Social media has become an effective tool in the marketing of any type of business or service. But to be successful with social media, there has to be a structured marketing plan. In this article, we will review the key elements required to assist financial advisors.

Why Social Media Matters

Financial advisors turn to statistics and rely on them heavily as their industry is built upon cause and effect, numbers, and facts. Social media marketing presents a return on investment that is hard to ignore. A survey conducted by Think Advisor revealed that most financial advisors utilize some form of social media in their marketing strategy and that most of those who do claim it has contributed to improving their client relationships. A total of 86% of financial advisors who use social media say they have increased their business by $5 million.

How Social Media Marketing Assists Financial Advisors

Three main things result from a successful social media marketing strategy. It helps in building relationships with new and existing clients; it primes referrals where existing clients provide access to neighbors, friends, and associates; and it makes financial services relatable by providing financial advisors with a platform to educate prospective clients on the benefits of their service.

Identifying The Right Audience

It is called target marketing. Social media marketing for financial advisors is a tool that is best used for lead generation. Much like it is used by lead generation companies for accountants. But how do financial advisors identify their key target? That’s easy. A good way to start is to take a good, hard look at the types of clients that are already being serviced. By analyzing their online habits, the questions they ask, and what financial services are the most popular, it doesn’t take long to develop a target audience.

By using social media marketing to reach these people by providing them with the information they are seeking, the odds are favorable that new business will result. Think of it as LinkedIn prospecting for financial advisors and turn that around to financial advisors prospecting for clients.

Do Not Forget The Social Part of Social Media

Knowing your audience and feeding them educational material regarding financial services is only part of the equation. The main driver behind social media is that it provides a real-time form of communication with people all over the world. But to make that part work, financial advisors must be social. This means responding to questions with accurate answers and sharing some personal information that shows the human side of being a financial advisor.

Humour is always welcome and the more relatable you are, the more trustworthy you become to the online audience. Building trust is one of the largest benefits of social media marketing and it takes less time to achieve this online than it does through a series of face-to-face appointments.

Conclusion

Social media for financial advisors is a productive tool in lead generation. By defining the correct audience to target a marketing strategy, you are guaranteed success as is verified by statistics. Those stats show that social media marketing will unlock new business and help you to build the trust of your clients.