Private Retreats & Meetings

If you’ve been practicing your profession for years, chances are you haven’t altered your success strategies very much. Executing those strategies worked to get you where you are now; however, slowly (but surely), the effectiveness of your methods have declined.

How long HAS it been since you've felt on your game? Do you wish you could eliminate overwhelm, feel better about your business operations, and advise more? Do you want to feel more full-filled at the end of each day?

Whether you’re a seasoned advisor or new to the financial industry, it’s always motivating to build a foundation of proven success systems and watch them boost your profit margin.

Leave this interactive business development workshop with action steps that will help you simplify your business, be more profitable, and banish burnout for good. You will:

• Learn S.Y.S.T.E.M.S. to reenergize your business and improve your profit.
• Harness the power of a niche to connect with better clients and referrals.
• Manage your marketing effectiveness when you define your ideal client.

(Also called Strategically Acquire Clients Part 1)

To stand out from the crowd, build a bigger book, concentrate your marketing efforts—doing less WILL bring you more. Casting a wider net catches fish—not ideal clients. Most financial professionals overlook simple, yet crucial distinctions that would make their niches produce better results.

Workshop Objectives:

1. Learn the top mistakes financial professionals make when choosing a niche—and 4 niches you never want to choose.
2. Discover the difference between a niche and an ideal client.
3. Learn why niching makes your firm more profitable and pleasurable when you do it correctly.
4. Implementing the 3 P’s of niching: Product/Passion/Population.
5. How to use Maria’s proprietary templates in her Niche Smarter Packet for Financial Advisors—must-have additions to your best practices toolbox! These templates systematize the hidden details of niching that will give you an edge!
• Discover if you're marketing to the right clients when you take Maria’s quick "Target Marketing Assessment".
• Qualify and quantify client "touches" all year long with the "Client Segmentation Matrix".
• Choose better clients when your whole office uses Maria’s "Go/No Go Worksheet".

The Profitable Results of (Correctly) Developing a Niche:

• Your firm stands out from the crowd.
• You attract new business to your practice using time-saving and cost-effective tools.
• You no longer waste money on “spaghetti marketing” because your efforts will be focused and yield a better ROI.

(Also called Strategically Acquire Clients Part 2)

Rewards ripple through your business as a result of creating your Ideal Client Profile. Having ideal clients leads to running an ideal business, which allows you to lead an ideal life.

Workshop Objectives:

1. Developing your ideal client story, so that your team and referral partners can easily spot your best clients.
2. Segmenting your client base for efficient financial practice marketing and customer service standards.
3. Creating a go/no go spreadsheet to simplify decision-making.
4. Learn where to find your ideal clients.
5. Strategies for marketing to your best clients, so that you can immediately use your new client-attraction tools.

The Profitable Results of Developing an Ideal Client Profile:

• Finding and winning the best type of clients for your firm.
• Streamline your business and enhance productivity when your marketing communication is more consistent and targeted.
• Receive more referrals to better prospects.
• Spend less time and money prospecting because your marketing and networking efforts attract great clients.
• Turbo-charge your compensation, meet your goals, and build a valuable business with high market value because you're sought after as a market leader.
• Start strategically marketing and networking because it gets you what you desire.
• Work with clients you connect with on more levels and enjoy what you're doing even more.

Maria makes it easy for advisor-owners and their teams to create AND execute improvement plans that support the firm’s vision and mission. Her planning session yields a business plan on one page—the fastest, easiest way to write a business plan.

During the workshop, you will get your plans “out of your head” and written on paper, focusing on achieving strategic priorities and critical objectives. Maria’s planning process links four very important concepts: clarity, planning, implementation, and accountability.

Afterwards, it’s easy to get your entire team on the same page (because it is only one page). You can build a culture of alignment, execution, and predictable results within your firm.

Establish a clear roadmap for the success and growth of your business, department, or career. When you focus yourself and/or your team on the business of growing, you'll watch the bottom line improve significantly!

Workshop Objectives:

1. Learn the 5 important parts of a business plan, and how they can help you run your business better.
2. Five simple questions your business plan needs to answer that will help you save time and money.
3. Quickly create 3 different business vision statements to help you design better short- and long-term solutions using Maria’s 8-step process and reusable template.
4. Discover why most people write a bad mission statement and how yours can be perfect.
5. Formulate words to use in your Business Snapshot (elevator speech), as well as keywords for your website and marketing materials, too.
6. Ways to design business objectives that are motivating and produce results.
7. How to develop goals that allow you to quickly spot distractions and learn when to say "no".

