We often hear comments from advisors saying, “My clients aren’t on (insert social network).” Sometimes it’s LinkedIn, sometimes it’s Facebook, sometimes it’s Instagram. Sometimes they’re right, but oftentimes these advisors aren’t on the networks themselves, thus having limited information about who uses them and who doesn’t.
We thought it might be helpful, as part of our 2019 research on investors with $500,000 or more investable, to determine the sites most frequented by the affluent. For us, it doesn’t matter the network, as preferences shift over time. We just know that if your ideal client is there, you want to be too. Here’s some of the data we uncovered:
Facebook is the clear favorite overall, with more than half of the overall respondents reporting it to be their network of choice. LinkedIn is the runner-up with those 45 and older, while Instagram takes second position in the under 45 group.
This tells us clearly, even if LinkedIn is a natural first step for many financial advisors with social media, that Facebook deserves the bulk of your energies. So let’s take stock in how you’re using Facebook in your business.
Facebook Marketing Checkup
Do you have a personal Facebook account? No Yes
Do you have a Facebook business page? No Yes
Are you personally connected with clients? No Yes
Do you engage with your clients’ and prospects’ posts? No Yes
Do you publish regular content to a business page? No Yes
Do you actively work to build business page followers? No Yes
Are you running advertising campaigns to ideal prospects? No Yes
Are you running advertising campaigns to your existing contacts? No Yes
If you answered “Yes” to the first two, you’ve got the infrastructure needed for a solid Facebook presence. If you failed to notch many “Yes” responses after that, this checklist serves as a road map for improving your Facebook outreach. Why is this so important? Look at how much time affluent consumers are spending online every day:
The under 45 crowd is deeply wired into social media. Eighty-one percent are spending more than 15 minutes per day on social networks, while those 65 and older aren’t all that far behind at 43%. Go where the money is. And for now, that’s Facebook.
Stephen Boswell and Kevin Nichols are partners with The Oechsli Institute, a firm that specializes in research and training for the financial services industry. @StephenBoswell @KevinANichols www.oechsli.com