Mike Milligan, CFP® went from helping his grandmother sell “collard sandwiches” for a living to building a booming advisor firm with 12 employees and $80M+ in AUM.

On today’s Power Hour at 12PM EST, Mike unpacks:

• How he gets 200+ attending his weekly webinars at less than $5 per lead

• The 60-20-20 breakdown of his new client attraction system

• The power of selling relationships to grow your business exponentially

👉Click here to register for free!

⚡ A Striking Streak of Luck

Lightning might not strike the same place twice…but sometimes the lottery does.

After winning $100,000 from a scratch-off ticket, one North Carolina man won $200,000 in a second-chance lottery drawing.

Christopher Mills learned about his latest winnings via email and was both shocked and excited.

Mills plans to use his winnings to help his sons pay off their student loan debt. 

Could he pass a little bit of his shocking lucky streak our way?

–Team Advisorist

In Today’s Issue 👇️ 

• Top conversational marketing trends

• How to master the 80/20 rule

• A tip for getting around paywalled articles

🤳🏼 Let's Get Conversational

Marketing trends continue to move towards more authentic, two-way communication. 🤝

Through conversational marketing, technology like messaging apps, chatbots, and even voice assistants like Siri and Alexa are leveraged to convey your brand message in real time. 

The goal of conversational marketing is to mimic human-to-human conversations, a much more natural approach than traditional presentation-style advertising. 

First, phone calls became outdated and everyone moved to texting to reach prospects. Today, the most dominant forms of communication are messaging apps, like WhatsApp and WeChat. 

Here are some stats on this up and coming trend:

• Globally, 60 billion messages are sent each day on messaging apps.

• American smartphone owners use messaging apps an average of 30 times per month.

• Facebook Messenger and WhatsApp each have over 1 billion monthly active users.

Thinking about moving your SMS outreach strategy to messaging apps? Here are some top tips:

✅ Keep it conversational: Think more two-way dialogue than traditional one-way, push marketing. Don't overly promote your services and create campaigns that guide prospects through a genuine conversation instead.

✅ Offer value: Include something your prospects might find handy in your messages. Examples include a weather widget, a calculator, or a market update tracker. 

✅ Short and sweet: Steer clear of lengthy scripts. Try to mimic an actual conversation by using natural language. Build in quick replies with easy options to keep things moving.

✅ Something to look at: Messaging apps are visual-friendly platforms. Spice things up by including relevant memes, GIFs, and videos to make messages memorable.

One last thing: don't forget to monitor the metrics on new strategies. Get real feedback by including quick surveys. Analyze the results regularly.

Headline Roundup

🏠 Affecting Your Clients

• White House Has Forgiven $136B in Student Debt, More Coming [CNBC]

• The Average Tax Refund is Almost 29% Lower This Tax Season [MW]

• Some Luxury Brands Have Priced Themselves Out of Reach [WSJ]

📈 Markets & Economy 

• Japan’s Nikkei Hits 34-year High on Weak Yen [FT]

• Treasury Yields Dip as Investors Await Key Data [CNBC]

• Jamie Dimon: U.S. Debt is the ‘Most Predictable Crisis’ in History [Y!]

💼 Industry Roundup 

• SEC Orders 16 Firms to Pay $81M in Texting Penalties [AH]

• Fidelity to Launch 2 Active ETFs [TA]

• MetLife Floats a VA Buyout Offer [IN]

💡 Mastering the 80/20 Rule

Trying to land that perfect sales or marketing strategy can feel a lot like a game of Whac-A-Mole, especially when you're just starting out. 

Want some good news? You don't have to do it all (*insert relaxing exhale*). 😅

According to the tried and true 80/20 rule (AKA the Pareto Principle), 20% of your efforts generate 80% of your results. 

In other words, only a small proportion of your day-to-day activities power most of your wins. 

Applying the 80/20 rule in your practice can be a game-changer in terms of focus. You'll stop wasting your time on what doesn't work and shift your attention towards what's already giving you the best results.

If you want to implement the 80/20 rule, here's a quick guide to get you started:

1. Identify the areas in your marketing strategy or practice that feel overwhelming or frustrating.

2. Make a list of all the tasks, people, and things involved in those areas.

3. Next, hone in on the 20% of tasks, people, and things that drive most of (80%) of your success.

4. With the top 20% identified, make those tasks, people, and things a priority. Put them on your schedule first and make regular appointments to meet with any stakeholders involved.

5. Now, go back to your list of frustrations. Eliminate anything that's unnecessary or redundant and delegate things you can't eliminate. If there's anything you can't delegate, schedule those tasks for when you have downtime.

Identifying what's important takes a bit of leg work upfront, but it's totally worth it. Carve out the time to get to the bottom of things and watch your success skyrocket!

🗓️ Upcoming Industry Event Calendar

Feb 20-22: The Advyzon Conference

Feb 28-Mar 1: LLIS Insurance Academy 2024

Mar 5: RIA Masterclass

🤖 Tech Tip

A friend sends you an article from a news aggregator like Apple…but it's behind a paywall. 

Don't feel like buying a subscription? Do a quick Google search for the article title. 

In many cases, you'll be able to find it free to read on the original website. 💡

✌️Good Vibes

In Blewett Pass, WA, a house recently caught on fire. 

The blaze was so intense it could be felt all the way from the road. Many of the surrounding trees caught fire, too. 

While he was checking conditions on his route, state DoT maintenance worker Brandon Haight noticed the fire, called 911, and got everyone out of the house.

Everyone escaped just minutes before the home and a nearby RV were engulfed in flames. 

A state trooper on the scene noted there probably wouldn't be any survivors if it weren't for Haight. 

Thank goodness for hometown heroes! 🤩🙌

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