Use this simple email to offer clients and prospects your perspective on uncertainty and what factors could impact stocks next.
Ask a philosophical question for your clients and prospects with this email and offer some answers to the following questions:
Timely emails present an easy, low-stakes way to maintain a relationship with your list of prospects and clients.
Marketing emails get results. And those results can be pretty big wins. Michael H. Baker of Vertex Capital Advisors uses our plug-and-play content to build relationships with his email list.
“Snappy Kraken’s consistent drip of awesome content makes me look top notch with my followers,” he said. “Recently, their Retirement Success campaign led me to a $1.5 MILLION client!”
And that was after he sent his first email campaign. His experience isn’t an isolated one. An email list is your bridge into your prospects’ and clients’ personal inboxes, bringing you closer to them. And having access to your target audience’s inboxes is important because email generates more clients than most other platforms—social media, banner ads, etc.—by up to 92%.
Well-crafted emails can help you nurture prospects and turn them into loyal clients—and those loyal clients become referral machines. But before you can send those emails, you need a list filled with qualified prospects.
Your email list gives you a way to reach and nurture your prospects and clients in a more personal, less cluttered space—their email inbox. And lead nurturing is important because it produces 50% more leads who are ready to book a call with you—and for 33% cheaper.
Imagine trying to talk to someone 10 yards away in a park full of people who are doing other things. That’s what social media is like—screaming into the ether, hoping someone might hear you. But more often than not, your prospects walk away without even noticing you. Emails, on the other hand, land right in your prospects’ inboxes, bringing you closer to your target audience. Instead of being 10 yards away in a crowded park, you’ll be on the same park bench in a less crowded area.
And the data proves it. In the financial services industry, emails see an average open rate of 24.94% and a click-through rate (CTR) of 3.22% (almost three times higher than social media’s CTR of 1.2%). It’s time to expand your contact list.
A lot of financial advisers think that getting an email list started is a daunting task. But in reality, you probably already have an email list, no matter how small that may be (even if it’s just one person). And better yet, you can grow your email list with ease by taking advantage of Snappy Kraken’s ready-made content and our Cold to Gold Framework.
Your clients need to be on your email list; otherwise, you can’t nurture them with relevant content. In a similar vein, when you meet new people, and they give you their contact information, they expect YOU to reach out to THEM, not the other way around.
Start building your list with information from your clients, event attendees, and other instances where you received contact information. If you still don’t know where to start, try these places:
After you’ve found all your long-lost email list entries, add them to a spreadsheet or upload them to your email marketing tool.
A word of caution: According to several global laws, including the CAN-SPAM Act and the GDPR, you need an explicit opt-in from non-clients before you can send them marketing emails.
Before you send marketing emails, reach out to non-clients with personalized messages detailing where you met, what you talked about, and how you think you can help. If they respond that they’d love to chat with you, then invite them to your email list and nurturing sequences.
After you start building your list, it’s time to generate more leads with our Cold to Gold Framework. We analyzed over 32 million data points to bring you a marketing framework built specifically for financial advisers, designed to generate qualified leads and foster client loyalty.
First, get noticed. Use unique, attention-grabbing graphics—not boring, overused stock photos—that will make viewers feel something and want to click on your social media posts and ads. For example, we used the cover image of our “Retiring in Uncertain Times” campaign to reflect what pre-retirees are feeling—worried, scared, even terrified.
Next, earn contacts with a free lead magnet for your target audience. A lead magnet is a downloadable guide or other free resource created with your target audience’s interests in mind. Going back to our previous example, if you are targeting pre-retirees who are scared of not having enough during their retirement, you might choose to run our “Retiring in Uncertain Times” campaign.
The lead magnet for that campaign is called “The ‘Dos’ and ‘Don’ts’ to Help Safeguard Your Future.” It includes a short explanation of why pre-retirees are worried about retirement and a list of three “dos” and two “don’ts” that all point back to working with a professional.
Lastly, house your lead magnet on a landing page with a tripwire. Your landing page should contain a thought-provoking headline, a short description, and a “Download now” button or other call to action (CTA) that makes a lead form appear.
Put your lead generation machine on autopilot by designing the content and then automating all three steps.
