Marketing that works in one city is not guaranteed to work in another city. The results for the same advertising mediums or platforms can vary greatly from market to market. So, what’s working in Phoenix right now doesn’t necessarily mean that it will work in Denver.
Here’s why…
There are many forces at play that influence this, including population, demographics, the strength of the different advertising mediums, and the geographic circle of customers you can serve.
Here’s an example…
A financial advisor uses radio commercials in Atlanta with great success. He’s on WSB, which is a monster in the Atlanta market. They have great local talent on the station who have been around for years. And because WSB has such a large, engaged audience, this radio station gets great results for a lot of its advertisers.
But let’s look at a different market: Miami, Florida. There are no strong news/talk stations in the market. The top rated stations are ethnic dance stations. Because the demographics are dramatically different in Miami, radio is not really a great option in this market.
So if an advisor in Miami took advice from the advisor in Atlanta, chances are he would waste a lot of marketing dollars on radio.
This is true for markets all over the country. Each one is different. And this is why getting marketing advice at financial advisor conventions can be really dangerous.
It’s the same as in your business. Generic advice seldom cuts it. Each person and each situation must be addressed based on unique assets and opportunities. One size does not fit all.
There’s one other common issue we come across when we’re doing marketing research and strategy — the same marketing options you have in one market won’t be available in another.
Another quick example…
We have an advisor who we’ve been working with for the past 6+ years.
We have the market pretty dialed in. We have lots of great marketing options, the channels are firing on all cylinders and generating leads as they should be.
Business is so good, the advisor is ready to expand into their second market.
But when we did our research, the same options available in market #1 (that are working) are not available in market #2. They are not even options for us in market #2.
So when you can’t go through the mountain, you have to go around it. You have to dig deeper to uncover other ways to generate qualified leads.
They are there. You just have to find them. But sometimes they’re not so obvious and sitting on the retail shelf.
If you’re struggling to find successful marketing channels in your market — or if you think you should be doing a lot better than you are -— send us an email at jody@financialmarketingpros.com to request an FMP Lead Generation Analysis. You might be surprised by what you learn in a 30-minute phone call. It’s free. It’s all about you. And there’s never any obligation whatsoever.
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