Many agents and advisors plan prospecting events such as seminars. Maybe you attend trade shows and run workshops or breakout groups. People register. They do (or don't) show up. How do you follow up?

A problem for many financial professionals is seeing the event as the culmination of the process. "I planned a seminar. I held it. It was great!" End of story. Many people forget about 80% of the effort goes into assembling the audience and 15% into follow up. The preparation, logistics and presentation delivery are a minor part.

How many advisors do you know that say: "They will call me if they are interested?"

A New York advisor pointed out the paradox of seminars. The biggest "pro" is you get immediate results. The biggest "con" is getting immediate results.

Put another way, she explained "If the prospect doesn't do business in the following 4 weeks, they will likely never become a client." They've moved on.

Here's what she does:

First of all, she gets contact information. The easiest way is to give something away as a door prize, which requires registration cards filled out. Another way is to use evaluation forms. She is brilliant. Instead of the usual questions like: "What else would you like to learn about?" She includes: "Was there a question you wanted to ask, but we ran out of time?" and "Is there something you would like to ask about privately?"

In the DNC world, you want to be careful about contact and follow up. I've always liked "Check here if you do NOT want to be notified about future events." (You'll check with your Compliance or branch manager about what's acceptable at your firm.)

Next, the follow up. She used a 4-step approach, covering the few weeks afterwards. The first and most desirable outcome starts with: "Can we meet?"

Maybe they aren't ready for that yet. If they won't meet, will they share their account statements? That can start lots of conversation.

Suppose the answer to those two requests is negative? On to "Will you tell me about your issues or concerns?" At least it's a phone call, getting a dialog started.

If you've struck out three times, it's time for a decision: Should they be kept on the list and invited to the next seminar? Ideally you run them in a series, one per month.

Here's the rationale: If they attended and haven't become a client in 4 weeks, they are lost, right? No. Invite them to the next seminar. Assuming they attend, you have started the clock again. You have another four weeks to follow up.

It's important to follow up when you are fresh in people's minds. They made the effort to attend. You should make an effort to follow up.

Bryce Sanders is president of Perceptive Business Solutions Inc. He provides HNW client acquisition training for the financial services industry. His book, "Captivating the Wealthy Investor" can be found on Amazon.

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How to follow up after a prospecting event

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