Is Your Marketing Strategy a Ferrari or a Yugo?

You may not know the Italian carmaker has been judged the world’s most valuable brand while only shipping 11,155 cars in fiscal 2021. In contrast, Porsche sold more than 69,000 vehicles in calendar 2021 in the U.S. alone.

The company has thrived for decades, and its culture has been described as “the Ferrari way.”

The term, coined by Harvard Business School professor, Stefan Thomke, is the unique process Ferrari uses to build and market its cars.

The Ferrari way focuses on three elements:

• Driving pleasure
• Performance
• Style

Ferrari's head of marketing once remarked, "We are not the fastest or most comfortable car on the market, but the best combination of the two, which makes us the most thrilling. Our concept of performance includes pleasure."

Ferrari is so passionate about creating a unique driving experience its engines are known for creating what is known as the Ferrari purr.

“What makes a Ferrari is the spirit behind it, which goes beyond the brand name: a legend based on hard-won success, on continually setting sights higher, and on pursuing excellence in results as well as in how those results are achieved.”

How can advisors draw insights from the Ferrari way?

Create the most valuable brand in your marketplace

It’s easy to conclude from Yugo and Ferrari that there are only two options: the cheapest or the most expensive.

It’s more nuanced, and both automakers had a specific target market segment.

Ultra-high net worth investors and families have more wealth complexity (and lifetime value) than the mass affluent targeted by Yugo.

Here are three top insights Ferrari provides that any wealth management firm or advisor can leverage.

Be fanatical about the details of your firm’s experience

Pay special attention to the desired results and the emotions clients experience with your firm.

Many of my advisor clients have used a framework to model desired results: before and after framework. For instance, try this method:

Before working with _____Wealth Management, I felt like my money was all over the place and I was unsure if I could retire with the lifestyle I wanted while leaving something just in case.

After working with _____ Wealth Management, I’m confident in my retirement plan, my investments and cash flow are organized, and I know I’m in control and have the bases covered.

Also, consider how the client experiences all touchpoints in your planning process. For example, how you help them navigate volatile markets, what they see, hear, and smell when entering your office and how they are greeted.

One client got every employee in the habit of answering the phone the same way, “Good morning, Hanson Wealth Management, this is Bob.” Everyone from the new intern to the long-time partner offered the same greeting with a smile and identified themselves.

The Ferrari way for advisors

Create your own Ferrari way with a maniacal focus on the details of how your clients experience the office, the staff, your planning services, and what results they experience.

Create exclusivity around your brand and services

Sell one fewer car than the market demands. Exclusivity is a must.

For example, Ferrari estimated a potential market of 1.4 million high net worth customers, yet only 50,000 customers were in its database.

Potential new customers are encouraged to buy used models first and get on the waitlists for new Ferraris with a dealer’s promise to buy back the used model at a fair price.

Successful advisory firms have a specific market or markets they target but the capacity to serve a small number of individuals who might qualify.

Describe the types of individuals your firm seeks on your website and in your referral marketing, emphasizing that not all clients are a fit and that availability is limited.

Encourage potential clients to experience an onramp offering like an initial plan before both sides decide if your firm’s full-service offering is suitable for the client.

Offer tiers of service that clients can aspire to and hold out top clients as models. For example, one advisor offered regular clients virtual client meetings, quarterly webinars, and a junior planner; top-tier clients had in-person meetings and quarterly, exclusive client events with access to a partner.

The Ferrari way for advisors

Create exclusivity with specific targeting of both markets of individuals. Recognize that only a specific percentage of clients can ascend to top-tier, “A” clients who experience the highest level of service.

Don’t communicate like you are selling a Yugo if you are selling a Ferrari

Picture an advisor who specializes in helping mid-career dental practice owners nationwide with advanced wealth management services. But her primary marketing tactic is to hold Social Security seminars at the local library.

This mismatch of the market, message, and tactics is much more common than advisors realize. Imagine making a Ferrari but marketing and pricing it like a Yugo.

Talk to the average advisor about their firm’s excellent work for clients and its benefits. Then look for those critical messages on website’s home page and you won’t find them. Too often, the website is littered with generic text that could apply to any firm and potential client.

Fix this marketing failure by updating the communication strategy and marketing plan to reflect the specifics of your firm, your services, your target markets, and the benefits offered.

A simple example: Advisors with a primarily local client base can successfully use seminars and workshops, while those marketing to niches regionally and nationally can profitably leverage video and webinars.

Another example: Our advisors with a heavy financial planning methodology often introduce that early in the marketing process, in a white paper or free report that talks about the many benefits of financial planning and includes an introduction to their planning process.

The Ferrari way for advisors

Build your comprehensive communications strategy and marketing plan to be congruent with your unique story, client base, experience and results you offer.

With a few“Ferrari way” strategies your firm will be considered the premium brand in your marketplace.

Bob Hanson is a fractional marketer and author of Marketing Power for Financial Advisors. Get his checklist, Nine Questions Advisors Must Ask Before They Hire a Marketing Agency, Fractional or Full-Time Marketer, click here.

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