Six hundred messages a day.

That’s what research from Microsoft estimates we receive from companies and brands vying for our attention every 24 hours.

To say cutting through the noise is challenging is an understatement.

And for financial advisors competing for the attention of business owner prospects, doing so becomes even more difficult, considering all the responsibilities a business owner has to juggle on a daily basis. 

But if your goal is to grow your financial advisory firm by attracting, serving and retaining more business owner clients, it’s up to you to find a way to stand out to your target audience. 

(If you haven’t defined your target audience yet, check out this whitepaper! In it, we outline the process for understanding exactly who your clients are, what they care most about, and how you should think about engaging them.)

Once you understand who your best clients are, it’s time to think about the communication strategies that will make the biggest impact on them. Obviously, the way you market yourself and your firm depends on what you offer and what your audience’s needs and challenges are, but there are a few guidelines you can put in place to ensure your message resonates with your prospects.

Lead with the “why,” not the “what.” Ultimately, you create demand for your business and your services by solving a problem for your ideal clients. Sometimes, they may not even realize they have a problem in the first place. 

Promoting your business valuation service, for example, is useless if your target audience doesn’t understand why they need a business valuation. You know and we know that regular business valuations are critical for business owners – for developing succession and exit plans, for adequately preparing for retirement, for ensuring they have the proper insurance, for a host of other reasons outlined here. 

But if your business owner audience doesn’t know that (and research indicates they don’t, since 98% of business owners don’t know what their business is worth), promoting your valuation services with no context will fall on deaf ears.

Your job is to anticipate the questions they’ll ask, and create educational content accordingly. Following our business valuation example, you might want to develop resources that answer these questions:

  • Why do I need a business valuation?
  • I had a business valuation done ten years ago. Isn’t it still valid?
  • Don’t I only need a business valuation if I’m getting ready to sell my business?
  • Can’t I just estimate what my business is worth?
  • How much does a business valuation cost? 
  • How long will a business valuation take?
  • What information do I need to get a business valuation?

Clearly communicate your unique value proposition. Everyone wants to work with business owners. Why should your prospects choose you? Being able to clearly and succinctly answer that question – defining your unique value proposition – is one of marketing’s most foundational elements. 

The more specific you can be about the distinct benefits you, your firm and your services provide – the value your clients won’t find anywhere else – the more likely your message will be to resonate with your audience. 

Use your current clients to tell your story. Your client advocates are your most powerful marketing tool. For RIAs, leveraging testimonials in your marketing can be tricky thanks to the SEC’s complex regulations, but developing a working understanding of the legislation is worth it, because customer feedback (sometimes known as “social proof”) is such a powerful driver of new business.

Outside of testimonials, you can also use your clients’ words in your own messaging (in this case, stealing is a good thing). What do your clients say about the ways you’ve helped them? If they tell you that your work has increased their confidence, given them peace of mind, helped them make better decisions, etc., use those very phrases to describe your firm and your services. When your prospects see them, they’ll better understand what they can expect from working with you.

For more information about how BizEquity’s powerful prospecting tool can help you find and connect with more business owners, click here.