Q&A: How to look trustworthy in your professional photo

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Convincing clients and prospects to trust you is essential to building relationships with them. A great photo alone

Lori Johnson

won’t win them over, but a bad photo can undermine how they see you. This is why I conducted an email interview with Lori Johnson of Your Best Image. By the way, Lori specializes in photographic image and she did the makeup for my head shot photo.

Q. What about a photo makes you appear less trustworthy?

A. Dark shadows in the face or background.  Anything that hides the face i.e. sunglasses, hat, facial hair, hairstyle that covers the face, etc.  Poor quality photos.  Inappropriate wardrobe, makeup, hairstyle.  Too much photo shop alteration of the photo so you do not look like you do in real life.

Q. What conveys “trustworthy” in a photo?

A. A sincere smile and sparkle in the eye. Clothing appropriate for the industry and your personal style.  Colors that flatter your skin tone, hair color, and eye color.  Use an open stance; no tightly crossed arms or hands in front of your body, open and relax shoulders, and stand or sit tall.

Q. I’ve heard that blue is the color of trust. Do you agree?

A. Yes. Darker, deeper blues such as deep navy blue are serious and powerful. Deep blue sends a message of authority and credibility, which is why it’s commonly used in formal business attire and as a uniform color. In fact, navy blue gets its name because it’s been the color (along with bright white) of the British Royal Navy’s uniforms since 1748.

Q. Do casual photos make a financial advisor seem more approachable?

A. A few casual photos can help tell your story and make you appear more “real,” open, and friendly. Use these photos to help personalize your print, web, social media, or other marketing materials. They should not be the main images in your materials.

Be careful about the quality and quantity of your casual and personal photos. Poor quality photos may make you appear less professional. That’s why I recommend you rely on a professional.

Q. Can you recommend how to prepare for a professional photo shoot?

A. You’ll find detailed recommendations in my article, “Pre-shoot Suggestions.”

 

Poll: How quickly and often should you follow up with prospects for your financial services?

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Gaining new clients is important to you. That’s the whole point of your marketing. However, a blog post by Karyn Greenstreet suggests that you aren’t making the most of a great opportunity: systematic follow-up with prospects who contact you.

“Most people will make one follow-up call or email to a prospective customer. But if they don’t get a response back, they often drop the whole thing,” said Greenstreet in “Why Marketing Fails #3: No Follow-Up” on her Passion for Business blog.

Your follow-up mistake

That lack of follow-up is a mistake. Why? Because there are plenty of good reasons why genuinely interested prospects may not follow up. They may even be grateful if you persist in contacting them. I’ve experienced that gratitude more often than not.

Greenstreet follows up her leads three times: first, within one business day; second, seven days later; and third, 10 to 114 days later.

What about your follow-up with prospects?

What’s YOUR follow-up policy?

Here are your poll choices

  • First, within one business day; second, seven  days later; third, 10-14 days later
  • First, within one business day; second, whenever I get to it
  • Within one business day
  • Whenever I get to it
  • Wait for them to contact me
  • (Add your own answer)

I look forward to hearing from you.

Focus your marketing, says the “Financial Services Marketing Handbook”

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Targeting your prospects instead of marketing to everybody works best, as the Financial Services Marketing Handbook suggests in the following quote:

Very few companies can afford to be everything to everyone any more. Even companies with mass-market products (like basic checking accounts) segment their markets so that they can focus their limited marketing dollars on the most profitable segments.

The book also offers direct-mail statistics to support the value of targeting. “…When the list, the offer, and the message are narrowly targeted, response can go up to 10% or more” versus less than 2%. That’s an increase of more than 500%.

If you’re interested in learning more, this information comes from Chapter 1 Segmentation.

By the way, I won a free copy of this book in a random drawing by PropelGrowth. Thank you, @CandyceEdelen and @PhilDonaldsonNJ!

