7 Steps to Online Marketing that Actually Works
Dear Advisors,
Online marketing is hard. It can be expensive, time-consuming, and we never know what’s going to resonate with people. How do we stand out from all the other advisors out there? One type of marketing cuts through all the confusion, and that is narrative marketing. If your every blog post, podcast, and video tells a story, your prospects will get hooked because they want to hear how it ends. The best story-selling casts the prospect as the hero of the story. Here are 7 steps to using narrative marketing in your practice.
A Character
The customer is the hero, not your brand. Instead of telling our story, invite customers into a story by identifying something they want. Sometimes this is an aspirational identity instead of a physical outcome.
Our example: Financial Advisory firm owners are the main character in our story.
Has a Problem
The story hooks your audience when the character encounters conflict. Problems have three levels: external (the obvious pain point), internal (how the problem makes them feel), and philosophical (why is this just plain wrong?). Prospects will only visit your website or listen to your sales pitch if we’ve identified their problem.
Our example: The external problem is lack of time. The internal problem is advisory firm owners feel like they have to do it all. The philosophical problem is that they shouldn’t have to, because if we follow our own advice and hire a financial planner or business coach, we can focus on the right things and lead a deeply satisfying life.
And Meets a Guide
Prospective clients aren’t looking for another hero. They need a guide because they can’t solve their problems on their own. The best guides express empathy for the hero’s problem and demonstrates authority in knowing how to solve the problem.
Our example: Ellevate Advisors is the guide. We’ve been where you are now, so we know from experience that hiring your own financial planner or business coach can help you secure the future of your family and business. As a CEPA® and 3rd generation CFP®, Brooklyn is ready to help you have the hard conversations.
Who Gives them a Plan
Prospects trust a guide who has a plan. Once they’ve identified you as a guide, you need to give them a plan. Say something like, “It’s easy to work with us. Just take these steps.” The magic number people can remember is 3, so keep your plan to 3 simple steps. This will increase engagement because they know how to work with you.
Our example: Discover your goals, Design your ideal life and business, Ellevate your life and business
Which Calls them to Action
Your prospects must be challenged to take action, otherwise they will not work with you. Have you defined exactly what you want them to do to start working with you? When you open your website, you should see 2 Call-To-Action buttons. As you scroll down, you should see these buttons again and again. This makes it easier to work with you.
Our example: All of the Call-To-Action buttons on our sight direct prospects to schedule an initial phone call with our team.
That Helps them Avoid Failure
People are motivated to avoid failure. You must define what your prospective clients could lose if they do not work with you. Talking about this may feel awkward at first, but unless something can be won or lost by hiring you, they will not be motivated to take action.
Our example: If something were to happen, the clients might lose their Financial Advisor, the business is likely to collapse, and the Advisor’s family is at risk of losing everything.
And Ends in Success
Never assume that people understand how your brand can change their lives. We can help our clients by casting a vision of what success could look like if they hire you.
Our example: Ellevate Advisors provides financial planning and exit coaching for advisors so that when they sit down to dinner with their family, they can relax, because they know they’ve secured their family’s future and crated a business that lasts.
Pro tip - Narrative marketing for financial advisors is so much easier when you have a defined niche! If you haven’t identified your ideal client, it’s easy to confuse yourself and your message about what prospective clients want.
The two things our brain is always trying to do are to (1) survive and thrive and (2) conserve calories. If you can transform your marketing into a story that helps prospective clients achieve those two things, then you should start seeing results from your marketing go up. If you’re interested in learning more on this topic, I highly recommend reading Building a Story Brand by Donald Miller, or subscribing to his online courses at Business Made Simple University.
As an example of narrative marketing in action, take a look at our newly designed website. We followed Donald Miller’s steps as outlined in his book and classes, and have gotten great feedback! We did not get any form of compensation for promoting them; it’s truly a valuable business tool that we believe will help you transform your business!
Warm regards,
Brooklyn
P.S.
At Ellevate Advisors, we believe that advisors deserve to retire too. What does that look like for you, your family, and your business? Let’s figure it out together! Click here to schedule an initial phone call with our team today.