By now, you should have a list of at least 10 people. If you have more, great. If you have less, be patient. The last step to building an email list that converts is to segment your contacts into relevant categories.
Your prospects and clients have different interests, financial needs, and purchasing intents. You need to create groups within your list so that you only send your prospects the most relevant messages. After all, you don’t want to send your pre-retiree contacts an email about tuition planning.
We recommend segmenting your clients and prospects into at least seven categories.
This stage is also where you can qualify your contacts. If you notice that you’ve emailed a contact multiple times and have received no response from them, they probably aren’t interested in becoming your clients. If they do respond to you and need a service you don’t offer, then they’re not a good fit for your business. You can either remove those contacts from your list or add them to a dormant segment that you send emails to occasionally.
You should now be on your way to a segmented list of email addresses. Don’t just let your list sit and collect dust. Continue growing your list and nurturing it regularly to really build that relationship with your prospects and clients.
But we know that nurturing takes a lot of work. More than half—56%—of brands take one to three weeks to produce one effective marketing email. We’ve got your back—we spend hours creating ready-made campaigns for financial advisers so that you don’t have to.
Book a demo now to see our lead generation machine—the Cold to Gold Framework—in action.
What does uncertainty do to you? How does it make you feel and react? Most of us can’t stand it. We get anxious, stressed, and freaked out by it. We’d much rather have the comfort of certainty. And some of us will go pretty far out of our way to get it. But that could be a mistake. Why?
This month’s Visual Insights Newsletter will answer that question, looking at how uncertainty can actually be good for us.
Spotlighting the silver linings of uncertainty and offering a fresh perspective on the unknown, the VIN will focus on novel opportunities to learn, challenge ourselves, and grow in uncertain times.
The key message will center on resilience, how to leverage uncertainty, and how to thrive outside of our comfort zone in the face of the unknown. Acknowledging that uncertainty is unavoidable, the VIN will position the financial professional as a mentor, counselor, and resource who can help folks stay focused on the big picture and make better financial choices as they navigate the uncertainties of life and the markets.
Continue reading [NEW] Visual Insights Newsletter – Silver Linings of Uncertainty
Imagine looking through a restaurant window and seeing a poorly lit dining area with dingy chairs and tables. Even if their food is amazing, you’ll never know because, from the outside looking in, the place looks sloppy.
Bad content makes you look like a poorly maintained restaurant.
No matter how amazing your portfolio management skills are if prospects look you up and find poorly written articles and a single social media post from 2015, they won’t give you a second thought.
Great content, on the other hand, makes you look smart, technologically advanced, and interesting. It differentiates you from your competitors who are probably posting watered-down, generic content—as most financial advisers do.
Don’t blend in. Stand out, establish your expertise, and get more clients with content that educates and empathizes.
Before someone hands you their life savings, they need to trust you 100%. This means that they’ll shop around, do the research, and then choose the adviser that suits them best.
John Anderson, managing director at SEI Investments, said it best when he said, “A friend or family member isn’t just going to call based on the referral. They’re going to check out an advisor’s website, social media, and any content they’ve created.”
Use content to show your prospects that they can trust you and that you’re the best (and only) option if they want an adviser who’s a perfect fit for their financial needs.
Even though giving away knowledge for free might seem counterintuitive, 77% of marketers say it’s one of the best strategies you can use to build trust. And the more your target audience trusts you, the more willing they will be to pay a premium for your services.
Anthony Thornton, global content director at Content × Ten, even said, “For high and ultra-high net worth individuals, storytelling that speaks directly to them is key. Storytelling starts the conversation. Conversation earns trust. And from that trust, you build conversion and, of course, retention.”
To create educational content, you have to first find out what your target audiences want to learn about by talking to your existing prospects and clients or going through online forums like Quora and Reddit to look for relevant discussions.
Once you have enough relevant topics, start creating content—videos, emails, articles, downloadable guides, and more. An example of educational content is our The Cost of Raising Children campaign. It uses a Pacman-esque art style to illustrate common expenses that new parents need to prepare for.
At the end of the article, our members can show their readers that they can help by saying, “If you’re thinking about how to balance the costs of kids with your personal needs and future, call my office.”
