It’s often the case that a business owner doesn’t begin to consider marketing their services until they “need it”. As a financial advisor, planning is probably the greatest service you offer to your clients. That same careful planning is necessary when it comes to your business’s marketing strategy. In this week’s post, we will focus on marketing ideas to grow your business by utilizing your most valuable resource: your existing customers.
1. Survey Your Existing Customers
Create a survey for your existing clients. There’s nothing new or revolutionary about this simple idea, but if done correctly, you can accomplish several goals with this single action:
- Put your name in front of your customers
- Gather feedback on the services you currently provide
- Learn what additional services they would like to see provided
- Gauge interest in services you’ve considered adding
- Update your CRM with valuable information
People naturally want to have their opinions heard, and you might be surprised by the number of responses you will receive from a short, direct questionnaire. And based on your individual client’s responses you are afforded the opportunity to follow up with thoughtful answers or solutions. Get as creative or detailed as you want with the questions you ask. This is your chance to learn about the overall target group that has already agreed to trust you with their financial futures.
2. Get Involved
Consider this the “give” part of a healthy “give-and-take” relationship with your customers. This is an opportunity to present yourself and your business as involved and impactful members of your community. Being involved with your customers outside of that framework humanizes a relationship that can become all about the bottom line if left unattended.
You know your community, and you know your customers. Identify those you would consider most influential, and utilize your own personal network, to create a marketing strategy that can provide you with the most positive exposure to those individuals. Consider the following examples as ways to give back to these top-tier customers:
- Sponsor youth sports or educational programs.
- Contribute to local charitable organizations that are important to your clients
- Offer your expertise as a Financial Advisor to speak or present at local trade shows or conventions
- Say yes when clients reach out to you for sponsorship or contributions – your generosity will not go unnoticed.
By starting with your most important clients and the organizations they represent, you can be confident that you are reaching an audience that would benefit from your services. Furthermore, beginning these relationships in such a positive light will lay the foundation for the trust your future customers demand when choosing a fiduciary.
3. Educate, Promote and Share.
You have a website. You have a presence on social media (you do have a presence on social media, right?). You have a CRM in place that is accurate and full of valuable information from your survey responses and networking events. You have just one thing left to do; maintain and strengthen the relationships you have with your customers. This can be done in many ways, but it must be done, and it must be done consistently. Ideas for consistent communication include:
- A business newsletter (mail or email) including relevant company or local news, important dates on the financial calendar, financial education, etc.
- Social media posts sharing and promoting your firm.
- Blog posts on your website based on your client questions or their survey feedback.
- Email updates providing relevant market news or insights.
You may find you can handle some or all these activities in-house, or you may decide to outsource the content creation to a local provider. Whatever the method, it remains crucial that your customers receive a consistent stream of content from you and your business. When people in their network ask them for an advisor referral, you naturally want to be at the front of their minds.
When considering the marketing and growth of your business, the easiest, best and first place to begin is with your existing clients. The ideas listed above provide a solid foundation for you to create your own marketing strategy while allowing you to differentiate yourself from the competition and remind your client’s why they chose you as their financial advisor, and why they can recommend your services with confidence.