The Advantages of Business Planning Maria’s Way:

• Planning makes your life easier. A plan on one page is the easiest to write and use every day.
• It's an easy-to-use collaboration tool that aligns your entire firm. It allows the CEO, executives, managers, and even staff to have their own plans on one page.
• There's no room for fluff and filler; it does not require a major commitment of time.
• Maria will teach you a key word and short phrase technique, allowing you to capture the essence of your thoughts without struggling for the “right” words.
• The plan is in your words, not stuffy computer boilerplate.
• The process of putting your plan in writing means you have committed yourself to catapulting your business to the next level.
• You'll consistently track results and create an environment of accountability as you spend less time on lengthy planning and review meetings.

• Has the isolation of being the sole owner of your firm have you thinking “I’m going to go nuts spending all this time without peers”.
• Have you wondered how to get more business without paying a business developer or salesperson’s salary?
• Are you ready to gain new business by collaborating?

If you answered yes to just one of these questions it’s probable that the educational contents of this training can spur new ways to market your firm. It’s time to more about alliances, ventures and affiliates. Then learn how to leverage your business using (mostly) strategic alliances.

Strategic Alliances are a much-underused form of marketing and can be a major tool to expand the reach of your firm. Collaborations combine the efforts of multiple businesses and effectively create the addition of a sales force with much less risk than creating a legal partnership. The result could be a win for your firm, win for the other involved firms, and most importantly a win for both your clients.

Maria is available for speaking, training and writing engagements such as: conference workshops, business retreats, topic panels webinars, teleseminars, summits, done-for-you opportunities, interviews, radio and television appearances, guest blogging, and writing columns. All are customized to meet the needs of your audience and will focus of your events goals.

Here's a list of all the business classes Maria has taught through the life of her business (17 years) so far. And she's always open to teaching other business or personal development concepts, too.

Working Smarter Business Series

• Niche Marketing for Financial Advisors
• Developing An Ideal Client Profile for Financial Advisors & Their Teams
• Strategic Planning on Steroids for Financial Professionals
• Developing Strategic Alliances To Grow Your Business More Quickly
• Banishing Burnout by Boosting Your Effectiveness and Efficiency
• Creating a Great Business Vision Statement That Propels Your Business Forward
• The Power of Ten and other Low Cost Marketing Strategies
• Integrating Your Online & Offline Marketing Presence
• Engaging Marketing Leads To Deeper Relationship Connections
• Networking With Ease To Increase Your Net-Worth (Hint! Connect Don’t Sell!)
• Leveraging The Power Of A Blog
• Using Article Marketing To Grow Your Business
• Differentiating Your Value With A Value Proposition
• Productizing Your Services
• Be Heard: Develop a Killer Elevator Speech
• Pricing Your Services
• Improve Productivity: Getting Off the Hamster Wheel
• Marketing On a Limited Budget
• Developing Your Unique Selling Proposition (USP)

Technology

• Demystifying LinkedIn® 101 (Extreme Profile Makeover)
• Demystifying LinkedIn® 201 (Using Features To Research, Engage or Connect)
• Developing Your First Online Newsletter
• Designing Your First Website
• Creating your First Blog
• Microsoft Publisher for Business Owners
• HTML for Beginners
• Help! Computers for Beginners
• Keyboarding for Newbies

Maria is available for speaking, training and writing engagements such as: conference workshops, business retreats, topic panels webinars, teleseminars, summits, done-for-you opportunities, interviews, radio and television appearances, guest blogging, and writing columns. All are customized to meet the needs of your audience and will focus of your events goals. Here's a list of all the business classes Maria has taught through the life of her business (17 years) so far. And she's always open to teaching other business or personal development concepts, too.

• Banishing Burnout
• Clean Sweep Stress From Your Life
• Get Your Rear In Gear and Life Back on Track
• Setting Boundaries & Raising Standards
• Mission Possible

Banish Burnout: Boost Your Personal Efficiency, Effectiveness & Energy

How do you typically end your day? Is your cup of gratitude full for having accomplished what you set out to do? Or is it empty, leaving you burned out, overwhelmed, and ruminating about a to-do list that continues to grow?

This workshop offers practical personal development and time management techniques you can use immediately to regain control over a business that's running your life. You'll be provided with the tools and action steps to build new personal and business habits.

Kick overwhelm to the curb and live better. Attack your to-do list with a re-energized attitude. Learn how to find more time and create more energy for yourself. Discover what's holding you back and banish burnout for good!

Part 1: Introduction to Burnout - What is Burnout and How Did You Get Here?

• Identify the symptoms of burnout in your life (some will surprise you).
• Take your first step off the hamster wheel and get back on course.

Part 2: Solutions for Demotivation - Increasing Your Personal Energy

• Reenergize your life as you learn to live by design rather than by default.
• Maslow had it half right: notice the ways your firm can be your key to life full-fillment.

Part 3: Solutions for Overwhelm - Finding More Time in Your Day

• Uncover your tolerations and discover why they waste your time and drain your energy.
• Discover the simple time management solution that increases productivity 3X or more.

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