Developing a Successful Investment
Program: Branch, Book and Marketing
Once a financial institution (FI) has completed the transition of its financial services investment
program to a new broker dealer (B/D), the most important goal for most programs is to grow the
revenue. There are several steps to take to ensure the successful implementation of your
investment program and the success of the financial advisors hired to provide guidance and
customer service to clients. CFS and SPF provide a step-by-step process that will help any
program – both start up and existing – to achieve their growth goals.
Establish personal outreach and strong communications with program managers
Most financial advisors in a financial institution work in either dual-employee, managed, or
hybrid-managed programs. In a dual program, there is typically a dedicated program manager,
usually employed by the financial institution. In managed or hybrid programs, the program
manager is usually employed by the broker dealer and may have several programs to manage.
There is typically also a regional program development manager that oversees the program
managers at multiple programs.
It is important for advisors and FI management to establish good communication channels and
rapport with regional program development managers early in the process; they can be some of
your strongest supporters. Both program managers and regional program development
managers have the same goal – to remove any hurdles, help with integration, provide marketing
support and provide access to additional resources needed to enhance the program’s success.
They also clearly understand the chain of command and organizational structure of the bank or
credit union in which the advisors are working so they can help streamline communications.
Additional resources and specialists in the B/D back office can help with specific needs such as
small business investment planning, insurance and trading, and program managers are often
the conduit to these resources.
Take advantage of program marketing support
Program marketing support should be available from the B/D to help programs plan and build an
annual marketing calendar and seasonal and/or life stage investment program strategies.
Tactics offered may include branch referral training, client-facing workshops, marketing
promotions, advertising concepts and public relations efforts.
CFS and SPF offer this type of support through an easy access program development center
portal that provides streamlined shortcuts to building successful marketing programs, tips, and
examples of successful campaigns that have worked for other non-competing financial
institutions.
Conduct personalized program assessments
After a minimum of six months of activity, and typically more likely done at one year, a
production study becomes a beneficial exercise. In a production study, the B/D takes a threetiered approach – a detailed assessment of “branch, book, and marketing” to engage executive
management, program managers and advisors in the same quest.
Production studies from CFS and SPF go beyond the typical age-based and AUM breakdown of
your business. A regional program development manager works closely with the program
manager to look at a wide range of productivity metrics in order to better understand the “state
of the business”– what’s working and what isn’t. We:
Provide you with specific analytics, monthly benchmark data and direction needed to
increase your annual business by at least 25% in a year
Show how to engage all levels of your financial institution staff in discussions to improve
awareness, credibility and integration
Clearly define which marketing efforts are having the best effect
Help advisors improve the quality and quantity of both branch and client/member
referrals
Present these findings to executive management at the FI to gain buy-in to program
modifications and potential opportunities
Target the right demographics to improve results: The Top 20%
As you are heading into year two, you will want to refresh your marketing plan once you have
completed the assessment and know what’s working. It is critical to identify ways to segment
your advisors’ books of business to target the right audiences with most opportunity. It’s typical
to find that the top 20% of clients will account for the majority of the revenue generated in your
programs.
Even though advisors may not realize it at first, segmentation of the book (and offloading of the
lower half to two-thirds of it) actually improves the quality of communication and deepens
relationships with the retained client base, prompting AUM increases and better referrals. When
faced with a smaller client load, advisors will engage a deeper consultative approach that builds
the relationship with the client and may lead to more wallet share being brought into the
investment portfolio or the financial institution. It also allows another advisor to build better
relationships with the offloaded “B” list of clients, growing them to top 20% list status.
We recommend that advisors work with the program managers to do the following:
Set goals for growth with the executive management of the financial institution
Develop a new and improved, more targeted marketing plan
Implement new processes that create efficiencies
Plan key measurements – make a six-month commitment to hitting milestones
Coach, measure, and monitor for continued success
Sales training and coaching is critical in developing a successful investment program. When
advisors take a more proactive, consultative and holistic approach, they will do a better job for
financial services clients, build trust and bring more assets into the institution. However, if they
have been used to simply being reactive to walk up traffic in the branches, or if they had such a
large book of business that they’ve not had time to really meet with the clients, then they may
require consistent coaching to change their processes and recognize the value of longer-term,
deeper relationships.
Education is key. Bring in additional sales training from the outside when it will enhance the
advisors’ knowledge base and assist the customers. Sales training from external product
partners can educate advisors well on the value of certain products and identify the types of
clients for whom these products are most appropriate.
Utilize subject matter specialists from the B/D to add products to each individual’s portfolio –
many investors may need life, disability or long-term care insurance but if the financial advisor is
unfamiliar with these products, he/she will be uncomfortable in presenting these products to
clients. If they need additional support, the specialist is there to work with them and with the
client.
Don’t forget education for the client, too. Your B/D can help you develop workshops that will
provide an educational foundation for the clients. Increase workshop outreach to clients on
topics that are appropriate for each life stage. Focus on follow-up; teach advisors to always
complete the loop. Once they have educated the consumer, it is important to make the call after
the workshop and find out if they understood everything and if they have an interest in any
products they learned about.
Repeat the process
At the end of year two, it’s important to again assess branch, book and marketing activity. Do
you see a consistency in certain components? What’s working best? Are observations the same
as last year? If not, what has changed?
Look at advisors’ GDC activity, changes in structure and resources
Look at new accounts opened within the top 20% list – data mining conducted on only
the top 20%
Adjust the plan as needed to increase growth for the following year
By working closely with your broker-dealer, taking advantage of all the resources that they make
available, and assessing your program on a regular basis, you will grow your revenue, establish
solid relationships with your clients, and build an investment program that works for the longterm.