As a Financial Advisor, we tend to focus the majority of our time on personal financial planning for our clients. We help them protect their families, save for their goals, and live their dreams. A part of every conversation we have with them involves learning more about their group benefits and educating them on how it effects their overall financial plan.
A lot of times we find that they have no clue what their benefits are, their HR person gave them the wrong advice on setting up their retirement plan, their health insurance, life insurance and disability insurance plans are sub par and finally, outside of their HR person, they have no one to go to in order to learn more about what they have.
Some advisors can view this as extremely frustrating whereas I want you to view it as an opportunity. This is an opportunity to be the hero — again, but in a different capacity. Not only can you help them with their personal planning, but you can help them and their colleagues with all things benefits.
Now before you say “I don’t have time for this. It’s too much work. The laws change too often,” know that my message here isn’t to take this on yourself. My message is to partner with someone and leverage their skill set and expertiseto help you add this service to your arsenal.
Now, let’s get into it.
Top 10 Ways to Market Group Benefits:
1. Service over Savings
Anyone who approaches companies for their services typically leads with the fact that they can save them money. Simple trick — if everyone is doing that, you do the opposite. See, business owners know two things: 1. Cheaper is not always better. For example, they may be more expensive than their competition but have a much better product/service. 2. Every Sales person typically uses that as a “sales tactic.”
Not only that, but what if you can’t save them money but your service or products are better? Now you’re climbing up hill.
Always lead with value. Lead with service. Lead with relationships. Lead with why working with you will be a breathe of fresh air.
2. Give HR a Hand
Become an asset for their Human Resources team. HR is usually bogged down with many different things on a daily basis. Hiring, firing, complaints, and a slew of other reactive items on a daily basis. Not all companies can afford to hire someone that just holds the hands of the employees regarding their group benefits.
A lot of times, group benefits have a huge impact on people’s compensation plans and if they only knew exactly what they entailed, they may feel more appreciated, motivated and excited to not only work there, but to stay there.
Again, service and value. You can take all that off their plate and you and your team that you partner with can manage and take the lead on all of that.
The company may not be able to hire another HR person, but maybe they can spend a fraction more on group benefits if it comes with the resources for their employees that they’ve been looking for.
3. Relate to Them — You are in Their Shoes
As Financial Advisors, we run our own businesses. We hire, we fire and we work to give our team members benefits that will retain them. Well, if we are abundant in our thinking we do.
So use that to your advantage. Let them know that you’ve done this before. Let them know that you’ve experienced the pain of the process and waht you did to make it better.
People like to work with people that are relatable and people who have already done what they are looking to do.
If you haven’t, talk to the team that you are looking to partner with and borrow a story or two from them and the companies they have done work with. Knowing where companies where and where they are now after improving their employee benefits is a great way to immediately become relevant to your prospect.
4. Leverage P&C Relationships
Link up with P&C shops in the area. Business owners spend A LOT of money on these line items in their business. These P&C shops typically try to add value to these businesses as much as they can so they don’t lose that revenue.
Figure out how you can refer business back and forth but most importantly learn about their experience in working with that business you are trying to work with. What’s the owner like? Do they value relationships? DO they just want to save money? Are they scatter brained? When do they typically like to meet? How do they like to communicate (phone, email)?
Basically, don’t just establish a referral relationship, get the inside scoop so you can be strategic. They already went through the ringer, let them help you speed up the process or even better — make a personal introduction.
5. Share Employee/Employer Success Stories
At the end of the day, the owner wants to know how this is going to help their employees and how it is going to help them.
Share with them other companies that you or your partner in this space has worked with and the positive changes that occurred.
Typically companies are always looking for ways to improve and rather than you just saying how they are going to improve or benefit from your services, share real stories from their peers that they can actually relate to.
6. Allow their Employees to be Brand Ambassadors
Rarely are you going to get into a business cold. What I mean by that is you are probably going to have an “in.”
A lot of times, that “in” is going to be through their employees. Remember at the beginning when I mentioned that typically advisors focus on personal planning for their clients? Well those clients typically work for companies, right? Aha! There in lies the opportunity.
If you’ve done an amazing job for them and they have had an unbelievable experience, ask if they can share that with their boss, their HR team, their CEO.
If you have people that are rooting for you before you reach out to the decision maker, that goes a long way.
The more people in your court, the better.
7. Millennial Retention
It’s no secret that millennials enjoy job hopping. Gone are the days of working with one company for your entire life. Now just because that may be the case doesn’t mean that you can’t keep them for longer than the average company.
A lot of places aren’t aware of what other companies or their competition is offering to their employees that helps with overall retention.
Here are two examples that may be relevant.
- Student loan repayment assistance. Nowadays companies are offering $5,000, $10,000 or more in student loan repayment help for their employees as an added benefit. This may be above and beyond their bonuses or you could just take that money you were going to use to bonus them and just re-market it in a different way. No one likes student loans, so if the company helps ease that pain, they become heroes.
- Unlimited vacation days. Now before you think I’m crazy, hear me out. This is one of those benefits that is perceived value. Companies that offer this have found 3 things: 1. Employees are happier and more productive. 2. Employees stay longer. 3. Employees typically don’t abuse this benefit. See, it’s not that people don’t want to work, they just don’t want to be told when they can/can’t work. Knowing that they have the flexibility to take off time if they need it is really all they need.
8. Industry Related Issues You Can Help With
This is an easy one. Anytime there is a law change, business owners have no clue what’s going on, generally.
Be their resource. Ease their anxiety and help them make sense of it. Again, add value. Don’t just talk to them when it’s time to renew with them, talk to them when it’s relevant.
When people see you as an extension of their team, not only will you be hired, but you’ll be viewed as an asset and business owners like assets…
9. Workshops
Make sure to let them know that you and your team will work with employees to not only understand their benefits, but also to help them with their personal planning.
This adds massive value. Employers want to see their employees succeed financially. Be the person that becomes and extension of the team that serves as the dream manager. The person that helps them save, buy their first house, their vacation home, educate their kids, retire or simply just feel confident in what they are doing.
A lot of companies act in more of a reactive manner, so do the opposite — be proactive.
10. Care and be in it for the Long Game
At the end of the day, these companies don’t care how much you know, they want to know how much you care.
If they say no right away, that’s ok — stay in touch, add value in the meantime, educate them along the way. Basically work on building that relationship.
You can’t expect them to say yes immediately, but they will bee how much you care if you are constantly adding them value with things that you aren’t compensated on.
People like doing business with people, not sales people. Those days are gone so don’t go back in time.
Care about your communities businesses, don’t just care to make your commission. It seems obvious but for a lot of people it’s not. People walk around with commission breathe and that stinks!
If you actually care, people will know and they’ll want to do business with you.
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See you over there!
David
