Building Your Referral Engine As An Advisor

You may tout yourself as a referral-only advisor, or even a referral-based firm, but are you really growing that way? This is often the path of least resistance when you expect your clients to drive growth for you. Most firms lack a systematic process for generating referrals and have no tracking system in place – and most notably, lack proactive outreach. They rely solely on referrals and other marketing strategies (and a comprehensive plan) lay by the wayside. Unfortunately in this business, you’re either growing or you’re dying – and if you’re not actively growing, you’re slowly succumbing to complacency.

Where To Start

So, where can you start? Analyze your brand, and what you’re presenting to the world. Do you have a cookie-cutter website, with the same content and format as every other firm? Are you putting out the same emails, social media, and articles as your competitors? When you’re auditing your website and content, ask yourself these questions:

If you were a prospective client, would this content or website prompt you to make a call?
Does this website truly reflect who you are, or is it just regurgitating someone else’s lip service?
Is this a reflection of growth, or just the status quo?

If you don’t love the answers to these questions, your brand may not be as defined as it should be. Many advisors let the market brand them, and they also don’t have the expertise in branding. We tell our clients to let the person with experience in finance handle their finances, yet we don’t allow the professionals with marketing and branding experience to handle our marketing and branding. While it’s an additional cost, it’s worth investing in your business.

Building Your Engine

While it’s great to get referrals, you can’t count on them as your only source of growth. You need to plan and budget for growth – and many advisors spend less than 2% of their gross revenue on marketing and business development. You need a strategic and targeted plan with goals and a budget.

Not only that, but you need to track and measure to ensure that you’re getting the most out of your plan. Track your cost per client, the number of attendees at events, and the ROI for each campaign or event that you host. Don’t forget to account for the fact in your ROI that the longer you keep that client, the better your return over time since revenue continues to come in.

Bottom line – you need a framework for referrals that is measurable and trackable so you can continue to grow. It’s a great idea to start today!

How to Handle Clients’ Election Anxiety: A Guide for Financial Advisors

Election seasons are often a time of heightened uncertainty for many investors, and financial advisors frequently find themselves on the front lines, addressing client concerns. Whether it’s a presidential election or midterm races, clients are often worried about how the outcomes might affect their portfolios and the economy at large. While these concerns are valid, it’s important for advisors to guide clients through these periods of anxiety with a steady, informed approach.
Here are five strategies to help calm your clients’ election-related fears and keep them focused on their long-term goals.
1. Emphasize Long-Term Investing
Clients often fixate on short-term market volatility during election years, fearing that political outcomes will drastically affect their investments. However, research shows that market performance is rarely tied to the results of an election. As an advisor, your role is to remind clients that their portfolios are designed for the long term, and any temporary swings in the market are unlikely to derail their overall financial goals(FA Mag).
Encouraging clients to focus on their financial plan and reminding them that markets have historically weathered political changes can help ease their anxiety. Provide examples of past market performance during election years, emphasizing that markets tend to stabilize over time, regardless of political shifts.
2. Prepare for the Worst, but Plan for the Best
While it’s true that elections can introduce uncertainty, it’s essential to avoid a reactionary approach. Instead, help clients plan for a range of possible scenarios without making drastic changes to their investment strategy. For instance, rather than selling off stocks in anticipation of a market downturn, encourage them to stick to their long-term asset allocation(FA Mag).
Building a plan that includes both potential risks and opportunities can give clients confidence. Offer them stress-testing scenarios, showing how their portfolios might perform under various market conditions. This approach can demonstrate that their investment plan is resilient enough to withstand potential volatility.
3. Maintain Frequent Communication
Clear, consistent communication is crucial during periods of heightened anxiety. Proactively reach out to clients with updates on how the election might impact the economy and markets. Provide them with balanced, data-driven insights rather than feeding into media-driven fears(Wealth Management).
Regularly scheduled check-ins—via email, phone calls, or virtual meetings—can reassure clients that you’re keeping a close eye on the situation and that there’s no need for rash decisions. Even a quick update on the markets or sharing an article about historical market performance during elections can help clients feel more in control.
4. Focus on What You Can Control
As much as elections bring uncertainty, there are many factors that both you and your clients can control. Encourage clients to focus on elements within their control, such as their savings rate, spending habits, and asset allocation. Remind them that while political outcomes are unpredictable, their ability to stay disciplined and follow their financial plan remains within their hands(Wealth Management).
By shifting the conversation from uncontrollable external events to personal financial habits, clients can regain a sense of empowerment. This also prevents them from making impulsive decisions based on election results or market reactions.
5. Highlight Historical Resilience
History provides ample evidence that financial markets are resilient in the face of political changes. Over the past century, markets have survived wars, recessions, and numerous elections with vastly different political outcomes. In most cases, the economy and markets recover, and those who remain invested tend to benefit from long-term growth(ThinkAdvisor).
Share historical data with clients to illustrate how markets have performed during previous election cycles. This can offer a helpful perspective, calming nerves and reinforcing the idea that short-term volatility is part of the investing journey.
Conclusion: Stay the Course
For financial advisors, election seasons can be an opportunity to demonstrate the value of a sound financial plan and steady guidance. While it’s natural for clients to feel nervous about the potential impacts of political outcomes, your role is to keep them focused on their long-term goals, grounded in facts, and committed to their investment strategy.
By emphasizing long-term thinking, maintaining regular communication, and highlighting market resilience, you can help clients navigate the election cycle with confidence. In times of uncertainty, staying the course is often the best strategy.
In the end, elections come and go, but a well-thought-out financial plan is built to last.