Advisor Perspectives welcomes guest contributions. The views presented here do not necessarily represent those of Advisor Perspectives.
According to Sports Pro, 112 million people tuned in to watch the Bengals play the Rams in the 2022 Super Bowl. If two once mediocre, schlocky franchises can turn that many heads, there’s no way advisors shouldn’t be using more sports in their marketing.
Here are five creative ideas.
Don’t talk about sports this way
Before I get into my list, let’s talk about what not to do when attempting to integrate sports into your communications.
1. Avoid tired cliches
Such as:
- “I’m the quarterback who interfaces with your insurance, legal, and accounting professionals.”
- “Let’s go for the slam dunk and get $5 million of whole-life insurance instead of term.”
- “When the market takes a dive, our team steps up to the plate.”
- “Defense wins games.”
Cheesy, overused, and you’ll sound like every other advisor. In the eyes of the prospect, you all sound the same. These will only deepen the problem.
2. No small talk
By integrating sports into your marketing, I do not mean chit chatting about sports to make small talk with the folks at the chamber cf Commerce meeting.
3. A couple is two people
Okay.
Here it is, advisors.
When speaking with couples, it’s typical for advisors to exclude the wife. Don’t do that in general, and especially don’t do that here.
If you notice she’s not that vocal, ask, “I see you’re a little reticent on this point. Are you a Red Sox fan, or do you have the misfortune to be rooting for the Yankees?”
I remember one financial conversation I was having with a mortgage banker… no, let me revise that. My (loser) ex-boyfriend was the only one who got to talk. Ironically, I was the one who had the cash saved up for the down payment! I should have delivered an uppercut to the jaw (to both of them), but held back for some reason. Yes, I know, hilarious to imagine me putting up with that, but 15 years ago I was a much more patient person.
Include both partners, alright? And let’s get on with the blog.
Here are five creative ways that advisors can use sports to market themselves to prospects.
1. Find out their favorite sports player or team, and send a gift
This one pulls on the heart strings.
A few years ago, a deal stalled with a tough cookie. No matter what I did, I couldn’t get him to respond to my emails. I called up his office and asked the receptionist what he was into. She told me he loved motorcycling (is that a sport?) so I ordered a book about the history of motorcycles and sent it to him. A few days later, I got an email with a signed copy of the agreement.
Don’t get me wrong – I did the same thing for someone else, and we never did any business. No guarantees, but in most cases the person will be pleasantly surprised and grateful.
Remember:
- Don’t go overboard. You don’t need to buy an autographed copy of anything or send them a ticket to the game. Too expensive is off-putting. It’s not the gift; it’s the gesture that says, “I took the time to find out what you are into instead of sending you a cell phone charger with my logo on it.”
2. Tell a relatable sports story
Advisors underuse the power of story in their marketing. Did you ever tell a real story about anything fascinating? I know many of you personally and you have way cooler lives than anyone would know from what they read about you! Please, stop hiding your coolness and start writing down those little vignettes.
Years ago, I read a blog by an advisor who mentioned Dennis Rodman being the “king of rebounds,” and then related it to the importance of playing defense. I never realized that about Rodman, and being a basketball fan in the 1980s myself, it brought me back to being in junior high and watching Celtics versus Pistons before going to the seventh-grade dance. It was so vivid, I can even remember the clothes I was wearing that night and how I wore my hair. Then it made me think of my dad and my brother, because I used to watch sports with them. It was nostalgic.
It shouldn’t be some adrenalin-charged hero story that sounds great but has little meaning to them. Be relatable. Try a simple observation about a sports figure they likely know, and use it to prove a point that will have meaning to them.
3. Survey says
LinkedIn surveys can be a great way to engage your audience. But don’t be that obvious attention-seeker, plunking down a non-business-related survey about who’s going to win the World Series. That’s like people who go on LinkedIn and get 15,000 answers to a poll about how many browsers they have open.
Clarification: Being fun doesn’t have to mean it lacks any valuable point about finance. It can be both.
Try a survey that will challenge people to answer a fun trivia question and somehow relate to personal finance. For example, “Which of the following NBA players has the highest net worth?” Or, “Which of the following NBA players lives in the highest wealth zip code in the US?”
Teach them something in a fun way.
LinkedIn is a business site and what you post should have some learning outcome related to finance.
4. Hang out in groups
Some Facebook groups are lively. I’m in the “Red Sox nation” group on Facebook with some rabid sports fanatics. People go there to hang out and talk about great moments in Red Sox history.
Join the local sports fan group for a team in your area, hang out and participate in community discussions. Don’t go in there with the ETF pitch to blast. Get to know people and connect with them directly if you vibe well, then see where the conversation goes.
Hint:
The more you have fun, relax, and act like the cool person you are in real life, the more likely they are to like you and give you the chance to get to know them. And you’ll attract the people who are similar to you in the process, which is a better foundation.
5. Make them a star
You have to buy the rights to the image, which can be expensive. But if there were someone whose attention you wanted to get, try something like this.
Let’s say they’re going public. Get a picture of their favorite team or player winning a championship, and superimpose their face on one of the players. Then write, “Good luck with your IPO next week.”
It’ll completely surprise them and if you do it right, they’ll be amused and grateful.
Sara’s upshot
Hope you enjoyed these creative ideas. I’ve got a lot more where those came from.
Here’s how to work with me.
I also have a book about LinkedIn messenger, and a membership where you can learn social media.
Sara Grillo, CFA, is a marketing consultant who helps investment management, financial planning, and RIA firms fight the tendency to scatter meaningless clichés on their prospects and bore them as a result. Prior to launching her own firm, she was a financial advisor.
Sources
Dixon, Ed. (16 February, 2022) Sportspromedia. 2022 Super Bowl viewing figures rise 16% to 112.3m for NBC. Retrieved from https://www.sportspromedia.com/news/2022-super-bowl-tv-ratings-nbc-streaming-nfl/
Advisor Perspectives welcomes guest contributions. The views presented here do not necessarily represent those of Advisor Perspectives.