Financial Marketing

Postcards can be automated through www.AmazingMail.com or www.Click2Mail.com, two online direct-mail systems. You can create eye-catching postcards right from your desktop. There's no minimum so you can do just one at a time, if you wish. Prices for the smaller-size cards (including postage and production) start at $1.25 and drop based on volume. You can even set the "send date" up to a year ahead.

Don't forget that handwritten thank-you notes can be effective communication tools because people still appreciate that personal touch. It's a good practice to write two every day. Send (or hand) a note of appreciation to a staff member, a client, a vendor or someone you're collaborating with; they'll feel good and so will you. Personal communications show recipients they're worth the extra effort.

For US-based advisors, www.ClientWhys.com and www.FPAnet.org have readymade client referral brochures, and their marketing libraries are full of cost-effective brochures to help clients understand the many ways you can solve their problems—and those of their friends and relatives. Advisors in the UK and other countries should check with their professional membership organizations to see what type of turnkey educational materials is available.

Newsletters filled with financial tips, pre-approved by compliance of course, are valuable marketing tools. I encourage advisors to send out one at least four times a year. Offer good old-fashioned financial planning education and market commentary, whether through a paper newsletter or email update. Newsletter content written by you will be more personal and aptly convey your thoughts. You might consider mailing a formal newsletter 2-4 times a year and supplementing that with an electronic form of information.

www.ConstantContact.com is a good e-newsletter system. You can create a custom template, maintain a mailing list, track click-through and give people the opportunity to forward the newsletter to friends. Once the template is built, simply add your content and hit "send." Other e-newsletter systems include www.iMakeNews.com, www.SwiftPages.com and www.VerticalResponse.com. Industry specific newsletter options, which typically include canned content with some ability to customize the layout and/or text, include www.EmeraldPublications.com, www.LibertyInk.com and www.Forefield.com. Most of the industry-specific vendors offer paper and electronic versions.

My next post will provide tips on using Web 2.0 and online Social Networking strategies to expand your reach and generate positive search engine results.

Marie Swift is president and CEO of Impact Communications, a marketing and PR firm that for over 17 years worked exclusively with independent financial advisors and the institutions that serve them. She is a popular speaker and coach for the Garrett Planning Network, Kinder Institute of Life Planning and FinancialPlanning.com. A frequent contributor to industry publications, her articles appear regularly in Financial Planning magazine, Bank Investment Consultant magazine, Research.com, Transitions e-zine and MorningstarAdvisor.com. Follow her on www.Twitter.com (marieswift). Read her Best Practices in the Financial Services blog at www.marie-swift.blogspot.com.