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In my previous article in this series, What is Lead Nurturing?, I explained the what, why, where and when of Lead Nurturing. Now you need to know the how.
I will cover the details about the ”how-to” of lead nurturing and provide you with the actionable steps and even a few checklists and templates to get you started.
The hows of lead nurturing?
I have told you about setting your leads up in an automatic campaign and that you needed to make contact with them. But how? There are a few tips about timing and content that can get you started in the right direction.
Timing
It really is all about timing. You do not want to become a nuisance, and get sent to the spam folder, but you also do not want to let a lead become cold and wonder where you have gone.
- Typically three to five emails to your prospects is an appropriate number.
○ In the professional services industry, the sales process is longer than what is found in traditional sales.
○ Typically weekly or biweekly is effective.
- One last follow up contact is recommended, approximately a month later.
Remember, with lead nurturing, patience is a virtue. It takes time for someone to make this type of decision and they do not want to be pressured or rushed. Choosing who to trust with their financial information is an important decision. Use this time to your advantage to prove why you are the right choice for them.
Content
You need to send some emails to your leads. What are you going to put in those emails? Here is a simple outline you can consider.
Email 1
- Simple welcome message
- Thank you for visiting our website, downloading our checklist, signing up for our newsletter
Email 2
- Who you are
- Include links to your “about” page on your website and team biographies
- Attach a pdf in case the reader likes to print
Email 3
- Offer a free resource (if you have not already done so)
- Mention what types of clients you help (target/ideal client)
- Offer next steps information, invite them to set up a get acquainted call
Email 4 (Follow-up/Optional)
- 30/60 days later if you haven’t heard anything from them
- Check-in, see if they have any questions
- Have them simply reply to the email - make it as easy as possible
Every financial firm and adviser will handle this differently. Everyone has a process that they want their potential clients to go through and various information they want to provide. The great thing is that once it is set up, it is extremely easy to make adjustments to and even customize.
Set Up
Now that you know what you want to say, how do you get started? Here is a simple checklist you can follow to get the process going.
- Start with a Word or Google doc and draft out the email contents.
- Have one or two people review and edit it.
- Consider having someone with an outside perspective give you feedback.
○ Friend, marketer, close client, family member
- Set up the template in an email tool like Constant Contact or Mailchimp.
- Connect your list/lead nurturing campaign to your website and your client relationship management (CRM) tool using integrations or a tool like Zapier to have even more automation.
- Also, be sure to add this new contact to your regular newsletter and/or email list.
- Make sure you receive an email notification when someone is added. Why? Because it’s also recommended to personally reach out to the contact especially if you already know them or they have also provided their phone number.
If you are unfamiliar with how to set up an automated email campaign, most tools have a great help center.
Do I need more than one funnel?
I will go into more detail about multiple funnels in another article coming soon. But for now, the answer is, that depends.
You need to remember to start simple. Don’t over complicate things, and if it seems too hard to use/manage right out of the gate, you will be less likely to follow through and keep using it.
But, if you have multiple industry targets and lead generation materials, it would be a good idea to create multiple funnels that are customized to each industry or niche. An example would be if you service both small business owners and doctors. You could create two different lead nurturing campaigns with two different funnels. Although they would be similar in nature, they could provide more detailed information created specifically for that target.
Now what?
Once you have a system in place and ready to go, there are a few steps you need to follow before you release it to your leads.
- Test the series on yourself! You want to catch all of the bugs before someone else does.
- Experiment with the text, the subject lines, and the calls-to-actions found within the email. See what works and what feels natural to the tone and personality of your firm.
- Evaluate, review, and optimize. There's always room to improve your campaign and nothing needs to be set in stone.
- Make sure you take advantage of testing and experimentation to better nurture your leads.
- Take advantage of this process, if not, you could be missing out.
- Lead nurturing can be ineffective if done incorrectly, but if you put the time into your campaign it can really pay off.
I hope this gives you an understanding of the lead nurturing process and you can now put all of that great lead information to good use.
In the next part of this series, I will walk through the process of converting these leads to clients.
Crystal Lee Butler, MBA, is a creative marketer and results-oriented business consultant with over a decade of experience collaborating with independent advisors. At Crystal Marketing Solutions, she delivers exceptional insights for financial professionals enabling them to create a consistent marketing presence so they can focus on the things that matter most to them.
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Advisor Perspectives welcomes guest contributions. The views presented here do not necessarily represent those of Advisor Perspectives.