Over the last few weeks or months, you may have stumbled across our LinkedIn Group, ‘Social Media For Professional Advisers’. Whilst new discussions are being started on the group daily, one which seemed to strike a particular chord with many Advisers towards the end of 2012 was a discussion entitled ‘What is your biggest fear of Posting on Social Forums?‘.
It made us realise that many Advisers out there are being held back from engaging with Social Media for a variety of different reasons. Today, we would like to debunk the top three myths which seem to stop Advisers and practices from adopting Social Media to its full extent.
Myth 1) “What’s the point in all of this? There’s just no ‘ROI’ to be gained from Social Media!”
For many business owners, the effect of any business decision on the bottom line is a major consideration (and rightly so). We recently surveyed our ‘early adopter’ clients and students on their experience since enrolling in our programs over the last 12 months. The Advisers we surveyed reported earning over $5,000 per month of additional revenue from Social Media on average. Bear in mind too that the majority of these Advisers had only started using Social Media properly within the last 6 months (so are still very much in the middle of their learning curve). We believe that any interaction with potential clients (including Social Media) can return a very positive ROI. You just need to make sure you are doing it the right way.
Myth 2) “I just don’t have the time for Social Media.”
What many people don’t realise is that one of the primary benefits of using Social Media properly in your business is the efficiency gains that it can generate. Being able to communicate and build relationships at mass not only shortens the amount of time required to engage(and sign-up) a client, but also allows you to service your existing clients more efficiently. In fact, in the survey mentioned in ‘Myth 1’ above, over 90% of all firms reported that adopting Social Media in their business had saved them considerable amounts of time in their business operations.
Myth 3) “What would I do on Social Media? I don’t have anything interesting to say.”
People who let this one hold them back most likely haven’t connected with their core message. As we mentioned in Tip 2, the first place that every online strategy needs to start for an Adviser is with an understanding (and articulation) of ‘why you do what you do’. This establishes who you are and your reason for being an Adviser. Once this is communicated to others, you will be surprised how easily the rest of your Social Media activity flows. This really is a step that can’t be glossed over as it is the basis upon which you will form and deepen relationships online (and will become the foundation of every message you communicate through Social Media).
So what do we believe is the common thread in all of these myths?
They arise from viewing certain elements of Social Media in isolation, and not as part of a coordinated strategy. Just because some people don’t generate additional revenue from Social Media, for example, doesn’t mean that no one can. Like anything in life, there is a right way and a wrong way to do everything. When it comes to the online strategy of professional Advice firms, unfortunately, we see the latter far more often than we do the former.