Men's Health

Oil and water just don’t mix; there is no point in trying. Both are needed for a high performance engine to run at maximum efficiency, but they have different functions. In banking, the oil is the bank products and the water is the non-bank products that are becoming essential for meeting today’s consumer demand while providing fee income to the bank. If traditional and non-traditional financial products are properly positioned, success in the form of substantial fee income is a direct outcome.

The banking business is no different than any other; banking has changed tremendously over the last thirty years. In the past, the majority of bank income came from Interest Income, but the trend continues to shift towards fee income. With deregulation in the form of the Depository Institutions Deregulation and Monetary Control Act (1980) and the Depository Institutions Act (1982), and repeal of the Glass-Steagall Act in 1999, banks responded by offering alternative financial services. In the 1990’s, increased consumer awareness led to customer demand and banks saw investment programs increase dramatically. However, many banks have had difficulty successfully integrating investment brokerage and insurance into their institutions.

The radical difference in products, delivery systems, and sales cultures has prevented many banks from maximizing the potential offered by these additional financial service opportunities. Some banks use Dual Employee” structures, while others use third party marketing arrangements. Other issues include differences in compensation structure, one-way” referrals, and the different risks associated with non-bank products, as opposed to FDIC insured instruments. Additional compliance concerns only exacerbate the gap between bankers, brokers, and insurance agents.

This is not a new problem, and much has been written on this subject. The question is simple; what can a bank do to successfully integrate non-bank product sales more effectively? Fortunately, the answer is also simpler than you think. The following six steps are critical in having compliant, successful, and profitable non-bank sales units:

1. Do all you can to learn about non-bank product sales
2. Work to incorporate non-bank product sales units into all bank events and meetings
3. Manage activities, not results
4. Have realistic dual expectations
5. Have regular two-way communication
6. Have a workable, mutually agreed upon business plan

Do all you can to learn about the investment business

Many bankers do not have experience in non-bank product sales, and as a result often spend little time on it or ignore it entirely. You need to make a concentrated effort to understand the culture and structure of non-bank product sales units. Many broker/dealers offer Banker Broker Conferences.” In addition, many banking trade groups provide educational meetings and resources. Take advantage of these opportunities to help you better understand the differences in delivery systems and cultures employed to sell non-bank products.

Work to incorporate non-bank product sales units into all bank events and meetings

The more you include non-bank product salespeople and their colleagues in bank functions and meetings, the more cordial and productive their interactions with your bank officers and staff will be. Encourage them to become familiar with your bank’s marketing and product emphasis, so they refer you appropriate business. The more they feel a part of the bank, the better ambassadors they will be for you when they are out in the community, and your cross-selling results will soar.

Manage activities, not results

Often banks have expectations of their investment and insurance sales units, but have limited knowledge of what activities are required to generate those results. If bank management does not have a working knowledge of the alternative product sales process, they are reluctant to participate actively in the management of these programs. If your program is set up with duel employees, do all you can to learn about the activities required to maintain it successfully.

If you utilize a third party marketing firm, ask them for guidance on what is expected of their reps and what you can do to assist them in the management of the program. Regardless of the compliance firewalls between your bank and a third party firm, the public perception is that they a part” of your bank, so a hands-on approach will pay off.

Have realistic dual expectations

When non-bank sales programs are installed, each party establishes certain expectations with which to gauge success. Often those who have a vested interest in the program’s installation deliver these expectations. Make certain your bank considers statistical averages for the type of program you have in your bank. Banks should examine the production and revenues of their programs compared to national averages, as well as averages from their program’s broker/dealer or insurance companies.

Also consider expectations related to marketing activities, such as referrals. A common complaint of non-bank product sales people is that they don’t get enough referrals and then upon further examination, it’s becomes apparent that neither party is maximizing the referral opportunities. Systems should be installed to monitor all referrals within institutions. Following compliance regulations and guidelines related to cross-sales marketing efforts prevents regulatory issues.

One of the biggest problems when it comes to marketing is the lack of accountability. If you look at other areas of a corporation there is rarely a department or area where a person cannot account for everything that happens including where all the finances go. They can also show the direct relationship between a particular action and the success or failure of that action.

Marketing however is different. While positive results can be and often are generated it is rarely the case where the results can be directly linked to a particular action. This is because marketing lacks the metrics and standards, in other words, the units or ways to measure action to result. The result of this is can be felt in a number of ways. There is no way to measure success or failure based on a particular aspect of a marketing plan and more importantly there is no way to predict the success of a particular tool, strategy or plan when it comes to marketing.

In part this is not because markets cannot decide on what type of unit to use to measure, they cannot even decide what exactly it is they are attempting to measure. This makes it difficult to assign accountability when it comes to marketing. A number of plans have been put into action that create some level of accountability when it comes to finances and marketing.

