Larkspur Data recently conducted a survey of nearly 100,000 financial professionals asking what prospecting techniques they were using to stay competitve in today’s volatile market.

Here are the results which we’re happy to share with you. See what other professionals around the country are doing to build their business.

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What markets are you currently prospecting?

* High-net-worth individuals (69%)
* 401(k) or other retirement plans (67%)
* Tax-exempt organizations (foundations, endowments, churches, hospitals, schools...etc.) (21%)
* Other (15%)

Notes: Figures are often skewed toward qualified plan prospecting as many of our customers first heard of us through DataMaster Pro, our online searchable database of employee benefit plans. In recent months however, we've seen a surge in interest in our databases of high-net-worth individuals. Most attribute their renewed interest in prospecting these markets to a variety of factors. 1) "My current book of business isn't generating the kind of revenue it was a year or two ago. Bringing in new clients makes up for the difference." 2) "I want to get my sales up quickly and while I am still prospecting for 401(k)s, I like the shorter turnaround time with individual clients." 3) "The volatile economy has created lots of great opportunities. Even the most sophisticated investors are nervous and not getting the kind of attention they'd like."

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How important is COLD CALLING to you in finding new clients?

* 1 Not Important (10%)
* 2 (12%)
* 3 (19%)
* 4 (19%)
* 5 Very Important (40%)


Notes: The results here show that people are still cold calling with success, even in this environment. Respondents indicated that people are more willing to talk (even if it is just to talk) these days. Investors are looking for any kind of reassurance they can find, and a knowledgeable voice on the other end of the phone line often prompts them to release all of the frustrations they might be less willing to share with their current advisor. Not all reactions are initially good ones. Some want to "vent" about the financial industry, politics or even their current investments. However, the general feeling is that they "want to get something off their chest" and savvy (and patient) advisors have been able to turn this into a discussion that leads to appointments.

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How important are MAILINGS to you in finding new clients?

* 1 Not Important (13%)
* 2 (13%)
* 3 (21%)
* 4 (23%)
* 5 Very Important (30%)


Notes: While this chart also suggests that advisors are still doing mailings, the real story is in the written responses. Advisors are pointing to creativity as the #1 determinant of successful mailing campaigns. As one respondant put it, "It isn't just a numbers game anymore. You can't expect to get 2 or 3 responses for every 100 generic mailings sent out. You need to come up with a fresh approach. I've found that my mailings are going even better now than they were before. It took a little trial and error though."

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How important to you are HOLDING SEMINARS in finding new clients?

* 1 Not Important (22%)
* 2 (19%)
* 3 (34%)
* 4 (19%)
* 5 Very Important (5%)


Notes: We had mixed responses in this category with some respondents indicating that they had not been working in this area. The ones who have been having success suggested the following strategy: "People have a lot of pent up frustration now, and it's hard to walk up to the podium and speak without having lots of people interrupting you with specific concerns. If you don't impress them right away, you'll lose their trust. What I do is partner with a fund company who will send out a wholesaler...a professional speaker with a prepared presentation. This acts as a good "buffer" between me and the audience. After the presentation they're sufficiently impressed and I talk about portfolio balancing with confidence and credibility. If questions come up that I can't handle (or would prefer not to), the wholesaler and I can easily handle them together, using the wholesaler's access to the fund manager as a standby solution."

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How important to you is ASKING FOR REFERRALS in finding new clients?

* 1 Not Important (2%)
* 2 (2%)
* 3 (15%)
* 4 (21%)
* 5 Very Important (60%)


Notes: There were no real surprises here. Referrals are always important. One advisor commented, "Right now, people really appreciate a little extra handholding. If you've just spent 30 minutes on the phone with a client reassuring them that all will be OK, trust me, they appreciate it! That is the time to ask for a referral. You have just done the most thankless part of your job and the client realizes this. Offer advice, offer guidance, offer comfort and reassurance and ask for the referral right away." Several advisors shared creative strategies that they say are getting great results. Once again, the most successful ones are linked to creativity.

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How important to you is ADVERTISING in finding new clients?

