The Definitive Guide For Marketing Financial Advisors On The Internet
Marketing financial advice and services isn’t for the faint of heart. You’re not just selling products; you’re selling trust, expertise, and peace of mind. And when you’re targeting high-net-worth investors—individuals and couples with larger asset amounts, they have more complex needs and possibly some baggage from a bad experience with their previous financial advisors—creating even bigger marketing challenges for you.
Perhaps you have run into these types of cautious investors in the past. You can be sure your website has.
The digital world has flipped the script. Investors are now in control when they use the Internet to research and compare advisors before they decide who to contact. This means financial advisors must be visible online and competitive enough to stand out in a sea of competitors—all while jumping through all the regulatory hoops.
This guide will show you how to make the Internet your secret weapon, helping you build online visibility, generate website traffic, build credibility and trust, and produce increased competitive advantage.
Ready to make digital marketing the key to your firm’s future growth? Let’s review ten tips that can make this happen. For more information, talk to our digital marketing agency, which works exclusively with financial advisors.
How has power shifted from financial advisors to investors?
The Internet didn’t just level the playing field; it gave investors a major tool for picking the financial advisors they want to interview. With more information than ever, today’s investors can screen and compare advisors before even considering completing a Contact Us page.
For financial advisors, this means shifting away from old-school, hard sales tactics like cold calling. This is not a big loss because Caller ID has made this intrusive sales practice pretty much obsolete.
In the digital age, it’s all about providing value on websites, educating potential clients with blogs, pillar pages, and webinars, and being transparent about the information investors want to see on websites before they are willing to initiate contact.
Spoiler alert: Investors don’t just want financial advice and services—they want someone they can trust to be responsible for their financial security. What is more important than that?
Pro Tip: Add blogs, FAQs, eBooks, on-demand webinars, and free guides to your website that tackle common investor problems. It’s your chance to be the knowledgeable financial expert who helps them achieve critical financial goals.
What is the Inbound Marketing solution?
Newsflash: Imagine you are buying a new car. Step one is to spend time on the Internet learning more about particular models before you visit dealerships to test-drive them. Your goal is to avoid wasting time visiting dealerships that don’t have the model and pricing you are seeking.
What you see online determines which dealers you visit for your test drives.
Now, let’s return to marketing financial advice and services. In the not-too-distant past, financial advisors controlled most of the information investors used to select them. Advisors used their sales skills and personalities to convince investors to buy what they were selling.
Buying a new car was the same. It was a significant financial commitment, and sales reps at dealers controlled the information. Not anymore. More importantly, cars are a simple purchase compared to selecting the right financial advisor who will impact the investors’ quality of life and financial security during retirement.
The rest of this guide explores online marketing challenges and digital solutions.
We live in a digital age that provides massive amounts of information investors use to find, screen, compare, and contact financial advisors. They can even measure personalities and communication skills when advisors provide personalized videos on their websites.
Like the modern car buyer, investors prefer reaching out after they’ve done their homework to save time and make the right decisions. So, give them reasons to initiate contact with you! Produce content that answers their burning questions about retirement, investments, managing risks, and how to pick the right financial advisor. Then, you are their go-to expert before they even fill out your Contact Us landing page.
Welcome to Inbound Marketing in the digital age, where buyers contact the sellers that make the most sense for them.
Pro Tip: Get organized with a calendar and consistently release new content that addresses key investor concerns. This builds credibility and trust while keeping your firm more visible online.
Why is online transparency increasingly important?
Transparency isn’t just a buzzword—in fact, it’s no longer optional in today’s digital world. Who do you serve? What services do you provide? What are your sources of expertise? What are your fees? Do you have any potential conflicts of interest?
Don’t assume investors aren’t knowledgeable enough to ask the right questions anymore. Those days are also over. They have access to a plethora of online content about financial advisors, and they learn a lot when comparing advisors. Consequently, they know who is practicing transparency and who is withholding information.
Investors want it all. And the more transparent you are, the more likely investors will be inclined to trust you enough to contact you.
When advisors display fees, services, and potential conflicts of interest (for example, choices are limited to proprietary products) on their website, it builds trust and helps investors make informed decisions. So don’t withhold information—put it all out there and reinforce it with investor benefits.
Why would investors trust you offline if you’re unwilling to disclose key information online?
Pro Tip: An FAQ page can help you provide the nitty-gritty details.
How do you build online credibility and trust?
Transparency gets you in the door, but credibility and trust make you more marketable. Blog articles, Guides, social media posts, third-party validations, client testimonials, case studies, and online reviews—take your online presence from “just another advisor” to the “must-interview” category.