Technology tip: How to create a low-tech virtual class

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“How can I create a for-profit virtual class without spending lots of money?” Science class at Kalvskindet school (ca. 1900)

Several people have asked me this question, so I figure it’s time for a blog post sharing my low-tech secrets.

I’m no techno-geek. If I can manage the technology discussed here, so can you. None of it is outrageously expensive. In fact, some of it is free.

My class technology challenges focused on five areas:

  1. Registration
  2. Live classes
  3. Pre-recorded classes
  4. Discussion forum
  5. Surveys

Registration

I need an automated way to collect student information and payments. I currently use Eventbrite.com, which I migrated to after a free trial of Constant Contact’s Events feature, which was brand-new back then. I like Eventbrite because it lets me

  • Create a simple web page to promote my class
  • Create a custom URL for my class
  • Customize the information I collect from registrants
  • Collect credit card payments via PayPal

After I created my first class web page on Eventbrite, I’ve simply tweaked the wording for subsequent classes. I don’t pay anything to create an event in Eventbrite. The firm makes money by charging me 2.9% of my students’ fees. PayPal also charges a fee.

If you use Constant Contact for your e-newsletter, check out its Events feature. I imagine it has improved since its debut when I tried it.

By the way, I’d like to thank Kristen Luke of Wealth Management Marketing for introducing me to Eventbrite in a Twitter exchange.

Live Classes

I’ve heard stories about webinar technology failing to perform as desired. Those stories, plus my concern about expenses, drove me to initially teach my live classes using a combination of telephone conference calls (FreeConferencing.com) and handouts for students to print out ahead of time so they could follow along as I spoke.

This low-tech approach had an unexpected benefit. Students told me they liked that they weren’t tied to their computers for class. I think some of them dialed in from out on the road.

As a teacher, I like FreeConferencing.com because it offers a free online console where I can see who is speaking. I have a terrible memory for faces and names. The console allows me to overcome this weakness and call students by their names.

FreeConferencing.com lets you record calls. It also hosts the recordings at a custom URL at no charge. This helps you to accommodate students who miss any live calls.

Pre-recorded classes

When I initially taught my blogging class, I essentially lectured the students on the call. I struggled to get class participation, so I decided to switch to pre-recorded lessons, plus live calls focused on discussion.

I used Audacity free audio recording software to record and edit my lessons. I’m so glad that my podcasting friend, diet coach Sandra Ahten, told me about Audacity. Without her tip, I would have tried to record an entire lesson non-stop into a digital audio recorder. That would have been a disaster.

However, Audacity is the one piece of technology that nearly drove me to tears after 20 hours of trying to produce my first 30-minute recording. Thank goodness for my techie husband’s patience, online research, and coaching.

Some of my problems stemmed from the fact that the then-current version of Audacity didn’t support Windows 7, but there was nothing on the Audacity website to make this clear. Once my husband discovered the beta version of a Windows 7-compatible Audacity, my problems became manageable.

For a quick overview of Audacity, you can probably find instructional videos on YouTube.

Pay attention to tracks on Audacity. If you don’t, you may unwittingly record one track simultaneous with another. That’s a great capability if you’re recording music, but your students won’t enjoy hearing two sections of your lecture at the same time. To avoid this problem, make sure you drag your cursor to the far right side of your Audacity screen before you start recording a new section.

Discussion Forum

I need a private website where I can post messages, handouts, and recordings. In addition, students need a place to have discussions and post their homework. For this purpose, I set up a Ning forum, which I’d learned about from tech-savvy financial advisor Russ Thornton of Wealthcare Capital Management. I use the most basic Ning plan, Ning Mini.

For me, the threaded conversations beat the heck out of free alternatives, such as Yahoo Groups or Google Groups.

Surveys

You may not realize this, but online surveys can help you boost student satisfaction and gain useful feedback. I use the free version of SurveyMonkey to survey students about their interests and needs after they’ve registered, but before the class starts. I also run a post-class evaluation survey.

What class or event are you planning?

