No matter your size, specialty, or location, one of your firm’s most valuable assets is its brand. Competition in the financial services industry can be fierce, and your brand helps you differentiate yourself from other services and stand out.
Too many firms think of their brand as just their name and logo. But a brand goes beyond that to be what your brand stands for, what you offer, and where you shine. Your brand comes through in every interaction people have with your brand. By establishing your firm’s brand, you become easily identifiable, which can help bring in new clients, increase referrals, and boost your brand’s reputation and opportunities.
Not sure where to start? Here are four tips to establish your firm’s brand.
Find Your Niche
Start by considering what makes your firm unique. Find a niche that matches your skills and interests or where there is demand in the market. Do you offer a certain type of product, specialize in a particular niche, or work with a specific demographic of clients?
If you’ve established yourself as part of a particular specialty or niche, it’s easier to grow in that area. Use that to your advantage as you build a brand that showcases your unique niche and appeals to potential clients. Establishing your niche helps you hone in on a target area and become known for that specialty. People will soon begin to recognize you as the firm that excels in that field, and you can target your outreach and marketing toward potential clients in that niche.
Know Your Clients
The goal of a brand is to resonate with potential clients. That requires understanding your clients’ preferences and what matters to them. What appeals to one group of investors might not appeal to others.
Are your clients new to the workforce or preparing for retirement? Do they care about the environment, global issues, sustainability, or other issues? How do they prefer to communicate with your firm? What is their relationship with technology? These questions all impact how clients view your firm and the brand you’ll create. A firm that appeals to baby boomers preparing for retirement will have a very different brand than one that appeals to technology-driven young professionals.
Keep It Cohesive
Once you’ve narrowed your niche and client motivations, you can hone in on a brand. Think about a slogan or elevator pitch that quickly represents your firm. How would you describe your brand or how you want clients to feel in three words? This could include things about your mission, what makes you unique, or the impact you hope to achieve.
Tie those words into your brand to create a cohesive visual and text branding package. With online tools available today and a robust gig economy, it’s easy to create professional branding yourself or hire a freelancer. As you build your brand, make sure all aspects are cohesive and support each other. You don’t want to create a brand highlighting your environmental work but use colors that aren’t found in nature, just like you wouldn’t include images of elderly clients if your brand targets young families.
Creating a cohesive brand can require some trial and error. Don’t be afraid to take your time and test different ideas to find what feels right for your firm and connects with your clients.
Share Your Brand
A brand is only effective if you share it everywhere. Put your logo, brand colors, and slogan on your website, social media, and around your office. Share your niche expertise in articles, conferences, and webinars with potential clients. You can provide tips on making the most of your money and offer opinions on industry news and trends. The more you share your expertise, the more your credibility and visibility will grow.
Keep the brand central to your marketing and client interactions to ensure it comes through in every interaction. With enough repetition and making your brand central to your firm’s culture, you can grow your reputation in your target areas.
Building your brand as a financial advisor isn’t something that happens overnight. It requires continual effort and diligence to make your voice heard. But putting in the work and setting yourself apart with top tools like cloud-based document management from Docupace can help you stand out in a crowded market.
