by

In a marketing agency setting, I get to work with all kinds of clients across a multitude of industries. Lately, client work and my reference groups have me immersed in the financial sector. I’d need more fingers and toes to count all the friends and family that work in finance; it’s an $82.4 billion industry in Canada employing over half a million people. Either way, as a marketer, I’ve been programmed to figure things out and drive results just as advisors have been programmed to (sell and) drive performance.

What I’ve noticed is that a lot of advisors struggle to grow their books. Do-not-call lists, regulatory red tape and discouraging conversion figures don’t make it any easier to land those big fish, their lifetime value and referral business. When doing some industry-related digging, my awesome team of market researchers was able to assemble some pretty compelling figures that demonstrate how social media could fit into a prospecting strategy for financial advisors.

So now what? Yes, the numbers are significant, and no, it’s not as as simple as setting-up a profile. But it is extremely easy to execute some very simple strategies to drive awareness, educate and engage your networks and start converting. A small bit of advice to begin with: get on LinkedIn and start instigating and participating in conversations that will build your credibility into some authority. Why? Start by reading these two articles:

Social Media’s Growing In­fluence Among High Net Worth Investors

By Chris Savio & Jake Raroque

Financial Advisors’ Use of Social Media Moves from Early Adoption to Mainstream

By Emily Friedman & Neil Benedict

For more strategic insight on the marketing side, get in touch with me at pat[at]htc.ca. And as always, your questions and comments are welcomed below.