I’d like to learn about the online classes you’re planning. Also, please share your tips for running low-cost virtual classes.

Identifying “WHAT PROBLEM does this blog post solve for them?”

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“What problem do you solve for your clients?” Knowing what problem your blog post solves for your potential clients is one key to writing powerful blog posts.
This is typically one of the hardest questions for students in my blogging class to answer when they fill out their Blog Post Preparation Worksheet. If you fall into this group, it may help to imagine yourself in your readers’ shoes.

How would your target reader complete the following sentences?

  1. My problem is…and you’re going to solve it by…
  2. My problem is…and it’s keeping me from…
  3. I’m worried about…

Here’s my problem statement  for my blogging class for financial advisors:

My problem is that it takes too darned long−or it’s too hard−to write great blog posts. You−Susan−are going to solve my problem by showing me some techniques I can use to write faster and better.

Here’s a sample from the financial planning world, along with my rewrite:

1.    ORIGINAL: My problem is how to save for college.

2.    RE-WRITE: My problem is that I don’t know anything about how much my kids’ college education will cost and you can help me figure that out and also assess how best to save for it.

Does this help? Let me know if you have questions.

POLL: What’s your favorite survival strategy for networking meetings?

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If you’re an introverted perfectionist like me, you never feel as if you make enough great contacts at networking meetings. These occasions felt like Olympic-sized failures until I
became more creative and forgiving of myself.

Here are some of the strategies that have helped me.

1. Seek out people who are by themselves.

They may also suffer pangs of shyness.

2. Focus your conversation on the other people.

People love to talk about themselves. Asking questions is a great way to soften them up. Also, you’ll be most memorable if you can offer some information that helps them.

3. Introduce people.

Take the initiative to introduce people who may not know one another. A variation on this is to take a friend and focus on introducing him or her.

4. Use unusual techniques to attract attention.

My favorite is the tag technique I discussed in “Introverts, steal this idea for your next conference!”

5. Lower your expectations.

These days I attend meetings with the goal of making two or three good contacts. This takes the pressure off my perfectionist self.

6. Find out ahead of time who’s attending the meeting, so you can arrange to meet.

This sounds like a great idea, but it hasn’t worked well for me. Invariably, something derails these plans.

Bonus tip

Follow up promptly after meeting people. It’s best to contact them before they forget who you are. I recommend that you do not add them to your e-newsletter list without asking first.

What’s your favorite networking survival strategy? Please answer the poll in this blog’s right-hand column. I’ll report on the results in my next newsletter.

BlackRock’s ad campaign appeals to thinkers

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BlackRock is running an eye-catching ad campaign. You can’t miss it if you read publications such as The Wall Street Journal or The New York Times.

Screen shot from BlackRock's Investing for a New World website--Click on the image to visit the site.

Ad appeals to the analytical

The ad campaign takes an analytical rather than an emotional approach to appealing to readers. It basically says, “you’ve got an investment problem, we’ve got an answer.” The problem is defined in terms of yields, volatility, and confidence.

This befits an asset manager that has “embraced a new standard of analytical rigor,” as stated in the firm’s ad in the March 15, 2012 Wall Street Journal (all references below are to this ad because it’s the one I saved). It’s also good for reaching financial advisors and institutional investors who favor the analytical.

Emotions sneak in

There’s a bit of an emotional appeal in this BlackRock ad. The fourth line in the headline says “Confidence is scarce.” This may attract the attention of readers who worry about their financial future.

There’s more text that appeals to emotions. “So what do I do with my money?” is a question that evokes anxiety. The next block of the ad ties this question to widely held concerns including

  • When will I be able to retire?
  • Will I be able to pay for my children’s education?
  • Will I outlive my savings?

However, these questions aren’t in large type, so a casual viewer may miss them.

Still, this ad stands out from the crowd of ads that use hackneyed images of happy families and retirees. The graphics don’t look like anything I remember seeing.

Your opinion?

