Affluent Marketing and the Internet

When marketing to the affluent on the internet, its beauty is also its curse. It can be summed up in one word-speed. The good news is that I can get to anyone’s website in the proverbial blink of an eye. The bad news is that I can leave in the same amount of time.

Thus the challenge for any website is to s-l-o-w visitors down. Get them to pause, to read, to understand what you can offer them. Begin the process of building a relationship. So how exactly do we do that?

Let’s start by discussing what you don’t want to do. There are two things that will turn your website into a marketing tool that actually helps you build more brand new client relationships vs. just an online brochure hanging out there in cyberspace

Let's start with, why are people searching on the internet in the first place? In today’s fast paced society, “surfing the net” is hardly the preferred activity for the clients you most want to do business with. According to Pew Research, the two most common reasons people are on the internet is to 1) solve a problem and 2) seek out specific information. There's naturally an overlap on these two objectives.

However the point that most advisors miss when they create their websites is that people are not searching for “you”. They don’t sit down at the computer and say to themselves, “I wonder what Hincklebottom&Schmelbrain are up to?” Granted, it would be nice if they did, but they don’t.

Rather, they’re in front of their computer, frustrated with the level of service that they’re currently getting from their advisors and wondering/hoping, “Is there anyone out their who understands my needs?” “Is there anyone who specializes in working with people like me?”

Unfortunately when you go to most websites you're greeted with a message that says “Since 1897 Hincklebottom&Schmelbrain has prided itself on superior customer service and clients satisfaction. As the oldest family owned financial firm in the tri-state area…”

Remember why visitors went online to search in the first place. It wasn’t to find the “oldest family owned financial firm in the tri-state area…” No, your visitor had frustrations, issues, problems.

That’s what you want to focus on. That’s what you want your message to convey. It can be something as simple as, “If you’re similar to many of our other clients, your needs for financial services are unique. The issues are more complex and involved, and require the services of a firm that takes a holistic approach to serving the affluent market.”

Now obviously I just made the previous statement up, largely off the top of my head, but I’m sure you can see my point. What we want to do with the message that greats visitors is to convey, in completely unambiguous terms, that our target market has arrived at the right place. This is what is often referred to as the “message to market match”. We want to make sure that our visitors see a reflection of themselves in all of our marketing materials. So take a look at your current copy on your website. Who is it about? You or your visitor?

For more details, please visit - http://www.gentlerainmarketing.com

Author Biography:

Mark Satterfield is a founding partner of Gentle Rain Marketing. Since 1992, he has worked with leading professional services firms on the design, development and implementation of new business pursuit strategies. He has an undergraduate degree in English from Washington University and a Masters Degree from Norwich University.

For more details, please visit - http://www.gentlerainmarketing.com