The result of that model is a generic message that could fit any of a thousand other firms. It's driven by eye-catching graphics and clever writing. But it will be off-target.

I recently saw a proposal from a marketing agency who wanted to get hired by a large investment firm. Among other things, they recommended an e-commerce website, trade show booths and direct mail. That type of marketing likely won't win you many new (high value) clients. The main reason is – they are NOT appropriate for (high value) financial firms. They would show the firm as focusing on selling, rather than solving relevant problems.

That's the old model. But, why is that model fading into obsolescence? Many reasons, but let's look at the most obvious seven:

• The supply and demand for creative professionals. Most of us want to earn our living from what we love doing. As a result, the world was overflowing with writers and graphic designers. Where once they were high-priced consultants, now they are commodities that get hired by the hour.
• The social media world. Consumers became comfortable expressing their own opinions and listening to their peers (referred to as "people like me"). As soon as that gate opened, they stopped paying attention to one-way messages controlled by any large organization.
• The increased importance played by consumer psychology. The more you know about your target market's psychology – why and how they make buying decisions – the more accurate your can be in your messaging.
• The agency is not able to coach and guide your producers in using the message. Why would the producers want to use a generic message?  If the marketing and selling functions of your firm do not work closely together, you will not have a viable message. And, ultimately, the producers will deliver a message that is different from the marketing. Thus, your identity and perceived value will conflict.
• Each box in that model is insulated from the others. It's an octopus with no coordination between its arms. Sales does not know what marketing is coming up with. Marketing doesn't know what sales is telling prospects. PR is booking the president to deliver a speech that gives a totally different picture. Media is inserting articles and ads in magazines that are read by people outside the target market.
• People buy for their own reasons, not yours. Any good communication firm must be able to give you those buying criteria.
• Primary psychographic indicators. Things you must discover about your target market and each prospect are:

1. Values
2. Communication style
3. Job title and profession
4. Beliefs or expectations about:

• You
• Your firm
• Sales people in general
• Your industry
• The category of product or service that you're selling

A Change Is Gonna – Oops!  Too late…

The old model was the right one for many years, but it has lost its relevance as a consulting partner. And, because the old model fails in so many areas, a new model has emerged in just the last few years.

In the new model, the marketing agency is no longer the partner. It's been demoted one notch, to being a vendor. The position of partner has been replaced by a specialized firm whose job is to develop specific messages that represent you. This firm develops the specific language of your message(s), and then directs and manages them. It serves as your Marketing Director and Creative Director.

It also selects, hires and manages all the contractors and other vendors who help with the message production and distribution. Those vendors would be ad agencies, PR firms, Publicists, writers, artists – any service that is appropriate for the specific job at hand. The lowest level of the model would be the actual production workers, who would be hired by the various agency vendors.

Here's what this model looks like. It's a subtle improvement with a huge impact on the effectiveness of your marketing.

Why is this improved model appropriate for insurance and financial firms? Because very few advertising and marketing agencies know your business, and even fewer know anything about your target market's psychology.

Who can serve as your message development firm? Only someone who has wisdom, training and/or expertise in at least three areas:  1) the psychology of language (the motivations built into your messages), 2) the ability to develop psychological profiles of specific target markets, and 3) your industry. If your final messages do not incorporate those specifics, you will most likely end up with generic messages.

What are some of the specific areas of psychology a professional messaging firm should understand? Think of your own target market. It's not comprised of one-dimensional shadow people. Your prospects are complex beings, and even more complex organizations. They cannot be effectively described as a zip code, household income or mission statement. They must be described in psychological terms. Thus, you might think about building an image of them that is similar to a hologram – multi-faceted and multi-dimensional.

At the simplest level, you would describe your target market by the professions that are most common in it. Could be most of your best clients are attorneys, CPAs, computer programmers or engineers. From something as simple as that, you can derive the social styles and values of your target market. Once you have those, you will be able to speak in the mental code those people respond to.

At the more complex level, you would describe your target market by their FUD – fears, uncertainties and doubts. Add FUD to the social styles, professions and social styles and you start to get an idea of who you're talking to.

Then, at the more complex level, you would look at the common mental filters of your current best clients. There are approximately sixty mental filters. A marketing firm, ad agency or writer who can't describe the target audience in terms of mental filters cannot know what the target is.

The mental filters configuration of a target market might include these filters. Mind you, this is a very short list of mental filters. Each filter is represented by a continuum. All people have these filters. All target markets tend to cluster in their configuration.

                     Procedural………………………………………………. Free Form

                     Details…………………………………………………….. Big Picture

                     Skeptical…………………………………………………. Open minded

                     Black/White……………………………………………. Shades of Gray

                     Strategic………………………………………………….. Tactical

                     Fear of Loss……………………………………………. Need to Gain

                     Status Quo………………………………………………. Improvement

                     Self-focused……………………………………………. Other-focused

                     Independent……………………………………………. Team-oriented

As you can see, if your marketing director knows how to stack all those different layers, you will have a detailed hologram of your target market. You'll know the specific words and phrases those people respond to. You'll know the structures you should use in your marketing, selling and workshops. And, that's just the start of the insight you'll gain.

When your marketing director has all this intel, he/she can create the various appropriate messages your firm needs. Then, hire the appropriate vendors to distribute the message in the most effective channels and in the most effective way. This is where your ad agency comes in.

Your Benefits Pro Reward. How can you tell if your marketing is off-target?  It requires a "marketing psycho-analysis."  Time permitting, I will personally analyze one marketing piece for you (no charge). Just email a digital copy of the piece, along with this paragraph to: [email protected]. I will respond to you ASAP.