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Oct 18, 2009 11:23 pm

On Friday my Regional Leader was kind enough to call and inform me that
they would be placing another FA  into my very small
town of 8000. He told me to draw a line in the town and suggested I
concentrate my prospecting efforts in preparation for the new guy.  I asked the logic behind such a
decision and it’s all based on their assets model for my area.  Such is
life but now I have to make steps to ensure I’m the only game in town,
I know it’s dirty but what else can I do.  It’s a dog eat dog world. To
this point I’ve been lazy and pretty deliberate in my prospecting
methods, hitting the towns around my area but not my town until my
office opened.  I’ve got a 6-8 month window to prospect the shear hell
out of this place. 


I plan to start knocking on every door within the area I’ll abdicate
and call those houses that no one is home and work my way back into my
"new" area.  I know, I know, I’m a jerk but I’ve already knocked in the
majority of the houses in town and it’s still my area for at least 6
months.  Blame Jones for using numbers rather than logic.


At very worst, my business should explode over the next few months because I've been a total slacker for the last three months. Guess that's the silver lining.
Oct 18, 2009 11:25 pm

Ah. And so it begins…

Oct 18, 2009 11:27 pm

Are there any other small towns around you with no EDJ guy/gal?

Oct 18, 2009 11:31 pm

Yes and two much larger towns with only two reps.  I can’t for the life of me figure out why the guy would subject himself to prospecting a small town that a new guy started in less than a year ago.  Sure it impacts me but it’s going to be that much tougher for them.

Oct 18, 2009 11:39 pm

Volt - I’ve seen instances where newbies don’t have that much of a choice. This is what they do. The people in market research are morons. And the regional leadership follows the “we could put twelve more offices here!” party line.



I hate it for you buddy. Elbow him out. Offer to host him at your office and take his prospects when he quits.

Oct 18, 2009 11:40 pm

Don’t worry about it.  Prospect where you think it makes sense. Don’t let this get between your ears.
Competition is everywhere in this job – banks, independants, DYI-ers, wirehouses. So look at it this way – how much competition will this new guy really be?


Oct 18, 2009 11:46 pm

This is where our model is limited…there is some paper-pusher in the home office that reads a spreadsheet of questionable asset figures and decides without much, if any, research that a town can support more than one FA.

I actually work in a small city next to a large city where there is more than one other broker. I just cold call and prospect in every area that does not have a Jones broker specifically attached to it. I circle out about 30 minutes from my branch. I have found that there is a lot of business that we (EDJ) have never really touched because Jones has never put a broker in the town and most of us are too myopic to prospect outside the city that’s on our business card.

Anyway, don’t panic. As you and I both know, new people (if they make it) aren’t skilled prospectors. If nothing else, you will be able to have a head start stealing business from that whale across the street from you.

Oct 18, 2009 11:51 pm

[quote=voltmoie]On Friday my Regional Leader was kind enough to call and inform me that
they would be placing another FA  into my very small
town of 8000. He told me to draw a line in the town and suggested I
concentrate my prospecting efforts in preparation for the new guy.  I asked the logic behind such a
decision and it’s all based on their assets model for my area.  Such is
life but now I have to make steps to ensure I’m the only game in town,
I know it’s dirty but what else can I do.  It’s a dog eat dog world. To
this point I’ve been lazy and pretty deliberate in my prospecting
methods, hitting the towns around my area but not my town until my
office opened.  I’ve got a 6-8 month window to prospect the shear hell
out of this place. 


I plan to start knocking on every door within the area I’ll abdicate
and call those houses that no one is home and work my way back into my
"new" area.  I know, I know, I’m a jerk but I’ve already knocked in the
majority of the houses in town and it’s still my area for at least 6
months.  Blame Jones for using numbers rather than logic.


At very worst, my business should explode over the next few months because I've been a total slacker for the last three months. Guess that's the silver lining. [/quote]

Wow! What a game-changer...you probably were too successful too quickly so they figured your town could support another Jones office.

I'd guess, the fairy-tale is now over...so get out there and put this other Jones guy out of business!!!


Oct 18, 2009 11:51 pm

The asset base that Jones comes up with is complete suspect, but I have heard recently that they don’t even look at assets anymore… The new goal is population(5,000/advisor) and that is not households but total population. So for example town of 15,000 would get at least 3.



I agree with previous posters that it shouldn’t affect you, however i think mucks up the EDJ image of the existing broker when they higher a new guy.

Oct 18, 2009 11:54 pm

Here is the best part of the story…  My buddy gets a call on Wed. from his RL, he calls to offer him a nice 15mm office.  When mine calls I start thinking, hell yeah … I’m getting an office too. hahaha Needless to say, I was disappointed!

I’m taking it in stride and really did need a kick in the ass.  This has provided it but I can’t lie, it’s annoying and needed to rant a little about it. Thanks for the advice.

Oct 19, 2009 12:10 am

Don’t think of it too much bud. Just whoop some ass and everything will be fine. I do, however, like the idea of hosting him in your office. I grew up in a small town of 1200. 8000 is not much larger., so I know how those small town people work. Let’s face it, if you do well and get in an office, there are not enough people to support that other FA because they will assume that he works for YOUR office. When he says “Edward Jones”, they’ll say, “Oh ya, the office over yonder”. When he quits, you’ll get all his accounts. Just rock it out and by the time he starts doorknocking, he’ll quit because he’ll realize every house he doorknocks has Volt’s name stamped on it.

