I do a lot of work and training on how Financial Advisors can use LinkedIn to market their practice and for lead generation, which has led me to develop a few clear-cut marketing strategies for these professionals. Recently, I hosted a webinar for 323 financial planners that belong to the Financial Planning Institute of South Africa.
The Financial Advisor and Planners signed up for the webinar because they wanted to learn how to prospect for new clients using online techniques, how to stay relevant in this competitive market, how to prepare for succession planning, how to use social media to keep their client relationships going, and how people over 50 can bridge the gap if they are stuck in their traditional ways of prospecting.
Why financial planners need digital marketing
“Financial advisors no longer control all of the information investors rely on to make financial decisions.”
In the past, Financial Advisors were in control of the information that investors relied on to make financial decisions. Google has made access to all the information free, which makes it easy to see why financial advisors need digital marketing. If a practice is to succeed, it will have to use the Internet.
With a homepage having about 10 seconds to deliver a compelling message, we discussed what Financial Planners need to make sure website visitors have an experience on the site that will lead them to initiate contact. I then talked briefly about all the components of digital marketing including SEO, content marketing, social media, website design, email marketing, analytics, paid search advertising and digital campaigns. I also delved into the importance of inbound marketing – and the role of blogging and email marketing – to give Financial Planners ideas on how they can use the Internet to solve financial problems for clients, establish themselves as experts, increase traffic to their websites, and produce contact data for their email drip systems.
With cold calling having a 95% rejection rate, Financial Planners were keen to discuss and learn about other methods – such as a customised email marketing campaigns – that are less disruptive and leave a positive impression of their practice.
The single biggest trend that impacts the way Financial Advisors market their services in inbound marketing. With outbound marketing tactics offering diminishing returns, the Financial Advisors were eager to explore ways that content creating, free offers, social media, and email marketing can be used to connect with potential clients.
We also delved into the social media channels that Financial Advisors can afford to be on, the social media platforms that offer the most value for Financial Advisors, what they can expect when interacting with their target audience on these platforms, how to connect with centres of influence, and how to successfully connect with their prospects online.
I want to thank the Financial Planning Institute of South Africa for setting this up and letting me speak to their financial planners. Get in touch if you would like tailored digital marketing or LinkedIn training for yourself or your team, or if you need WSI OMS to help you with your digital marketing or online presence.