Direct Mail. It is the right medium for the right purpose. Credibility is not that purpose. Think of all the lead cards, seminar invitations, direct mail letters you've seen over the years. Just about everyone has used this medium. Agents call it an efficient way to reach a wide market. What do most consumers call it? "Junk mail." So, how could it generate any credibility for you?

I was taught how to write direct marketing programs by JCPenney Financial Services. I've written thousands of direct mail programs. I know this type of marketing inside and out. I even wrote a book on the psychology of direct mail programs (Beyond Wave Marketing). Direct Mail might be an important element in your marketing mix, but by itself it does zero for your credibility.

The internet and email have become so ubiquitous in our lives that we tend to forget that just ten years ago, many of us didn't have a website and couldn't figure out how to send an email. Much of what we once consider Direct Mail has been replaced by email. No matter, it's still junk in terms of building credibility. The only way to make email have any effect on credibility is to link it to an article or book. Consider this: send a letter offering to give a free copy of your book to the reader, simply for the opportunity to talk about the book with him/her. I promise, that approach will drastically boost your new business!

Newsletters. I've seen very few newsletters that enhance credibility. Why is that? Because they are expensive to create. Thus, most people buy a generic one with all the pretty design elements intact and the articles already written. If you're short on budget and need a newsletter, that's the way to go. But, don't expect it to help your credibility.

There is one way to take a generic newsletter and make it work for you. Delete all the text on one full page or even the inside spread. Then, print the transcript of a back-and-forth discussion of some hot topic between you and someone perceived as an expert. By "hot topic," I do not mean which annuity is the best. That's hot only to you, not your readers. Call it Point-Counter-Point, or something like that.

Company Brochure. Nearly every company on the planet has a basic brochure. In most cases it's a simple tri-fold that highlights what you do. There are four big credibility blunders inherent in that.

• First, since everyone has it, you look generic by having it, too.
• Second, who cares about what you do? Not your target market. They only care about what you can do FOR THEM. This is the "Relevance Factor" and it's huge.
• Third, there is at least one marketing/advertising agency in the financial industry that specializes in "irrelevant fluff" marketing. When the marketing message is all about you -; it's irrelevant. And that kills your credibility. When it's all about your hobbies and personality, it's worse than fluff, it's insulting.
• Fourth, tri-fold brochures invite confusion. People don't know how to read them. Which panel do you read next? Even graphic designers disagree on how they should be laid out. Confusion invites the readers to stop reading.

What's the advice here? Forget the tri-fold and go to a brochure that folds right in half. Beyond that, nothing that everyone else has will help your credibility -; period.

Website. Does your website give you credibility? No. The best it can do is bring you up-to-date and put you on par with the rest of the word. And, the worst it can do is destroy your credibility. Realize that your website is a direct reflection of you. If the specific elements in your site are not expertly crafted, it's not the site that's criticized -; it's you.

• If you have a boring site, people see you as boring.
• If you use long sentences and long paragraphs, you're seen as a blow-hard -; long-winded and tedious.
• If the graphic design and layout of your site are generic, you look generic.
• If the organization and flow is not flawless, it will create confusion, and confusion definitely will kill your credibility.
• The quality of the writing must be proficient. Please do not try to do this on your own. Writing for a website is a very different skill set from writing a letter, proposal or even a brochure. A "comma fault" might not hurt you, but a run-on sentence probably will.

Those are the main credibility killers. So, my caution to you is this: before you initiate your next marketing campaign, consider what message you're sending. The vast majority of "below the line" marketing shouts a consistent message: "I am the same as all of them!"

Critical Mass. At some point in the lives of most financial advisors, they reach what we can call "critical mass." Critical because the advisors begin to get critical of themselves. They begin to question the significance of their work. That is a frightening experience. It's like looking into your bathroom mirror and seeing someone else, someone you don't really respect. That point in time is the opportunity for you to take a fresh look at what you do professionally and improve it. That is the point at which all this talk of "Credibility" will begin to make personal sense to you.

Operating Above the Line of Distinction

As you ascend up the Hierarchy of Marketing, going above the line of distinction, something amazing happens for you. You encounter less and less competition. That's because fewer and fewer agents and advisors operate up there.

When you go above the line of distinction, your focus should reverse itself. You should start to focus primarily on your clients' Goals and Visions -; what they want. That's completely different from what you can do.

Ameriprise and the Dream Book. My firm enjoys a very close alliance with Ameriprise. As you may know, if you watch TV, Ameriprise has spent $zillions on TV advertising focused on capturing Boomers. What you may not know is that Ameriprise has also created a dandy little book called the Dream Book, that their advisors use to guide clients through a conversation about that client's dreams. It helps that advisor determine how to build the financial plan for that client.

We love that Dream Book. We've been helping our own clients for many years to guide their clients through an "above the line" conversation. We think the Dream Book is one of the best credibility tools in the entire industry. People who gravitate to the Dream Book will prove to be wonderful, long-term clients motivated to following the financial advice.

But, there is a problem. The advisors have not yet been taught an effective way to determine which prospects are interested in the Dream Book conversation. Forcing it on all their prospects tends to alienate the ones who would be good clients, but either are not wired to talk about dreams or have a more pressing need. We've created a tool to help the Ameriprise advisors recognize who to introduce the Dream Book to, and who to work with in a different way.

Bruce Wright and Macro-Strategic Planning. On of our other friends is Bruce Wright. Bruce is an amazing visionary in the financial industry. He invented a concept called "Macro-Strategic Planning." I've spoken at several of Bruce's MSP conferences. And, I've seen the confusion in the faces of the people in the audience. Bruce has provided wonderful training and a great tool in his book, The Wright Exit Strategy. But the people in the audience have been mainly procedural; meaning, they needed a tool to guide them though the MSP conversation.

Values Based Selling. The Values-Based Selling approach is another system that attempts to bring prospects into an "above the line" conversation. Problem is, you don't know who is open to it and who is irritated by it. Many advisors who have tried to engage their clients in the "What's important about money to you" question feel a serious push-back, resistance and rejection from their clients.

The point is. It is not enough to only possess a fantastic Credibility Marketing tool. You also need to learn how to use it. If you are experiencing push back or resistance, you might want to give us a call. Our books, coaching and training are designed to address that problem. We are currently in the process of scheduling several small-group coaching programs. Want to take your business to the next level, you sure as heck can't do it with: 1) what you're doing now, 2) approaches that irritate your prospects, 3) without knowing exactly how your target market thinks, and 4) how you can appeal to their thinking. That's what we teach our clients.

Your Reward

Can't wait? If you're like us and feel the urge to jump into action, just call me at: 509.465.5599. I will explain how you can save about $10,000 to get a book published, and another $thousand on personal coaching.