QUESTION:
Bill:

Your e-mail newsletters are quite helpful.

I have a question. Myself and 3 other business associates (one is a local realtor, the other 2 are financial planners — a father and his two sons) have invested in a luxury box for the local AA baseball team. We have 20 tickets to each event, and there are 38 games. I am leaning towards utilizing 8 events for introductions. On a given night I would invite my clients, I’d use 100% of the box. I’d possibly invite 5 couples and suggest they bring another couple that would meet my ideal client profile.

Most games are 7:05, and I think I’d provide snacks and appetizers, since most retirees will have eaten by then. What about alcohol?

Would it make more sense to split the box on a given night with one of the other owners? I would assume that I could meet and converse with everyone if I had the whole box. Since this is the first of 10 years with the box, we are just getting our feet wet. I had hopped to acquire 2 new clients to justify the expense. Thanks for your help.

My referral business plan for ‘07 is to acquire 20 new retirees for the year. As of Friday, I have 7 new clients and need 3 more by the end of June.

Ted O.

ANSWER:
Ted,

Great to hear from you. I think alcohol in the box is fine – just don’t make it the centerpiece of the event. I suggest you think in terms of smaller eventsif they are going to be referral events. The point of a referral event is to really connect with these prospects. If you have too many people there, the connections aren’t usually very impactful. For pure client-appreciation events, you can have a larger group. Make sense?

Thanks for taking the time to write. Stay in touch to let me know how these events go. I’m writing a new book on Social Prospecting (due out in 2008) and this is the sort of thing that can produce great results.

Bill

Host client-appreciation events to build business friendships.

In my last entry, I addressed Referral Events. I see those separate from Client Appreciation Events. Remember, the purpose of the appreciation event is to say “thank you,” and not to drum up business. This is your chance to spend some real quality time with your existing clients and strengthen those relationships. The events should be fun and light, with absolutely no business being discussed, unless of course, the clients bring it up.

Client appreciation events can be larger than referral events, because you already have a relationship with your clients. The goal is to get to know each other in ways that go beyond your business relationship. Client appreciation events shield your clients against your competitor.

Today: Plan a client appreciation event for the next quarter. Think about your client’s interests and leisure activities when planning the event. If you’ve never done one before, start small.

There is no better way to get to know prospects than in a social setting. Your clients will appreciate being treated to a night on the town (or wine tasting, or chocolate tasting, or golf swing analysis, etc.) and their friends (your prospects) will too! This will also give your clients and prospects a chance to see more than just you as their financial professional, but as their business friend. If you’re married or have a partner, see if they’ll be part of this with you. In some cases, you might even have your children there. For more advice on referral events, check out the Referral Minute archives at: http://www.referralcoach.com/newsletter/ref-min-archives

If you have any Social Prospecting strategies and techniques that have worked for you, please contact me directly. I’d like to interview you for my book on the subject. Send your message to: Bill (at) ReferralCoach (dot) com.

Today: Plan a referral event for the next quarter. Don’t plan too big of an event. First, you want maximum time with your clients and prospects, to create a solid connections. Plus, if you create something too daunting, you’ll never get to it.