Ellis Communications, L.L.C.

Media Relations Is Essential Marketing
Tool for Financial Advisors
Working With Reporters, Editors Is A Smart
Investment That Will Boost Revenue

Financial advisors serious about growing their book and increasing revenue should try a time-tested technique that costs little money – media relations.

 “Media relations is a great way to grow your business and strengthen your credibility with prospects and existing clients,” says Martin R. Baird, president of Annapolis, Md.-based Advisor Marketing and author of The 7 Deadly Sins of Advisor Marketing.  “When people repeatedly see your name or your company’s name in newspapers and magazines, hear you on the radio and see you on television, they will realize you are a true expert in your field.  And when they need the services you offer, they will remember you.”

            Baird offers the following seven tips to help advisors get started on the road to successful media relations.

Tip Number 1.  When you introduce a new product or service, bring it to the media’s attention with a press release.

Tip Number 2.  If there’s breaking news about the industry and you have a point of view that’s newsworthy and that clients and prospects would appreciate knowing, contact the media and share it.

Tip Number 3.  Have a well-written biography and professional “head-and-shoulders” photo of yourself handy to pass along to reporters and editors.  “The biography will help the media understand who you are,” Baird says.  “Your photo will sometimes accompany a story in which you are quoted and that puts your face and your name together.”

Tip Number 4.  Become a media source on an ongoing basis.  “The media is in the business of informing people and you can help them do their job,” Baird says.  “At the same time, you generate an awareness of you and your company that money can’t buy.”

Tip Number 5.  When reporters or editors call, respect their deadline.  If you will be out of the office, make sure the person who answers your phone knows how to contact you so you can be notified of the call.  Return the call as soon as possible.  “Don’t make yourself available to the media and then fail to follow through when they need you,” Baird notes.  “If you aren’t reliable, the media will quickly forget you and rightfully so.”

Tip Number 6.  Save your newspaper and magazine clips and radio and television transcripts so you can leverage them.  “Your clips and transcripts can become powerful marketing tools,” Baird explains.  “Show a prospect some samples.  Frame some of the most significant stories and hang them on the office wall.  Include them in your brochures.”

Tip Number 7.  Take it to the next level and consider hiring a media relations professional to write press releases and arrange interviews for you.

“Media relations is an essential marketing  tool,” Baird says.  “Consider building it into your marketing plan and working it into your marketing budget.  No matter how far you take it, you will earn a handsome return on your media relations investment.”

Advisor Marketing provides a variety of services to financial advisors to help them improve their marketing methods and increase revenues, including seminars and conference speaking engagements on such topics as referrals, marketing, client communication and transitioning to fee.  The company also provides a service that tests multiple variables of a marketing campaign simultaneously so advisors will quickly know which elements of a marketing effort offer the best opportunity for success before they launch the campaign.

The company’s Web site, www.advisormarketing.com,  is the premiere Internet-based source for marketing advice, information and tools for self-driven, success-oriented financial advisors who are demanding information that helps them market their practice, meet the needs of their clients and increase sales.  It offers such services as a free weekly electronic newsletter and reports on how to conduct different kinds of marketing. 

Advisor Marketing may be reached at 480-991-6420.