Social media represents a powerful way for financial advisors to market themselves. By leveraging the various social-media platforms to one another, you can achieve the maximum mileage from your efforts.
“Your website, newsletters and social media should all work together to bring visibility to your business,” says Richard Heft, executive director of Toronto-based Ext. Marketing Inc. “If someone on your Twitter network shares a helpful article,” Heft says, “it can generate a blog idea, which can then be shared in your newsletter and on Twitter and LinkedIn.”
You should be present on the various social-media platforms available to you, especially those that your clients and prospects tend to frequent, Heft adds: “It’s hard to create any heat around a blog post or a Tweet unless you go where your clients are.”
Here are some tips to help you extend your social-media reach:
> Break down barriers
“Use your newsletter to create multiple social-media posts,” says Sara Gilbert, founder of Strategist Business Development in Montreal. “If you share three articles of interest in a newsletter, leverage that content to post three different LinkedIn posts. This will give you greater visibility and nourish your social-media strategy.”
> Slice it up
Chop your information into the smallest bites possible, Heft says.
“Each slide in a PowerPoint presentation should present an overarching idea, which can become a blog article,” he says. “With a white paper, e-book or webinar, pull out several interesting facts or statistics and build out your story over five to 10 short articles. You can share them throughout the year, which brings continued visibility to your business over that time.”
This strategy also makes your content easy for readers to digest, he says. “People want to know what’s in it for them. Does your information answer their questions or help them to manage their money better? By keeping it simple, you will hold their interest.”
> Borrow freely
It’s fine to share quality online articles and videos that are relevant to your audience. Sources can include blog posts and newsletters from others in the financial services industry. Statistics Canada produces economic reports about the growth of different market segments that can generate ideas, Gilbert says.
“Newspaper articles and industry publications are great sources,” she adds. “In your newsletter, you can say: ‘I’m often asked about this issue. Here’s a link to a great article that helps you to understand it.’ Then, promote it on Twitter and LinkedIn and via email.”
> Provide added value
When sharing someone else’s content, always add value to it by posing a question, making a comment or asking your connections for their opinion on the post.
> Leverage, leverage, leverage
Whenever you post on your blog, share that post on as many social-media platforms as possible. “Twitter allows 144 characters, so you can post more than the lead,” Heft says. “Try saying, ‘Are you worried about maxing out your annual RRSP contribution? Try this strategy.’ Or, “To make the most of dividend yield, follow me here.'”
On LinkedIn, you can share your blog post’s first sentence, provide its title and make a comment about it to whet people’s appetites.
“Your goal is to give readers a little bit of information and a massive hook,” Heft says. “This will help to keep your followers engaged and encourage them to share your posts with their connections.”
This is the second part in a two-part series on getting the most from your social-media strategy.