What do YOU think of this ad? I’d like to hear your opinions.

If you didn’t catch the ads, check out BlackRock’s Investing for a New World website that’s tied to the ad campaign. If you’d like to learn more about the firm’s strategy, see BlackRock’s press release about its new initiative.

 

What do you think about “What do you think?”

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“What do you think?” is a weak ending to an email, according to Power Sales Writing: Using Communication to Turn Prospects into Clients by Sue Hershkowitz-Coore.

I said “uh oh” to myself upon reading this because I’ve used this in emails accompanying proposals. Hershkowitz-Coore suggests you encourage your reader “to give you the result you want by offering your opinion and asking for her approval.” She prefers a closing such as “Please let me know which direction you prefer, and with your approval, I’ll move ahead. “

I like the idea of nudging prospects in the right direction, but I also want to show that I’m open to my prospect’s feedback.

There must be a middle ground. What do YOU think?

3 tips for maximizing your guest blog’s impact

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Example of guest post by Margaret Patterson–You can click on the photo to see the post.

What if you wrote a guest post and nobody realized you were the author? I’ve read guest contributions on blogs that hid their author’s identity so well, I thought the host was the author. If you follow my tips, this won’t happen to you.

1. Ask your host to insert your byline into the post.

When “By Jane Advisor” runs prominently near the top of the post, it’s easy to identify the author.

2. Provide a head shot photo to run with your guest post.

Some readers respond better to visual cues than words. A photo leaves no doubt that the blog host is not the author.

3. Ask your host to run a brief bio, including at least one link.

A bio is your one chance for overt promotion when you guest blog. Provide the bio to your host, rather than relying on him or her to write something suitable. Include at least one link in your bio. Good candidates: your website or your strongest social media page. Another possibility is to link to a landing page where you make a special offer to the readers of your guest post.

To see sample guest posts…

…click on some of the links in my “Guest bloggers: 2011 in review” post.

More on guest posts

Wondering how you can snare a guest post? Check out this link: Audiocast: How to Guest-Blog on Personal Finance or Investments.

 

Image courtesy of Stuart Miles at freedigitalphotos.net.

Make your webinar a magnet for audience participation

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If you’re planning your first webinar, don’t forget to plan for audience participation. People who participate learn more and will give you better evaluations. I first

Photo: Mario's Planet

learned this when I developed and led custom workshops on “How to Do Business with the Japanese” back in the 1980s. My financial writing workshops have only reinforced this lesson. In this post, I’ll share some practical tips I learned preparing for my first webinar.

1. Ask up front for participation

People won’t make comments or ask questions if you don’t encourage them. Tell people at the beginning of your presentation that you’d like them to participate.

2. Tell your audience where and how to pose questions

It may not be obvious to your audience where they can type in their questions. Tell them where to go. You might even point to it in one of your slides.

3. Ask them questions

Prepare questions to ask your audience early on. This will get them involved. Plus, it will give you a sense of how they’re responding to your material.

You have options.

  • Polls are easy for your audience to answer.
  • Yes-no questions require only a little typing.
  • More complex questions can also work.

4. Don’t expect instantaneous responses by your audience

It takes time for people to input their responses, even when they simply click a button to answer your poll. Don’t get caught off guard by this. Instead, plan some patter to fill the time as you wait.

5. Encourage participation by responding

If you ask for participation, but fail to acknowledge audience participation, your audience will stop responding. Plan to integrate audience responses into your presentation. Answer their questions and mention at least some of their responses to questions you pose. I took this one step further by basing a blog post on some of the responses I received to a question I posed in a webinar.

6. Have a colleague help you

You may find it overwhelming to sort through your audience’s input. So, don’t go it alone. Ask a colleague to view the audience’s questions or answers and feed them to you. I found this very helpful in reducing my stress while I was presenting.

Can YOU add suggestions?

If you can add suggestions for attracting audience participation, please do. I look forward to hearing from you.