He told a success story of an advisor that uses GoToMeeting to meet with clients for 30 minutes to go through their LinkedIn connections and get leads. He also spoke about personal branding. “Because of the access of information, people don’t want to be sold. They want to trust you,” he said.
Swift stated there are over 313 million LinkedIn members and that the network is growing at a rate of two new members each second. He also said that from their study of over 1,000 high-net-worth individuals (from multiple countries) with over $1 million in investable assets, they found that more than 70 percent are using social media (76 percent in the U.S.).
Swift recommended the following steps: Create a professional brand, find the right people, engage with insights and build strong relationships.
Learning From The Best
When it comes to social media, the financial services industry is still learning. Check out the 2014 Limra LOMA Social Media Silver Bowl winners for examples of best practices:
• Best Use of Twitter and “Best of the Best” – John Hancock Financial Services: “We Run Together” sponsorship of the Boston Marathon.
• Best Use of Facebook – Sun Life Financial Asia: Rugby Canada sponsorship in the Hong Kong Sevens Tournament.
• Best Use of LinkedIn – Guardian Life Insurance Company: “LinkedIn Sales Navigator.”
• Best Use of YouTube – Prudential: “Bring Your Challenge” YouTube channel.
• Best Use of Other Social Network – Transamerica: TransformTomorrow on Tumblr.
Mike Byrnes is a national speaker and owner of Byrnes Consulting, LLC. His firm provides consulting services to help advisors become even more successful. Need help with business planning, marketing strategy, business development, client service and management effectiveness? Read more at ByrnesConsulting.com and follow @ByrnesConsultin.