Always Learning

In the financial services industry it is mission critical to always be learning. The industry is so dynamic coupled with market moves, changing regulations and new technology it is important to read and learn. I subscribe to nine industry trade publications and read The Wall Street Journal daily. If you are an individual investor or just a consumer, I highly recommend reading the financial advisor trade publications as you will get an inside look at the industry that is rarely shown in the popular media, and its an excellent way to learn more about financial advisors.

My newest “must read” is actually an advisor community called Finlocity, and in full disclosure I have a webinar on this platform next month. I have watched two webinars of theirs so far, and yesterday I listened in on Kristen Harad’s excellent presentation “Reinvent your marketing: how to grow faster and do more of what you love”. I learned quite a bit, but the lesson that really stuck out for me is the concept that ideally financial advisors should continue to market to their existing clients with the same frequency and intensity, albeit in a different way, as they do prospects. She made the very accurate statement that many clients are not fully aware of what their advisors do, and therefore are less likely to provide referrals, more prone to leaving or being dissatisfied. Paying the same marketing attention to current clients is a wise investment in time and effort and will yield an excellent return.

The financial advisory industry is highly regulated and as such is a harder industry to market given various requirements. On top of this, so many advisors are practitioners and focus on their craft rather than on marketing, so very often marketing comes second, third or fourth in priority. Because of all this, for advisors, it is more important than ever to regularly get educated on how to market yourself. The good news is there are ample resources and technology solutions, as well as a very collaborative community of advisors and experts to learn from.