It is common for as much as a quarter of a company’s income to go towards marketing. It is therefore not unreasonable that there be some accountability and some ability to project the results of the marketing campaign as well as to justify the necessity of the size of the marketing budget. In fact, certification is required and the accuracy of financial statements is essential. The practice of guessing and the attitude of it is close enough is falling under increased scrutiny. However, marketing firms and departments having no accepted units of measurement are having a difficult time supplying the necessary answers that executives are requesting.

In order to combat this, professionals in the marketing industry have begun to develop individual and personalized standards, which are then used to measure the efforts, the risks and projections. This reduces the standards to an in firm matter that becomes part of the tactical activities of the firm rather than an industry wide standard.

Generally the only way to measure the success of marketing is through financial means. However, while marketing may use standards of measurement to claiming a successful operation there has been very little done to define what qualifies as success for marketing. As an increasing amount of companies have increased the marketing budgets in an effort to draw in an ever increasing number of customers the need for justification and tracking has become more of a necessity. In turn this has started to move marketing out of the inherently creative and necessary evil categories and into more traditional business positions with more traditional and understandable standards.

Standards of quality are necessary in any aspect of business. It helps to maintain a consistent level of production that is predictable and effective. Having a standard that is defined in clear terms and in a language the entire industry and more importantly related industries can understand is essential in allowing a corporation or industry to make long-term plans.

Here are a few of the things that standardizing and establishing units of measurements can do even with marketing. It can help to allow for more effective use of resources, improve the ability to predict results and provide an increase in the ability analyze and plan for what if situations, which often occur in marketing. It can also allow for the investment return to be asset. This allows a business to create a financial balance, which provides an increase in the overall benefit of marketing to the company.

These are some of the benefits as well as some of the problems that have arisen when it comes to creating accountability within the marketing industry. As a result the question then becomes how to create the standards necessary to eliminate the problems and increase the benefits. One of the biggest obstacles in developing standards is the fact that it is difficult to measure marketing against the standards of measurement common to industries.

This has created a resulting standard of measuring marketing success by cash flow in after campaign reports. Many people do not realize how frequently standards are taken for granted or how difficult it can be to create them. In order to create a recognized and consistent standard, which can allow for market accountability there must be first, a link between the marketing action and a financial return.

This link must be set up and held to the definitions of financial return, risk, the cost and value of capital and money. These are industry standards and help to provide a stable point of reference to from which to work. It is also important to create an accurate way of forecasting. In marketing this is best done through retrospection.

Despite all the abundance in the world today, there is one luxury that still eludes most of us and this is financial independence. It is not, however, a luxury impossible to achieve. When looking at what vehicle you will use to achieve your financial independence, stop for a moment to take a serious look at home based network marketing.

Working from home is a dream for thousands of people around the world and there are those ‘lucky’ few who have achieved it successfully. The key to their success is the understanding of what it takes to market a home based business. It requires persistence and an unwavering commitment.

There a literally thousands of home based business opportunities and they range from investments of under a hundred dollars to investments in the thousands. For the average person, the primary reason they are looking to start a home based business is to improve their financial situation and so a large upfront capital outlay is not possible.

A case for a Home Based Network Marketing Business

Many people invest in home based network marketing as it requires little capital and usually promises great returns. This is the attraction for most people because the product or service on offer has a global market appeal and is within reach financially for the average person. Generally, because it is fairly easy to join a network marketing opportunity it means you can invest your time and money in marketing your business.

The biggest draw card for starting a network marketing business from home is the leverage you can create. As a simple explanation, this means you benefit from the marketing efforts of people in your organization. You will hear network marketers say very often ‘the more people you help get what they want, the more you get what you want’ or variations of that statement.

The other draw card is the home based network marketing company you join, in almost all cases, will have training and support to assist you in growing your own business. The people who introduced you into the business will also be available to assist as they have an invested interest in your success.

3 Strategies to Make Your Home Based Network Marketing Work

Once you have decided network marketing is for you, there are some important considerations you will need to take into account:

Firstly, you must treat this like a business. You will do yourself a tremendous favor by finding out from people who have started their own business, what is required each and everyday to make it a success.

Secondly, you must teach yourself to be motivated. Anyone can be motivated when they are excited about something new. There are many distractions at home and after a tough day at your job, it will take a personal commitment to work on your business.

And finally, you must have staying power. Your decision to start a home based network marketing business must be a long term one. You should not have an expectation of getting rich quick, although making some money almost immediately is certainly possible. Make the decision to build your business no matter what the stakes are and you will be successful. Above all have fun and enjoy building your home based network marketing business.