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"Thanks to video, we lost 50 clients last year. And our business is doing better than ever."
When we heard that from the team at KeyStone Financial Group, we stopped short.
Wait!
Losing clients isn’t the goal of video marketing. At least not typically. But for KeyStone, selectively trimming down their client roster was intentional.
It’s counter-intuitive to think that fewer clients can mean bigger success. KeyStone didn’t technically “lose” 50 clients. They let them go. And this year they’re letting go of 15 more.
Guess what happened to KeyStone’s bottom line? The assets they let go of were replaced almost immediately.
The 80/20 rule, also known as the Pareto principle, holds true in many aspects of life, including business. KeyStone President Lynn Berry explained that thehouseholds they let go of were replaced almost immediately … with new clients who were a better fit. Thisapproach was scary for the team initially, but the transition proved to be smoother than expected, thanks in part to video.
No, they weren’t breaking up with clients in video.
Amid this transformation, video marketing emerged as a powerful tool. “We redid all of our marketing with these videos,” says Callee Berry, KeyStone’s Business Support Manager. Video content (produced by Idea Decanter) became a cornerstone of their communication strategy, allowing them to reach clients more effectively and consistently.
When Time is of the Essence
The overhaul included a website redesign [check it out here] and refining their marketing strategy … all with a video-centric approach. This included video on the website’s landing pages, video in emails to clients, and video shared on social media.
KeyStone records a message once, and they share it with clients and prospects to watch content at their convenience, helping viewers understand KeyStone’s process and get to know the team better.
This regular engagement through video, creates a perception of frequent communication and active involvement. And it ultimately saves time. By recording a single message and sharing it with the newly right-sized client base, KeyStone better leveraged the hours in the day and had a bigger impact.
Turn clients into “Raving Fans”
With fewer clients to focus on, KeyStone turned attention to making sure the clients they kept were inspired to become “Raving Fans!” By their definition, they wanted to be so valuable that clients couldn’t help but enthusiastically spread the word.
By all accounts, the Raving Fans plan, which includes sending clients videos, is working. Clients tell the team they appreciate the frequent updates and feel more connected to the business, which has a positive impact on retention and referrals.
“There is no way to quantify how people are feeling about what’s going on, until suddenly a client who never referred us to anyone before, has now sent us 3 new clients,” says Lynn. Even prospects that KeyStone has turned down for not being a good fit, have referred new clients their way.
The Bottom Line: A Testament to Success
How does the KeyStone team know the 18-month marketing and client roster overhaul is working? They hear people repeating their message, explains Co-founder Scott Berry.
Not only that, but KeyStone has noticed:
- Prospects are converting faster. The intro-to-onboarding timeframe has shrunk since KeyStone incorporated videos into their lead funnel.
- Retention is strong. Clients are getting more “personal” touchpoints with video. KeyStone is leveraging the psychological impact of clients watching a video and feeling like they’ve spent time with their advisor.
- Referrals are going up.
Reducing the “book of business” and integrating video marketing has not only streamlined their operations but also elevated their practice in the eyes of their clients. As referrals increase and client satisfaction continues to grow, it’s evident that focusing on quality over quantity can lead to remarkable business success. KeyStone is proving that sometimes, less is more.
Related: Market Dips = Client Opportunities: 5 Key Messages to Share