In case you haven’t noticed – or no matter how hard you don’t want it to be true – social media is here to stay. While many financial advisors have been reluctant to adopt it as part of their overall marketing strategy, others have embraced social media outreach as a necessary and highly beneficial communication tool. Recently, Brightscope, a financial information company that brings transparency to the financial industry by providing investors with advisor records, published a list of the “Top 100 Most Social Financial Advisors in the United States.” The list ranks advisors based on their social media outreach and engagement. While the validity of this list has been questioned by many in the industry, the KCD PR team was still curious to know what the highest ranking advisors are doing. We took a look at the strategies of the top 10 advisors to see how their online activity landed them on this list.
Diverse Blog
Every advisor on Brightscope’s list has a blog that covers a variety of relevant topics. On any given day they are discussing financial industry news, investment tips or trending news. Some advisors even suggest reading material for their followers. Your blog should be both relevant and informative. By sharing blog posts on your social media pages, you give your readers a built-in platform to share your news.
Consistent Engagement
In order to be effective on social media, you have to post regularly. The advisors on Brightscope’s list tweet at minimum three to four times a day. A significant aspect of an effective strategy is to be present and active as much as possible. It’s also important to monitor the interaction you receive with your social media profiles. For some, posting to their social media outlets multiple times a day is unrealistic. Be sure to check your social media profiles several times a week to monitor and take part in the conversation with your followers. Consistent engagement is particularly important on LinkedIn, especially since the site attracts professionals who seek new business contacts and industry-related content. Sharing relevant content positions you as an industry expert and can help lead to client referrals. Now this doesn’t mean you can “set and forget” your other social media pages. They are all of equal importance.
“To tweet or not to tweet – that is the question.” The KCD PR team says, “to tweet!”
Follow Your Fans
Don’t be afraid to follow those who follow you. Look at it this way, if someone on Twitter follows you or likes your page on Facebook, more than likely, they value you and are interested in the services you provide. They may also share information and news that is relevant to you and worthy of being shared with others. Not only do advisors on the list follow their fans, they also follow financial journalists, media outlets and individuals in the financial industry. As cliché as this may sound: sharing is caring. Not only does sharing information show that you value the content posted, it provides opportunities for conversation and opens the door for people to return the favor. The more conversation surrounding your posts, the more people will see your content on their time lines.
Pulling Back the Curtain
Many of your potential targets are on Facebook – your clients, your client’s heirs and more importantly, new business prospects. Recent studies show, 71% of online adults use Facebook. You need to have an active presence in order to engage this audience. The advisors on Brightscope’s list have embraced the idea of using Facebook to be candid. We suggest having both a personal page and a professional page. Your personal page should be for your family, friends and non-business related contacts, while your professional page is for business-related contacts. Through Facebook, sharing your thoughts and perspectives will demonstrate that you are an industry expert – as well as an individual with an opinion. Showing a “softer” side of yourself makes you and your practice more personable. New prospects are more likely to do business with you if they actually like you. Be tactful in what you post, as clients and prospects may be exposed to your content. Two rules to live by are to never discuss business and to always obtain compliance approval on your content and posts.
Want to see how you measure up to the advisors on the list? Visit www.brightscope.com/advisor-pages/ to claim your free profile and submit details about your social media outreach channels. KCD PR hopes to see you on next year’s list!
