Expert industry marketing consultant, Jenny Pearse, sends a great message to advisers around how they can best serve their clients and their advice business from a marketing perspective during this global crisis of unprecedented scale…
The media is in a frenzy at the moment. You and your clients are feeling a range of emotions. We are witnessing great moments from selflessness and empowerment to the absolute ridiculous and shame on how humans can behave.
The challenge in these moments is whether you turn away from the white noise and put your head in the sand and do nothing OR lead from the back seat and adapt to the situation. As financial advisers, there are many of you fielding calls from clients and you probably have been for some time. Environmental impact has a massive influence on your clients and how they feel, from droughts, bushfires and floods to property slump and stock market roller coasters and now a pandemic. Your clients are experiencing the buffeting of a world that is more than just a little crazy.
Your clients are experiencing the buffeting of a world that is more than just a little crazy
To some degree it should be business as usual for you and your client. Let’s face it, you’re their calming voice of reason. So, it’s important at these times that your marketing reflects the situation your clients find themselves in. Your marketing strategy should be taking into account how your clients and potential clients are being impacted.
Marketing is about communication and providing an experience to allow your audience to engage and connect with you. This applies for a traditional marketing approach and also if you’ve invested in a digital strategy. So, what should you be doing with your marketing?
Ten key steps you should be investing in right now:
1. Consider who you are talking to
Financial advisers often use a broadcast approach in their digital marketing to speak to the masses. Remember, when you broadcast you aren’t always speaking with the people who you actually do business with. Be targeted in your approach and speak with the people that are part of your community.
2. Apply active listening
Apply active listening and be engaging, whether it is through your social media activity, via email or over the phone. Listen to the pain points of the people you are engaging. These are indicators for what your content should be addressing.
3. Content is still king!
Don’t sensationalise but inform and educate. You are part of your client’s circle of trust. Be the calm voice that they may not be hearing from anywhere else.
4. Curate content
Don’t have time to whip together an article or video? Share content from a valued and trusted source and add your commentary to it.
5. Use pictures
Images tell a story and we use them as a key element in all forms of marketing. The key to this is to use the power of your images to set the tone for the message you want to convey.
6. Use email
Get your message across in more than one way. Email allows you to provide a personal message and get to the heart of things.
7. Don’t be generic
People like to receive communications that address them and their situation. It elevates you and your client and provides a sense of intimacy.
8. Know the role you play
When it comes to predications, just don’t! You are not a medical or environmental expert so whilst it is important to be a conduit for information, you are not the expert on what’s next in this crisis.
9. Be honest
Be honest, be transparent and be consistent. If you don’t know something, that’s okay. Your clients will respect you more if you communicate it. Communicate often!
10. Take action
If you are taking action on behalf of your client, use the above to steps to take them through what that action looks like. When you set out your intentions, your clients know what to expect. Use your communication channels to keep them informed.
No one can predict the future, but we can prepare for it.
Have a plan – not only for your financial advice – but for your marketing. Invest the time to prepare a communication strategy that allows you to move swiftly when dealing with a crisis. Make sure you are aware of the technology you have at your fingertips that can help get your message out and make changes quickly. Finally, be prepared to think outside the box if you need to. It is in times of crisis that we must innovate in the way we communicate.
Stay well and keep calm.
Jenny Pearse Managing Director of Jenesis, a business and marketing consultancy business.
Jenny has been helping financial services organisations, financial advisers, business owners and their teams to succeed and flourish in a rapidly changing landscape. With a keen focus on digital media and using technology as a platform to engage, Jenny has helped transform businesses all over Australia as they adapt and thrive in today’s world…