* 1 Not Important (31%)
* 2 (13%)
* 3 (31%)
* 4 (18%)
* 5 Very Important (7%)


Notes: Many advisors don't see advertising (print advertising in newspapers and periodicals, billboards, radio ads...etc.) as a part of their job in promoting themselves. However as one advisor pointed out, "Every day you have thousands of people listening to the news or reading the paper on their evening commute home. What's the news about these days? The economy! So it's on their mind and it could be that they see or hear your ad. After a while they start to think, 'Maybe I should call that guy.' If your ad is structured to be everything the news isn't, comforting, reassuring...you're off to a good start."

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How important to you is SOCIAL MEDIA (Facebook, Twitter, Linked In) in finding new clients?

* 1 Not Important (35%)
* 2 (20%)
* 3 (24%)
* 4 (16%)
* 5 Very Important (4%)


Notes: This is another area where the comments are telling. Most people said that they are not using social media to capture new prospects. One factor may be that many respondents don't consider themselves computer-savvy enough to understand the process. Others see it as a waste of time or a compliance issue. Regardless of what your take on it is, it's a relatively untapped resource right now. Establishing a presence could get you quite a following. Several advisors indicate they they've had a good deal of success connecting with potential clients. As one told us, "I feel like I'm the only financial advisor on there. Everyone gets their news from me (articles I share), and I get to read all of their comments! I love it!"

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As far as prospecting is concerned, in what areas would you like to improve?

* Cold calling techniques (46%)
* Writing mailers that get results (43%)
* Getting high quality prospecting data (65%)
* Running successful seminars (53%)
* Advertising (32%)
* Sales Ideas (51%)
* Other (7%)


Notes: Results here were mixed. Note that this question instructed respondents to "check all that apply", which is why the numbers don't add up to 100%. As expected, the area seen as most important to successful prospecting is high-quality data. We admit that we are a little biased when it comes to this, but this was what people said and it makes sense. Unless you're calling on the right people, it doesn't matter how good your sales pitch is. The second two areas were interesting and we think represent great opportunities for fund wholesalers and branch office sales managers. 51% of respondents want better sales ideas. In other words, they seem to agree that the key to prospecting in this environment is being creative and learning to differentiate oneself from the competition. Right below "sales ideas" on the list of areas advisors would like to improve is "Running successful seminars". While a lot of people indicated in the question above that they are not currently running seminars, it seems that many would like to be doing this but they feel they need help. Partnering with a wholesaler is often the best approach to getting started.

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Are you finding that it's harder or easier to attract new clients than it was a year ago?

* 1 Much Easier (1%)
* 2 (3%)
* 3 (3%)
* 4 (11%)
* 5 (23%)
* 6 (12%)
* 7 (11%)
* 8 (17%)
* 9 (7%)
* 10 Much harder (12%)


Notes: Respondents here were split fairly evenly with just over half saying prospecting is harder this year than it was last year and a little less than half saying it was the same or easier. The interesting thing here was that many respondents who answered that prospecting was the same or easier than last year included comments indicating a more upbeat attitude toward marketing. In other words, these were the creative ones. Some said things like, "It always requires effort, but if you use your imagination, you can make this market work for you." It's also important to note that we're seeing many of the marketing departments of broker/dealers and fund companies branching off in new (and non-traditional) directions in an effort to distinguish themselves. Setting yourself apart from the competition seems to be what separating those who are struggling from those who are succeeding.

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What is the most common excuse you're hearing right now for why people WON'T do business with you?

* Going on vacation/Call me after summer is over (6%)
* Lost money on current investments (4%)
* Bad economy (23%)
* Happy with current advisor (26%)
* Worried about fees (3%)
* Skeptical of financial industry (29%)
* Not liquid (0%)
* Other (9%)


Notes: Clearly the one single issue that prospects are reporting as their reason for not doing business has to do with the state of the economy. 52% of respondents indicated either "Bad economy" (23%) or "Skeptical of financial industry" (29%). This seems to give us some clues as to where people need to differentiate themselves. It's important to radiate confidence because this inspires confidence in others. So many of the so-called experts have failed to deliver any positive results or accurate predictions. One advisor explained that his approach is to "show the prospect the investment process" and give concrete evidence that it works. Educating your prospect can give you a huge advantage. "You need to inspire trust" said one advisor. "Using the same old prospecting methods classifies you are the old brand of financial advisor." Trust and confidence should be central points to your personal branding efforts. In the past (and still today), many are using their firm's name to inspire trust and confidence. We've found however that many have lost trust in large institutions and a one-on-one "people approach" is far more effective in this envoronment.

