More advisers focusing on ‘brand’

Speaking to ifa, financial advice marketing consultant Rachel Staggs said, “More and more financial advisers are talking about branding and looking for ways to improve their current brand.”

Ms Staggs said the increased focus on branding comes from advisers who have started to adopt different approaches and want to communicate that to clients, or who have not looked at branding but want to have a clear position in the market and stand out from competitors.

Other advisers have undergone mergers years ago and never considered how those changes have affected the business’ image.

A common trap to fall into when communicating an advice business via branding is to focus too much on looking professional, which then comes across as inauthentic or lacking in personality, Ms Staggs said.

“The first place to start is with the 'About Me' profile. Many advisers struggle with this because they are desperately trying to be who they think they should be. Type as you talk, don't over think and see what comes out,” Ms Staggs said.

Further, people won’t buy from people they don’t trust, she said.

“One of the easiest ways to show trust in a business is to be transparent – so advisers should talk about how they run the business and the choices they made [in the context of the client]. For example, tell clients that you searched the globe to find the right technology software for your business because the old one was a shocker,” Ms Staggs said.

“Ask yourself: is there any part of your business, processes or story which your clients would appreciate hearing about? Anything you can share that would help them know, like and trust you more?”