Apart from seeing how much you know, your target audience also wants to know that you will care about them beyond a strictly transactional client-adviser relationship. As Elise Pulver, director of wealth planning with TD Wealth Family Office, said, “Clients need advisers who are genuine and care about their best interests.”
And our data proves it, too. At the height of the pandemic, we gave our members campaigns that made them more human and relatable to their existing email list. At the end of the year, we found that our top-performing engagement campaigns were “Creating Gratitude & Happiness,” followed by “2020 Lessons Learned.”
Show your prospects that you will care about them and get them financial wins with different kinds of empathetic content:
Having both educational and empathetic content will show your prospects what kind of adviser you are and really encourage them to become clients.
Get better results by creating content built to generate leads, nurture prospects, and convert both into clients.
Downloadable guides are your “offer” for lead generation campaigns. They are usually housed on a landing page where users need to fill out a form before they can start the download.
Your guides don’t have to be fancy—just relevant. Create simple guides that your potential prospects are interested in, like a retirement guide for your pre-retiree target audience.
When you create downloadable guides, make sure they have:
The key to downloadable guides is making sure that your content is relevant and interesting enough to get your target audience to give you their contact information.
Social media is powerful—and easy. It’s a storytelling tool that gives you the opportunity to reach a fraction of the 4.62 billion users worldwide.
On Facebook, Instagram, and LinkedIn, a good post has three components: a thought-provoking photo, a relatable and informative caption, and one to two hashtags. While that sounds like a lot of work, we’ve got a 🔥 hot tip for you—repurpose your downloadable guides into social posts:
Here is an example of a Facebook post we created for our Retirement Income Teeter-Totter campaign:
In addition to repurposing your downloadable guides, you can also share simple posts about things that happen in your life or that you believe in. For example, Hannah Morando shared what impostor syndrome feels like and told her target audience that she feels it, too.
Showing your prospects that you’re human will make you more accessible.
Marketing emails keep the communication alive between you and your prospects and clients. An old study found that it takes six to eight marketing touches to qualify a lead. It takes even more marketing touches to turn those leads into clients.
Don’t let your prospects forget about you. Instead, create campaigns that you can send them on a regular basis. There are three kinds of marketing emails you always need to have:
The goal of your marketing emails should always be to build relationships with your prospects, learn more about them, and establish that you are a reliable resource for financial concerns.
Over 80% of marketers said that video helped them improve lead generation, sales, ROI, and website traffic. Our own research shows that adviser emails with videos got a 20% higher open rate and 176% higher click rate compared to emails without videos.
When you can, create videos that grab attention and build relationships. The good news is you can do it in three steps.
If you need some help getting started, we have three types of video scripts: educational scripts, current event scripts, and finance-adjacent scripts. All of our video scripts are designed to help you build a connection with your prospects and clients.
The hardest part of creating great content that generates clients is getting started.
Snappy Kraken member Nolan Baker, founder of America’s Retirement Headquarters, used to spend over 40 hours a month just creating content. Another member, Michael Baker of Vertex Capital Advisors, shared an even bigger roadblock: “What’s harder to measure is the mental energy I used to spend on [content creation].”
They both found a solution that cut their content creation time by around 90%: the Snappy Kraken automated growth program. Our production team spends at least 80 hours and thousands of dollars researching, planning, and designing data-backed content so that you don’t have to. All you need to do is hit “publish,” sit back, and enjoy the results.
Book a demo with our team today.
Use this simple email to tell clients and prospects that you’ve got their backs.
The last few weeks (and months) of volatility have told us that we’re looking at tough times.
This is a quick email to send hope to your list.
Let them know that even through volatile markets, high-interest rates, and uncertainty, It’s going to be ok.
Timely emails present an easy, low-stakes way to maintain a relationship with your list of prospects and clients.
Do you want to connect with prospects under 45 who want to invest? This campaign is for you.
Investment has changed.
For investors under 45, the landscape is more complex than it was for their parents.
Cut through the noise and attract fresh prospects with a campaign that offers a free guide: Simple Modern Wealth: 3 Key Money Moves To Make Before Age 45.
Inside, prospects will discover:
Nurture existing prospects by highlighting modern investment strategies emphasizing your ability to help them make the right choices. The lead magnet is designed to be “precisely vague” by providing good advice, but opening a loop with critical questions in the conclusion that the prospect must work with you to resolve.
