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Survey Finds More Advisors Connecting With Business Via Social Media

A new survey suggests that advisors are getting more “social” in their business development efforts.

That survey of more than 800 financial advisors by Putnam Investments conducted in partnership with Brightwork Partners LLC, found that more than 8 in 10 are now using social media, up from 75% a year ago, and nearly as many (79%) say they have gained new clients via social media, compared with 66% in 2014.

Networking hub LinkedIn still dominates this category: 70% of survey respondents are using it, and 56% say it is their primary network. However, respondents used it 17 times a month, on average, compared with 24 times for Facebook and 22 times for Twitter. Just 47% of advisor respondents say they use Facebook (30% say it is their primary network) and 42% use Twitter (with just 11% relying on it as a primary network).

Different networks are better at some things than others, so it was not surprising that asked how they were leveraging their primary social networks for business, “improving my referral network” was dominant (65% cited) on LinkedIn, while the top Facebook use was “enhancing client relationships” (also cited by 65%). Twitter’s dominant usage was twofold: both external (“promoting myself as a thought leader,” cited by 51%), and internal (“expanding my professional knowledge”).

LinkedIn appeared to be the best at connecting with new business, with 88% of respondents indicating they had gained new business as a result, but both Facebook (68%) and Twitter (64%) proved their merit here as well.

According to the survey, the typical financial advisor who has gained assets using social media is:


  • 44 years old, with 10 years of experience;

  • male;

  • active on five social networks; and

  • a wirehouse advisor or financial planner.

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