As a business dedicated to helping advisors grow their practice, Covisum does not simply provide seminar content and leave you to your own devices. Covisum is here to help you along the entire journey, not just the seminar.

Covisum’s Tax Clarity software visually illustrates the value of a good decision. To learn more about the capabilities of the software, watch this Tax Clarity demo. Plus, as a subscriber, you have free and unlimited access to support. Reach out to help@covisum.com for software or subject matter questions.

The material I am attempting to access (name ofcontent) has been contributed to this website by Covisum, which isnot affiliated with White Glove. I understand that White Glove is notresponsible for the Content and does not necessarily endorse the statements oropinions expressed therein. In proceeding to access and/or downloadthe Content, I understand and agree that certain information, including my nameand email address, will be shared with White Glove and Covisum, to be heldunder the terms of their respective privacy policies. WhiteGlove’s Privacy Policy may be accessed at https://whiteglove.comprivacy/. Please visit https://www.covisum.com/ for moreinformation regarding Covisum and/or its privacy policy.