Oct 19, 2009 1:09 am

Definitely, tell the RL you are splitting the area. Also, reach out to the new guy and tell him how you would propose to split it. Then absolutely pound the area you have proposed to give him to grab any low hanging fruit before he starts. It is your business and if Jones doesn’t want to think logically then screw them. If they want to play games you will beat them at their own.

Oct 19, 2009 1:45 am

That’s my plan, at least part 1 of 5.  After watching the history channel I’m calling  it: Operation OVERLORD

Oct 19, 2009 2:12 am

I wouldn’t feel quilty about any prospecting methods you use now or later.  Chances are he wont be with Jones in 3 years whether it be from failing or switching companies so why worry. 

  When I was at Jones, there were 8 reps in our town.  3 of us were doorknocking at the same time.  I had one prospect say another Jones guy had just been by a few weeks prior.  The indy firm I'm with now, has probably 20+ reps in that same town.  Not to mention every wirehouse on earthis there.  Obviously a bit different compared to town of 8k but there is competition everywhere and I'd just keep grinding it out and not let it affect you. 
Oct 19, 2009 2:18 am
Ronnie Dobbs:

Don’t think of it too much bud. Just whoop some ass and everything will be fine. I do, however, like the idea of hosting him in your office. I grew up in a small town of 1200. 8000 is not much larger., so I know how those small town people work. Let’s face it, if you do well and get in an office, there are not enough people to support that other FA because they will assume that he works for YOUR office. When he says “Edward Jones”, they’ll say, “Oh ya, the office over yonder”. When he quits, you’ll get all his accounts. Just rock it out and by the time he starts doorknocking, he’ll quit because he’ll realize every house he doorknocks has Volt’s name stamped on it.



"yonder"... someone is from Mississippi....
Oct 19, 2009 2:58 am

Volt, I have been with EJ for almost six years, and the first couple of years it used to bother me when they would put another newb in my area. However, since I started approximately 71 FA’s have been hired, trained and quit in my direct marketing area. My region has opened only two offices in six years, only one of those was a newnew and currently we have 12 FA’s out less than 16 weeks. I have learned over the years that doorknocking is more advertising than prospecting. EJ hires anyone with a pulse knowing that 90% will quit or get fired within three years. Whether they stick for three months or three years they will be getting in front of hundreds of people telling them about EJ and when they leave at least one of the people they talked to is going to walk in your office and drop a big rollover at your feet. All because someone whose name they cannot remember left an EJ brochure at the door 18 months ago. Just remember, you are playing King of the Mountain, chances are the newb will quit after the salary runs out. How is that for a recipe!

Oct 19, 2009 1:55 pm
iceco1d:

Spiff,

This can’t be good for your LP buddy! 

  I'd say right now it's neutral.  If volt gets hit butt into gear and makes his office profitable, then it's good for the LP.  The new guy was going to start somewhere.  He just happens to be starting in volt's backyard.  He was going to impact the LP regardless.    volt - I have to tell you that I feel absolutely ZERO sympathy for you.  I think I've explained before that my office is in a metro area.  There are 9 other FAs in my zip code alone.   And a mile down the highway there are two other zip codes with another 9 FAs apiece in them.  I lost track of the number of new FAs we have in this area.  We've got 8 trainees in our region on the system right now and I believe 12 that start in the next 9 months.  So, forgive me if I have a hard time drumming up any sympathy for you.  I'd LOVE to be one of two FAs in a town of 8000 people.  Partly because I know that while the city limit sign may say 8000, there are probably another 8000 that live outside the city limits.  You should be focusing your attention on the Total Liquid Investable Assets of your area, not the population.       The last time I heard the stats on new FAs, they wanted an FA for every $750MM in TLIA.  I can't imagine that they've lowered that stat or just simply gone to a population metric.  I've not heard anything about it in a while, so they might have changed, but I'd be suprised if they did.   
Oct 19, 2009 1:59 pm

Spiff you know those numbers are crap… They include checking accounts and all sorts of garbage.



They may go off the TLIA initially but the new goal also takes into account population.

Oct 19, 2009 2:00 pm

Not to mention that the bulk of those TLIA assets are not Jones target market.

Oct 19, 2009 2:16 pm

Spiff, two points…

  - I choose this town of 8000 because it didn't have an advisor.  There were plenty of other markets around to choose from but I was fairly strategic, maybe you should have been?  Now at that point I didn't know about goodknighting or inheriting an office so in hindsight it might have been foolish.  Jones did tell me at the time the location could service two advisors, but they based that on PRE-CRASH data that I think is crap. I knew it would happen at somepoint, just not so soon.  Life moves on and it is what it is.   - Don't want, don't need, didn't ask for your sympathy.  Like I said, hurts me a little but it's going to be 100% uphill for the new guy because while I don't brag about my numbers like Windy they are rockstarish in a realative sense. Just think it's silly in a non-transistional community to not utlize logic when placing people.   Anyway, I finished complaining about it last night.  Just needed a few days to work it out in my head.  Opertation Overlord is in full swing, back on the phones.  I've got to prospect the new guys territory later today.