Social media has become an essential marketing tool in the financial services sector. From mortgage brokers to wealth advisors, financial professionals understand the benefits of using social platforms and digital assets to market their services and grow their practices. And while signing on to a social platform and clicking a few “likes” is a great start, it likely won’t prove effective in marketing your business. As with any marketing effort, having – and sticking to – a plan is key. To get you started, we’ve identified a few tips and strategies to help you make the most of your social and digital marketing.

Benefits of social marketing

Social media marketing isn’t just for big businesses. More than 70% of small-to-mid-sized companies use social media, according to Hootsuite, and more than half post to social platforms at least once a day. Social marketing offers many potential benefits to financial advisors:

• Helps you stay in contact with current clients and strengthen relationships with them
• Helps attract prospects and reach new audiences
• A showcase for your insights and expertise
• A more cost-effective way to market than traditional channels

Start with a plan

Before you start marketing via social media, it’s important to think about your strategy and identify your objectives. Ask yourself these questions. Who do you want to target? What benefits will you offer your audience? What kind of content will you use to reach them? The next step is choosing the social platform that best suits your objectives.

If you want to produce and share videos, YouTube might be a natural fit. If you want to write short pieces of content that link to other resources, Twitter might be a good place to start. If your goal is to nurture professional connections and identify important milestones in your clients’ lives and careers, then LinkedIn is probably best.

If your audience demographics skew older, Facebook may offer the most benefits, as two-thirds of Canadians 55+ have a Facebook account, and almost 60% say they use it daily. And if you want to stay in regular contact with existing clients, old-fashioned email is an excellent way to go. Almost half of all businesses use email to support their marketing strategy.

Whatever course you take, don’t spread yourself too thin when you’re starting out. Choose one or two social platforms where you feel most comfortable and learn them well.

Content is king

As part of your strategy, you’ll want to focus a big part of your efforts on the content you want to share. Overall, your content should be authentic and helpful and offer value to your audience. Here are some guidelines to follow.

Identify your specialty. Is retirement planning your strong suit and the area where you offer the most value to your clients? Then create and share content that focuses on retirement planning – whether it’s the financial aspects of retirement, lifestyle tips on how to stay active and engaged, or how to turn a hobby into a business.

Keep it concise. Whether creating a paid ad for Facebook or posting a link to your timeline, keep the messaging concise. Many people turn to social media as a break from their daily lives; they don’t want to be intimidated by what they read or view online.

Demonstrate your expertise. Share information that educates your clients and prospects. Canadians 55+ are more likely to share and “like” social content if it addresses issues they care about. Today, for instance, rising interest rates and inflation are top of mind for many Canadians. Offer tips on dealing with these concerns and link to other educational resources.
The more you can help clients and prospects solve their pain points, the more likely they will use your services and refer you to their networks.

Share, don’t sell. When posting content, focus more on building relationships and rapport as opposed to going for the hard sell. Social media is a conversation where listening and interacting are just as important as talking. Thoughtful and timely interactions with prospects can help build trust – and business – over time.

If you want to learn more, check out our webinar on how to grow your business with digital tools and if you’re not already, sign up to receive monthly Broker Launchpad email content to support your social media journey.