Stand Out From Your Competition Online

April 4, 2022 Jackson Bolstad

Long gone are the days of finding local businesses and services through Yellow Pages or the local newspaper. Today, your prospective clients, new and old, are using a much easier method to search out and find your practice and receive expert financial advice – Google.

Whether from their smartphone, tablet, or laptop computer, 97% of consumers report using the internet to find local businesses, products, and services1. What’s more, 6 out of 10 people now start their journey online before becoming a customer/client at a brick-and-mortar store2.

As a financial professional, a solid digital presence across multiple channels gives prospective clients more chances to discover, learn from, engage with, and reach you. If done right, it can also save you money compared to costly newspaper ads and mail pieces. Here’s some advice from the team at WealthVest to help you enhance your digital presence and attract more clients to your practice this year.

Build a Modern, Attractive Website

Your website is the first interaction many prospective clients will have with your practice. In fact, 56% of consumers won’t consider a business without a website3.

Think of your website as your digital storefront. Excellent visual design, a cohesive color scheme, intuitive navigation, high-quality content, and mobile optimization are the essential building blocks of every modern, attractive website. As such, it’s vital to think carefully about the photos and copy you include on your website, especially on the homepage. Strive to add a bit of personality and character to your website to help it stand out from your competition.

If you’re unsure of where to start, we recommend hiring a local website developer to help. Or try using an intuitive web design service like Squarespace or Wix to give your digital storefront a much-needed refresh. Be sure to revisit your website design regularly to keep the content, images, and overall design updated and looking fresh for new and existing clients.

Boost Search Engine Optimization

Take a moment to search “financial advisor [Insert your city]”. If your website/practice doesn’t appear on the first or second page of Google, you might need to consider taking some steps to boost your Search Engine Optimization or SEO.

Some easy things you can do right now to start improving your SEO are:

Make sure your website is mobile-friendly. Use Google’s Mobile-Friendly Test to see how your website stacks up.
Includes keywords and phrases that prospective clients use to find your business in your website’s URLs, page titles, page headers, and page/meta descriptions. Google Ads Keyword Planner can show you which keywords attract the most traffic.
Develop unique content for each page of your website that varies in length and topic. Dwell time and scroll depth are two factors that can contribute to your SEO.
Update and share content on your website more frequently, especially your home page. This content could include blogs you write, featured content from an outside party, or even information about upcoming events or charitable fundraisers in your local community you’re your practice is sponsoring. Make sure to share the content on your social media platforms as well.
Don’t forget about your website’s ALT tags, which are the alternative text snippets that get displayed instead of images when the website can’t show the image. ALT tags are also essential for people with visual impairments and can be another great place to add those keywords to increase your search relevance.

If you want to ensure your website appears at the top of the search pile, consider leveraging Search Engine Marketing. This paid strategy puts your website at the top of keyword searches. We recommend reaching out to a digital agency in your community to discuss your options.

Google Yourself

When current and prospective clients Google your practice, what do they see? Does Google provide easy directions to your office? Does your phone number appear alongside your hours of operation?

We highly recommend getting your business listed on Google. You can do this for free by creating a Google Business Profile. With a business profile, Google will prominently display your contact information, details, services, and more at the top of their website when people search for your practice.

When completing your profile, make sure to fill in all of the fields, including description, offerings, bookings, and more. We highly recommend adding photos of you, your team, and the exterior of your office to your business profile.

Additionally, be sure to direct reviews to an inbox you regularly check so that you can respond to comments, both positive and negative, graciously and kindly. Be sure to encourage current clients to leave reviews on your Google Profile and rate your service.

Lastly, don’t forget to create or update your business listings on other search engines like Bing, Yelp, and Facebook.

Establish Yourself on Social Media

With more than 3.6 billion users on social media, your practice needs to be active on at least one social media channel. Posting regularly (3-4 times/week) on social media can help you build credibility, engage with clients, and market your practice to prospects. You can share content you produce or post fun, educational, or professional content from industry partners or local businesses you support.

It’s important to note that some social media platforms may be better suited to your practice and your target audience than others. Choose the medium your target audience is most active on and limit the number you choose based on your capacity. Having just one or two social media accounts with solid activity and engagement is better than having several with weak activity.

Social media can be a powerful tool when utilized correctly. Check out our blog on Developing a Strategy for Social Media for tips and ideas to help you develop and build your social media presence.

Consider Online Advertising

Whether it’s on Facebook, Google, or your local newspaper’s website, online advertising is another way to get your brand in front of more prospective clients and those searching for your services. Online ads can be a cost-efficient way to drive traffic to your website and, in turn, help you book more meetings. Leverage search ads, social ads, display ads, retargeting ads, and more.

Building an effective online advertising campaign can be complex and time-consuming. If you’re considering this option to help grow your practice, we recommend working with a local advertising partner in your community.

Start Using that Email List

Your online presence shouldn’t just be limited to your website, social media profiles, search engine listings, and ads. Your current and prospective clients are also highly active email users.

There is a lot of opportunity for exposure through email, as 99% of email users report checking their inbox daily, and many check it multiple times per day5. Sending emails on a regular cadence keeps your audience engaged with your practice and gives you more opportunities to direct traffic to content/landing pages on your website or right to your office.

Before you press send on that first email, make sure you’re protecting your practice and your clients’ rights to data privacy. Preview some of the main rules and regulations for commercial email usage set out by the Federal Trade Commission.

Build an Audience, Not Followers

Metrics are a great way to gauge your level of success online. While it’s easy to get hyperfocused on analytics like page views or post impressions/reach, we recommend concentrating your online efforts on building page shares, increasing website form submissions and button clicks, and growing post clicks/shares/comments.

These metrics show that you are providing value through your online efforts, which often translate into new client opportunities for your practice. You can offer value by creating and sharing relevant, timely content on your website and social media platforms.

For ideas on how to start cultivating an audience online, check out our blog detailing how to Capitalize on Seasonal Marketing Opportunities and Events.

Other Resources

Here are some free tools that you can use to help gauge your current online presence and your progress as you make changes:

LOCALiQ’s Free Online Presence Grader

Google’s PageSpeed Insights Tool

Google Mobile-Friendly Test

WordStream’s Google My Business Grader

Your online presence deserves the same level of care and attention to detail that you extend to your brick-and-mortar location. Like your office space, your online presence should be friendly, inviting, and attractive and present you, your team, and your services in a modern, professional way. Otherwise, you risk losing prospective clients to other financial professionals in your community.

For more great tips, advice, information, research, and resources to help build your practice, visit our blog and subscribe to the Monthly Report, WealthVest’s e-newsletter.