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It would be fair to say that adviser marketing is not a specialty subject for most advisers…they are usually great technicians and deliverers of financial advice and coaching, and they are usually great at selling and relationship management at an individual level. Not so great at getting the marketing going though….
Whenever I talk at workshops or conferences about marketing, client engagement and building the professional services brand a frequent question that arises is “what do I need to have in my marketing mix?”
That could potentially be a very very long list, but here are the Marketing Kitbag Essentials for a Financial Adviser:
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A defined target market and client profile
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A succinct Value Proposition & a Positioning Statement
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Consistent brand imagery and logo’s
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Your own name domain (e.g. billsmith.com) – even if you aren’t sure where you will use it yet
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Professional Business Card
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Professional letterhead stationery
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A professional headshot photo (or series of photo’s)
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Your Professional Bio with particular focus on expertise & credibility areas
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A complete LinkedIn profile (with particular focus on Headline; contact details, & summary sections)
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Branded company profile brochure or collateral
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Branded email template, with content links
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A content rich, customer focussed, website
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Branded newsletter/ezine
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Branded Powerpoint templates
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A Centre-Of-Influence plan and approach
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Referral Marketing plan
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Welcome/Introductory Video
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An “about you” video (some will refer to it as a “why” video)
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Key social media accounts set up for your brand (even if you are not using them yet)
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A blog – YOUR voice should have its own platform
This is potentially quite a daunting list for many professionals today, yet it is just the essentials for a practice or adviser wanting to establish a credible presence with their target market customers.
Whether you intend to use digital marketing methods or not the reality is most customers will expect you to have an online presence, so it is critical to establishing credibility as a modern professional. Equally, it is critical that your physical marketing material is polished, well branded, and consistently positioned.
Of course, way back at the top of the list are those fundamentals which are so often missed in professional services marketing…being clear about who you are trying to attract, positioning for them, and being totally clear about what value you provide to them.