Advisors across the country are reporting plummeting response rates to seminar invitations. Bob V.'s comment to me after my workshop two weeks ago in Charlotte reflect what I am hearing from every corner of the country, "Seminars used to be very profitable. In the last year, the response rates have fallen so I have to spend much more on mailings. And the sales results are not what they used to be."

While most of our coaching clients have replaced seminars with direct referrals, some still find them profitable enough to complement their business growth. Those who are still succeeding with seminars leverage referral strategies to fill the rooms and secure successful appointments in a very cost-effective way. If you are conducting seminars, make sure you secure referrals during the invitation process, during the seminar, and during your follow-up to attendees. In addition to getting many names of people to invite to future seminars, these steps will give you the golden opportunity to involve clients and attendees in the invitation process. The chances of a prospect attending a seminar are much higher if they are asked by a friend to join them than if they just get an invitation in the mail. Capitalize on this and your seminar profitability will grow.

In certain markets, public seminars can still work - if you market them effectively. If you are interested in learning more about conducting successful seminars in those markets, send your inquiry to info@referralmastery.com

See also
You may want to reference the earlier issues of the Referral Mastery Tip by clicking here. In an earlier Referral Mastery Tip and Tele-seminar, we reviewed the importance of understanding your clients' objectives and securing client agreement on the structure and the strategy of the portfolio. We also covered how to use client reviews to address client disappointment and re-affirm the portfolio objectives, structure, and strategy. (Or risk management objectives, strategies, and policies)