Blog

When something seems too good to be true, chances are it probably is. Financial advisors play a critical role in helping individuals and businesses manage their finances and investments. As a financial advisor, you are continuously looking for new ways to attract clients and grow your business. 

One method that some financial advisors use is purchasing leads. However, we like to say that purchasing leads is essentially like playing the lottery. Purchasing leads can be a risky and ineffective lead-generation strategy. In this blog, we’ll explore why financial advisors should think twice before buying a list of leads. 

We've all heard the old adage, "knowledge is power." However, while knowledge is power in some situations, in others, it only becomes powerful once it is applied. For example, if you want to get in shape, knowing how to diet and exercise is not enough—you actually have to put that knowledge into practice.

In the financial sector, mental strength is also key. Just like physical fitness, mental toughness can be developed and strengthened with training. And like physical fitness, there are different exercises that can help build mental strength.

If you are like most advisors and agents you know that there are only three ways that your production can go: rise to a new production peak, backslide to a production valley, or cruise control onto a production plateau. Two out of three of those are not good states to be in your business and most people that reach a production peak don’t remain there for very long.

So, where do you currently find yourself? Most of us need a strategy (or several) to move from where we are to where we want to be.

This might be jarring for some readers. 10% will get it, and 1% will do something about it. Those who do will still compete for sales but not revenue, profit, or market share. We’re talking massive advantage.

“Insurance Agency” is not a business model. It’s a business. And that matters WAY MORE than you think.

As part of February's I Love NAIFA Month, we are highlighting all the aspects of the association we love. We are grateful for our Business Performance Center partners, who help provide agents and advisors with the tools and resources to build your agency or firm. 

Don't miss some of the recent content highlights from our BPC partners to help you take your business to the next level.

Matt Wagner of NAIFA Business Performance Center Partner, Client Focus, shares what agents and advisors need to know about AI and what it means for the industry.

Artificial Intelligence (AI) for the masses came online in December. It’s called ChatGPT. You can communicate with it at openai.com. It gives impressive answers to hard questions in seconds. Many think it will put Google search out of business. Maybe put schools out of business. AI is coming like a wrecking ball for repetitive, commodity work.

What about insurance agents? I was going to share my thoughts, but then it hit me.

Why not just ask AI?

So I did.

When you think of mentally strong people, who comes to mind? Oprah Winfrey, Warren Buffett, Kobe Bryant, Tony Robbins? These icons all have habits and practices that you can learn from and adopt in your own life. Below are five tips you can implement today to jumpstart your self-improvement journey.

Highly successful people are constantly working to improve their knowledge and skills and one of the best ways they do this is by reading. Whether it's reading for pleasure or reading to gain new knowledge or skills, there is a clear link between highly successful people and their love of reading.

If you are like most advisors, you have aspirations and dreams to build your business. You may have thoughts of creating business plans to assist you in reaching your goals. However, ask yourself this question: “How many times have I created a business plan only to file it away or lose my motivation to follow it through?”

Oftentimes, advisors start out their business plans with the best of intentions, only to get sidetracked by the day-to-day operations which leave those plans unattended and ultimately unfulfilled. If this has happened to you, rest assured that you are not alone. So what is the solution?

No matter what time of the year, no matter what stage of your planning, a business plan is not enough, you need a business blueprint!

Matt Wagner of NAIFA Business Performance Center Partner, Client Focus, shares nine ideas on how to drive high-value sales and help grow your business.

When I was an engineer, I won sales where the sales team couldn’t. Customers felt like I understood them and their ideal outcomes, which was true.

These 9 ideas have helped me drive high-value sales, in addition to:

• building trust
• maximizing customer lifetime value
• generating a lot of referrals and repeat business
• making me love my job