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How often do you use Facebook?

* 1 Never (48%)
* 2 (13%)
* 3 (10%)
* 4 (0%)
* 5 (9%)
* 6 (2%)
* 7 (4%)
* 8 (7%)
* 9 (2%)
* 10 Very Often (5%)


Notes: Again, the vast majority of financial advisors are not using social media to build their business. This could present opportunities for some. One common misconception is that you need to talk about finance or showcase particular products to have any success here and since most compliance departments won't let you do that, people abandon the idea before giving it a chance. Facebook should be seen more as a "cocktail party" where you're putting in an appearance, reconnecting with old friends and colleagues and keeping in touch. You do not have to mention financial products at all. It's about making and keeping friends and coming across as a "regular person". If you can include let people know you're in the business, post financial reports and set up a business page, that's great, but remember, we recommend it more as a way to "stay connected" and extend your sphere of influence.

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Do you use Facebook more for business or pleasure?
(select #3 if not applicable)

* 1 Business (6%)
* 2 (2%)
* 3 (39%)
* 4 (13%)
* 5 Pleasure (39%)



Notes: For those who are already on Facebook, have a look at how other financial advisors or even other business are positioning themselves. If you're able to use their strategies to build your own presence, that's great. If not, you might be able to come up with other ways to employ any creative techniques you see. One thing that was striking about a lot of the responses was that people seem to be using some things strictly for business and others strictly for pleasure. Given the current market environment and people's attitudes toward to financial industry, it might make sense to try combining the two whenever you can.

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How often do you use Twitter?

* 1 Never (83%)
* 2 (6%)
* 3 (3%)
* 4 (1%)
* 5 (4%)
* 6 (0%)
* 7 (1%)
* 8 (1%)
* 9 (0%)
* 10 Very Often (0%)


Notes: One problem with Twitter is that it's one of the least understood forms of social media. Twitter can be a great source for news articles for your website or newsletter from respected sources like the Wall Street Journal or other well-known news agencies. Yes, there is a lot of "fluff" on Twitter, but people filter that out by only "following" people who are providing the type of content they're looking for. One nice thing about Twitter is that you can build up followers quickly and easily. If you send out a message to your group of followers, one of them may resend it to their group of 20,000 followers (with YOUR name on it). At the very least, it makes sense to have a look at Twitter as a news source or a source of ideas for building your business. Once you become more familiar with it, you'll see that there are ways it can help you grow your business. Twitter is very "targeted", meaning that you can really focus on certain areas of both interests and location. Google+ is like this in a way. Google+ even has a "local" news stream where you can post things for people in your area to see.

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Do you use Twitter more for business or pleasure?
(select #3 if not applicable)

* 1 Business (12%)
* 2 (1%)
* 3 (70%)
* 4 (2%)
* 5 Pleasure (15%)


Notes: Most respondents answered "3" indicating that this question wasn't applicable to what they're currently doing.

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How often do you use LinkedIn?

* 1 Never (21%)
* 2 (6%)
* 3 (9%)
* 4 (11%)
* 5 (5%)
* 6 (12%)
* 7 (10%)
* 8 (14%)
* 9 (3%)
* 10 Very Often (10%)


Notes: The answers to this question are a bit deceptive. At first, you'd think that LinkedIn was very popular. What we found was that people think they use LinkedIn because they get occasional requests via e-mail to "connect" with former friends and colleagues. This seems to be the real extent of a lot of people's usage. BUT, what many don't realize is that there's a lot more to LinkedIn that they realize. There are all sorts of local networking opportunities, webinars and referral groups that you can take advantage of. If you have a LinkedIn account, you may be missing out on a lot of these additional features. It would be worth your while to have a closer look.

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How interested are you training webinars/conference calls?

* 1 Not Interested (6%)
* 2 (5%)
* 3 (3%)
* 4 (6%)
* 5 (19%)
* 6 (11%)
* 7 (16%)
* 8 (17%)
* 9 (9%)
* 10 Very Interested (7%)


Notes: This is in keeping with responses to many of the questions above. People want ideas and creative ways to prospect. People realize that hard work alone won't get them where they need to be anymore. They need to differentiate themselves and they need fresh new approaches. Wholesalers and sales managers take note. Our "Top Producers Coaching Club" sales training program has been very popular in recent months as a way of helping advisors stand out from the crowd.