“Talent is cheaper than table salt. What separates the talented individual from the successful one is a lot of hard work."
Stephen King 

“I am a great believer in luck and I find the harder I work, the more I have of it."
Thomas Jefferson

 A = Increase Activity

Now is the time for massive energy and maximum business building effort because you have money in motion. There are millions of unhappy investors and the competition is light. Our business, like many others is cyclical. It has its good and bad times. During the good times when clients are making lots of money, it’s very hard to pry folks away from their existing advisory relationships. During the tough times, people are much more willing to listen to a new story…so now is when your extra activity will really pay off.

For a good-activity guideline, use The Rule of 2.

2 appointments per day

These are in-person get-togethers with your top clients or prospects. If you are already averaging two per day then try boosting it to three. Many of you are wonderful when you’re in front of people. Your natural interpersonal skills really shine. I call this the revenue moment and you should strive to maximize the amount of time you spend here.

2 work-nights per week

I work nights for one main reason…it’s the best time to reach many clients and prospects. Some advisors tell me that they refuse to work nights and I understand their reasoning. They may have worked hard for years to get to a certain level of success and they feel that working nights simply isn’t something they want to do anymore. If you feel that way let me plant one thought in your mind. You are working nights not to make more money…you may have plenty of that already. You are working nights to help more people. It’s not about your success…it’s about your clients. Consider that before you reject this out of hand as something that’s beneath your stature.

2 Saturdays per month

Same rationale as above.

2 seminars per quarter

Obviously I love seminars and I’m a great believer in their ability to connect with people. If you’re not currently doing seminars or events, now is the time to get started. They work very well for both growing your business and for cementing your relationships with existing clients. If you would like more information on seminars, you might want to read my book, “Seminars: The Emotional Dynamic”. It’s filled with practical advice and techniques that will make your events remarkably successful.

2 tele-conferences per quarter

Tele-conferences are like seminars where no one needs to leave their desk. They are easy to set-up and fun to do and they will differentiate you from the crowd.

2 mailings per quarter

Direct mail can be a great marketing tool and in today’s world of electronic communication, hard-copy paper mail is enjoying a resurgence in impact. But in our industry, it’s rarely used for some reason. Many advisors swear that “junk” mail doesn’t work and I agree. Junk never works…but I can tell you of advisors who are generating five to eight new prospect appointments each month from a professional direct mail campaign. Like anything else, do it well and the results will follow. If you would like to learn more, contact Bob Wilgus at Response Mail Express ((800) 795-2773 ext. 5304) and ask him about the Concierge Program. It’s a revolution and it’s producing extraordinary results.

2 referrals per client

Referrals are not easy and getting top clients or centers of influence to refer you is a risky business for both parties. In order to make that risk disappear, you need to approach referrals in a sensitive and professional way that is the opposite of many of the techniques  we’ve all been taught. I’ve given the subject a lot of thought and research and I’ve actually written a new book called “Referrals The Professional Way.”

2 campaigns per year

Campaigns are very powerful ways to grow your practice. They can also be fun and exciting for everyone on your team. There are four main types of campaigns: sales, marketing, theme, and service. I prefer theme campaigns which allow me to use a variety of specific financial solutions depending on the client’s needs. One of my favorite themes is global investing. It’s broad enough to be applicable to everyone in your world and it has a wide range of applications and programs that support the theme.

The best part of doing campaigns is the goal setting / reward process. This critical element allows you to unify the conscious and subconscious parts of your mind in a dynamic partnership that will help grow your business and have more fun doing it.

The Rule of Two will help keep you focused on activity during a difficult period. Activity is one of the few variables that you can control (along with attitude and skill) so stick to that and let your competition worry about things like market action, interest rates, and the economy. In the end, activity will drive your business success more than any other component. We are a business about doing!