Help!!!! I Want to Start on a Fast Track!

[smythe0409]

I'm a recently Registered Rep - just my Series 6. 215 Licensed.

I'm looking to get off to a fast start on limited resources. Been 10 months unemployed prior to starting this career - ran down my bank accounts and added to the credit cards.

I'm looking for advice on what to do and what's a waste of time.

I've been going to networking & referral groups on a regular basis for around 6 months. Doing One-on-One meetings with other business professionals in the groups. I'm making cold calls daily. Still not getting the results I need to cover the basic income needs and goals I have.

My firm doesn't allow Social Media as a vehicle to prospect.

Any ideas on where I can better focus my efforts? Anything I'm missing?

 

[Jason_Johnson]

Why doesn't your firm allow for marketing on social media? It is a gold mine of prospects that already know you and when you truly develop strong connections you can start to distribute content that is shared with others for even more referrals.

I know I didn't answer your question, but thought this might kick-start your discussion.

Jason

 

[justknock]

I'm also Registered, my advice is to find a seasoned veteran that will mentor you.

 

[DHK]

You need two kinds of prospecting activity to make it long-term: "Today" prospecting... and "tomorrow" prospecting.

I think you've got all the "tomorrow" prospecting down:
- Networking
- referral groups
- one-on-one meetings with those in the groups

But you need "today" prospecting ideas. You're doing cold-calling... but we have no idea what you're saying and who you're saying it to. We also don't know what kind of firm you're with, so we can't tailor an approach to fit the areas of strength your firm offers. (Since you only have a Series 6, I can only assume that you're with an insurance firm that focuses in securities - such as MetLife. If you had a series 7, we could assume you might be with a bank or a wirehouse - such as Merrill Lynch.)

The first piece of advice is to determine your specialization, then market to the needs of that profile.

For example, let's assume you're 30 years old. You're specialization could be married, with children, homeowners, between 25 and 35 years old, earning $75k - $125k/year household income. With a profile like this, you can assume what problems they have and make each case similar (and easier for you) to solve every time.

Without a specific profile, you aren't a specialist... but an 'opportunist' - someone who will pounce on anything with a pulse and has some kind of income. You won't ever gain any traction in this industry doing it that way and you'll always be trying to gain confidence and competence. It also makes it more difficult to get referrals, if you're 'all over the place'.

Determine your profile, then determine what problems you can help that profile solve.

Until we know this... you're not going to get much more help that will be meaningful to you.