Drive traffic to your offer with prospecting emails, social media posts, and optional Facebook ads. The campaign copy builds urgency by revealing the differences between old and new investment strategies.
We help you continue the conversation with prospects, bringing them deeper into the awareness funnel, with follow-up emails that position you as the right source for help and offering a free appointment to discuss their investment questions. Prospects who have immediate needs are encouraged to request an appointment with you, bringing these digital prospects right into your office.
The campaign publishes content over 4 weeks.
Use this campaign if you offer services targeted toward younger investors.
The campaign delivers the following:
Continue reading [NEW] Millennial/Gen Z Money Moves – Lead Generation Campaign
Use this simple email to offer clients and prospects your perspective on stagflation worries and what factors could impact stocks next.
Markets gifted us with another burst of volatility and headlines are looking apocalyptic again.
Is a recession or bear market on the way?
Though it looks like we’re in for a rocky summer, that doesn’t mean it’s time to hit the eject button.
Instead, we make careful shifts, especially in a rising interest rate environment.
Reassure your clients and prospects that they shouldn’t panic and rush for the exits and remind them that you’ll be in touch if you need to make some changes.
Timely emails present an easy, low-stakes way to maintain a relationship with your list of prospects and clients.
What if I told you that telepathy is no longer just for magicians and psychics but for financial advisers like you.
Would you believe me?
I’m here to tell you that “mind-reading” is a teachable skill.
No, we can’t literally read minds, but what we can do is read people to understand their emotions, desires, and needs.
It boils down to one thing, empathy.
You are making yourself vulnerable, putting yourself in their shoes, and asking the right questions.
That empathy leads to deeper connection advisers crave because your audience feels like you understand them.
As if you’re reading their mind.
Your clients and prospects are desperately looking for someone who understands them.
A good communication strategy depends heavily on how well you can connect with them.
Here are 5 Strategies to Understand and Connect with your Target Audience Better.
Continue reading 5 Strategies to Understand and Connect with your Target Audience Better.
What would take your next vacation to the next level? What does your ‘dream’ trip look like?
These days, we have more options than ever — and that’s not just when it comes to destinations.
Modern trends in travel are opening up so many new opportunities, giving us novel ways to explore, enjoy, and extend our vacations. That’s created almost limitless opportunities for much richer experiences that can create lifetime memories.
So, what modern travel trends could make your (or your contacts’) next vacation the best one yet?
This VIN will answer that question, sharing some surprising and exciting new trends in modern travel.
Highlighting options for singles, couples, and families, the VIN will explore the flexibility, motivations, and passions behind some of the latest travel trends and how those trends are redefining how we get away, recharge, and benefit from a much deeper enjoyment of our travel experiences.
The key message will center on the connection between travel, experiences, and living a rich, satisfying life.
Acknowledging life’s responsibilities and uncertainties, as well as the mental health benefits of travel, the VIN will position you as a partner and guide who can help folks enjoy a rich, deeply satisfying life, no matter what that looks like for them.
Each Visual Insights Newsletter campaign delivers the following over 21 days:
Personalize this campaign to engage and entertain your clients & prospects now!
Continue reading [NEW] Visual Insights Newsletter – Modern Travel Trends
The 2022 Jolt! Awards have just been announced – and this year’s winners are truly raising the bar.
Read on to learn about our top ten winners, what they’ve accomplished, and why they’ve been chosen as top-tier marketers in the finance industry.
The Jolt! Award is an annual honor that recognizes the best marketing campaigns, branding, or other PR initiatives in the financial advisor or advisor-tech space. These are the campaigns that are fresh, unique, effective, and genuinely jolting.
The vision behind this award is to encourage continuous elevation in the quality of marketing by recognizing a higher standard for all of us to strive toward. At the heart of it all, we’re looking to recognize the best of the best, and to raise the bar in the process. That’s why a Jolt! Award can be given to either individuals or companies – there’s no cap on creativity and innovation.
The best part? The Jolt! Awards have no room for politics or self-nominations. Winners are selected by a top-secret committee of industry thought leaders. You can’t buy a win, and there are no sponsors. And because we don’t believe in limiting greatness, the number of awards is determined only by the number of awesome acts of marketing in our industry.