Social Media Marketing for Financial Advisors

David Cesarini, BA, FMA

April 2009

Getting With the Times

• “[Barack Obama’s] proclivity to online advocacy is a major reason for his victory.”

• “Smart businesses will embrace this public engagement model as well, particularly in how they ladder engagement among natural allies such as customers, employees, retirees and suppliers.”

The Social Pulpit: Barack Obama’s Social Media Toolkit (2009). Available at: www.edelmen.com

Session Objectives

1. See social media as a means to build and retain your clientele.

2. Identify the costs and benefits of implementing social media in your communications strategy.

3. Outline popular social media sites and understand how they fit together.

Session Objectives cont...

4. Discuss how top financial advisors are using social media sites.

5. Recognize how social media fits within your organization’s guidelines for conduct.

What do you think Social Media Marketing is all about? (5 min.)

• A discussion using questions only.

• After asking a question, wait two turns before asking another.

What's the use?

Why Social Media?

• Transparent

• Timely

• Proactive

• Personal

• Affordable

• Permission

•What isn’t it?

Social Media & Authenticity

• What 3 characteristics define your online persona?

•Is that the real you?

Popular Social Media Sites

Face It

• Who’s on Facebook?

• Organize social events

• Professional networking (e.g. groups, fan pages)

• Professional or Corporate page

Being a Twit

• What is it? Who’s on Twitter? 32M Uniques• Following & Followed

• Organize social events (Tweetups)

• Search Engines

• @Replies and Direct messages

• Links, Re-tweeting, Photos, Audio

• Who you want to know, not just who you know

Blogging it Out

• Share information, update your clients & get your ideas out there

• Why read blogs?

• Why write a blog? • Newsletters vs. blogs

• Anonymous vs. Identifiable Blogs

Do you read any interesting blogs on a daily

basis?

LinkedIn

• Connects professionals• Share your experience and

qualifications • Network with people you want to

know better

Meetups: Where Everybody Knows Your Name (You Hope)

• Connects professionals• Common Interests• Network with people you want to

know better• Person to person

Smart Phone Savvy

• Mobile social media• All of the above on your cell phone• Relevance based on location• Convenience

Wrapping it All Up

Connect the Networks

SmartphoneSmartphone

BlogBlog

Think-Pair-Share (10 min.)

• How can you use social media to build and retain your clientele?– Think about and write your response

on a card (3 min)

– Pair up with someone and discuss what you’ve written (3 min)

– Share what you’ve discussed (4 min)

Conclusion

• Social media can build and retain clientele

• Costs & Benefits

• Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, Meetup, Smart Phones

– Examples of people who are doing this

• Your organization has its own code of conduct

Thank you