How do you hunt for big game? Forget your hard-sell, "29-different-techniques-to-a-close" routine. Elite income earners ask lots of questions. They also are not as self-consumed as the characters on "Dynasty" and "Dallas" might lead you to believe.
They are unlikely to respond to dinner seminar mailers. They also won't take your cold calls. And they certainly won't respond to a mailing for higher CD rates. The best way to sell to the highly affluent is to do a good job of networking through client events and an even better job of gaining referrals from your already well-heeled clients. Once you get to a millionaire and make a sale, the referrals should follow.
The single best way to come in contact with the affluent is to use introductions. They are like referrals, but you enlist the referral source into a three-way conversation. The beauty of this is your referral source will sell you the affluent prospect without having to blow your own horn. This is the single most elegant and successful way to gain affluent clients.
Surprisingly, if you do hold a seminar, affluent seniors are more likely to attend during the day than at night. A tea in the afternoon or even a lunch may draw more affluent seniors to you.
Another technique is to focus on industry organizations and their meetings. Every group needs speakers, and one of the hottest topics in America is how to invest keep your money safe and what the future investing climate holds. Offering to write a monthly column on financial issues for commercial printing industry magazines may turn your cold calls into warm calls when you mention how connected you are.
