| Over 15 years ago, when I became the National Sales Training Director for First Investors, I introduced an idea that was very controversial. I told veteran FAs to find a niche, pick one product or service that their target client needs, and be able to articulate why they were the best advisor that target client could have for that need.
I told them to focus all their work on that target and that need.
Regional managers hated my message. It was extremely controversial at the time.
15 years later, virtually all marketing experts in our industry are saying the same thing and it’s no longer controversial. I also discovered that most top advisors owed their success to targeting in this way.
But the truth is that in my own business, I resisted my own message for years. I had two types of people coming to me for help growing and managing their businesses—financial and insurance professionals, and CEOs of growing companies.
I didn’t want to let go of either market, and my messaging unsuccessfully tried to satisfy both. A couple of years ago, I tried to fix that problem by supplementing my existing web site, SandySchussel.com with a second web site, CEOLeadershipCoaching.com.
Then I started working with a coach of my own who challenged me to let one of these go and focus all my marketing attention on the other. I accepted the challenge and chose the advisor market as the one I wanted to focus on.
Here’s what happened:
1. I started seeing more advisors and more of them made the decision to work with me in coaching programs. I was—and am—all over the internet, and have a good number of subscribers to my advisor e-letter.
2. I continued to get referrals to new CEOs anyway.
3. By focusing on a niche, I reduced the time and effort I put into marketing activities while my income was increasing.
It took seeing it for myself for me to be 100% committed to what before just seemed like good marketing advice.
But deciding to take my advice about creating a niche is just the necessary first step. You have to choose the target market and the one service, understand how to brand yourself for that market and the best ways to reach it–all of which can be nerve-wracking and confusing.
If you’re ready to accelerate your growth toward the million-dollar plus level, and accept the niche marketing principle, but need help putting it all into action, let’s have a short conversation about how to get it all started. Get on my calendar as soon as possible and I’ll help you make it happen.
In the meantime, keep REACHING…
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