Adding professional designations like CFP, CFA, ChFC, fiduciary, and fee-only boost your street creds, and case studies show you solve financial problems and help clients achieve important goals.
Also, many investors trust their peers’ words more than flowery, self-serving marketing statements, so let them do part of the talking for you.
Pro Tip: Refresh your website regularly with client testimonials (compliance-approved) and keep a profile on review sites like Google to show positive reinforcement.
What is your best way to increase website traffic?
You may like how your website looks, but if it’s a ghost town, you have a serious marketing problem. Effective digital marketing strategies need online visibility to drive traffic and lots of it.
SEO (Search Engine Optimization) is your best friend, helping you rank for key search terms like “fee-only financial planner,” “fiduciary financial advisor,” or “wealth manager near me.”
Don’t stop there—boost traffic through social media, content marketing, and even paid ads. Want to be seen? You’ve got to pay to play the visibility game controlled by Google.
Let’s not forget that digital marketing success includes Google because it controls 92% of search traffic, and AI will eventually conduct more online searches for investors.
Pro Tip: Mix up your strategy. Use Google and social media ads for paid search while continuing to optimize your blog for organic traffic.
How can financial advisors improve their websites’ conversion rates?
Getting eyeballs on your website is only half the battle. Once visitors arrive, you need them to take action. Think of your website like a funnel: simple navigation, compelling Calls-To-Action (CTAs), optimization for SEO, and responsive design are essential to converting casual visitors into qualified leads.
CTAs like “Schedule a Consultation” or “Download Our Free Guide” should be sprinkled throughout your site, like proverbial breadcrumbs, leading visitors to landing pages where they can submit their contact information.
Pro Tip: Run A/B tests on your CTAs to see which generates the most activity. Experiment with different placements and offers to optimize conversions.
How important is SEO for financial advisors?
We mentioned SEO (Search Engine Optimization) earlier, but it’s worth diving deeper. SEO is the bread and butter of any digital marketing strategy. Proper optimization ensures you’re not just another name in the Google search results.
For financial advisors, SEO isn’t just about stuffing your site with keywords like “retirement planning” or “financial advisor.” It’s about optimizing for local searches and ensuring your Google My Business profile is up-to-date. If someone’s searching “wealth manager Dallas,” you want to be one of the first names that pop up.
Pro Tip: Regularly update your site with fresh content and double-check that your Google My Business listing is accurate for local searches.
How can financial advisors leverage their content marketing?
Content marketing isn’t just about writing blog posts and calling it a day. Financial advisors need to be consistent, relevant, and—dare we say—engaging. This is definitely not a one-and-done marketing strategy.
Content marketing should address your clients' most pressing financial concerns: retirement planning, college savings, and investment management.
Educational blog posts, infographics, or videos break down complex topics, proving your expertise. The goal? Keep your audience coming back for more.
Pro Tip: Create cornerstone content like Guides and eBooks that tackle big issues and use these pieces in email marketing campaigns or social media posts to drive traffic.
How can financial advisors utilize social proof & client testimonials more effectively?
Everyone loves a good testimonial—especially when deciding who to trust with their financial future. Social proof, like client testimonials and online reviews, validates your expertise and makes investors feel more comfortable when they reach out for more information and to schedule interviews.
Be specific with your testimonials. Highlight real results, such as a stellar retirement plan or a global, balanced investment portfolio. Video testimonials are even better—they create personal connections.
Pro Tip: After compliance approval, ask clients to leave reviews on Google or social media, and don’t be afraid to respond to online reviews—yes, even negative ones that may be based on misinformation or misunderstandings.
How can video marketing improve online results?
Video is the darling of digital marketing, and for good reason. It’s engaging and personal while helping advisors communicate complex financial concepts. Whether a short explainer video or a webinar, video content lets you connect with clients on a more personal level.
Start by introducing your firm and services, then dive into educational content that addresses frequent client concerns. Bonus: Video content also improves your SEO.
Pro Tip: Don’t worry about Hollywood production quality. Just make sure your videos are intuitive, professional, and helpful.
Summary
Financial advisors, wealth managers, and planners can no longer ignore the Internet’s impact when they want organic growth. Digital marketing isn’t just an option—it’s necessary for firms that want to add new clients. By far, it is the most efficient way to reach investors who don’t know you or your firm.
By embracing transparency, SEO, content marketing, and video, you can build trust, boost visibility, and attract new clients.
So, stop waiting. Dive into digital marketing and position yourself as the go-to financial advisor in your area who can engage with modern investors.
They may not have found you on the Internet, but the more money they have, the more likely they are to use the Internet to screen and compare financial advisors before interviewing them.