I have a big opinion that’s not always a popular one:
I firmly believe that new advisors and business owners should try to DIY their marketing – at least through their first year.
Already, I hear audience members scoffing. I told you – it’s not a popular opinion! There seems to be an overwhelming amount of media available that insists that new business owners should start outsourcing things that aren’t client-facing, or sales, ASAP. And, as an outsourced marketing provider, I totally get it. I see the benefit in outsourcing your marketing, and any number of other tasks in your business. I’m the first person to grab the megaphone to tell overwhelmed and burnt-out business owners to start figuring out what tasks can be outsourced – and to start hiring professionals to handle those services right away.
That being said, I think there are huge benefits to new advisors DIY-ing their marketing. Let’s talk about the top three reasons I think that new advisors should DIY their marketing, and how it could positively impact your business.
#1: You’ll Get Clear on Your Ideal Client
This is my favorite reason for advisors to DIY their marketing in year one of launching their RIA. Although most business owners (myself included!) feel like they have a good idea of who their ideal client is when they first get started, the truth is that we can all stand to be more specific when developing a client avatar. When you DIY your marketing, you’re pushed to think about who your audience is.
New advisors can benefit from taking the time to create a client avatar, and tailor it as you continue to scale in your first year of business. A client avatar can be built in the form of a case study, or by going through a client or customer avatar exercise that outlines a person. These exercises often include determining your ideal client’s age, gender, relationship status, geographic location, career field, job title or description, hobbies, pain points, values, and lifestyle choices.
Wondering how your client avatar, and honing in on who your ideal client is, can positively impact your marketing?
In your content, you’ll think about what type of tone will resonate with your ideal client, what pain points they’re experiencing, and how you can frame your service offering in a way that gives them a solution that they need. When setting up a social media strategy, you’ll think about where your ideal client is hanging out online, how you can reach them, and what types of posts will resonate with them. When building an email marketing strategy, or putting together a lead magnet funnel, you’ll think about what type of communication your ideal client wants to receive, and what sort of “free giveaway” is going to add value to their lives.
Marketing to your ideal client is beneficial for business growth, but it’s also beneficial for your own personal growth as a business owner. If you start to outsource your marketing at the onset of your business, you might pass off the client avatar creation process to your marketing partner. They might do an outstanding job, but by going through this process yourself, you’re improving in other areas of your business beyond marketing. You’re honing your sales skills, your ability to identify and communicate with your ideal client – and, ultimately, to grow your business as a result.
#2: You’ll Figure Out What Marketing Strategies You Feel Comfortable With (Or Uncomfortable With)
There are so many different marketing strategies available to you. As a new advisor, you have free license to try any and all of them. How cool is that?
As you start to market your business, you have the flexibility to test out different strategies to see what fits both your ideal client audience and your unique marketing comfort-zone. For example, you may love blog writing and content creation, but feel like posting to Twitter 3x/day doesn’t match your authentic self – or your target audience. Maybe you live for putting together quick, informal videos about financial topics for your audience, but writing a blog or ebook makes you want to run for the hills.
To me, marketing is a world of “could’s” not “should’s”. There’s not one right way to tackle your marketing. You can create content, share it, and connect with your target audience in a billion different ways – and you have to find what strategy feels right for you. When you DIY your marketing at the beginning of your business, you’re able to develop a unique strategy that represents your brand and captures your unique voice. You come across as being more authentic because you’re marketing your business in ways that you love. This type of authenticity connects and converts clients! Speaking of authenticity…
#3: You Learn How to Market Your Business Authentically
Finding your voice, and embracing your value, as a new business owner is really challenging. Do you know what makes it even harder? Outsourcing your marketing before trying to pursue a DIY option. If you’re pushed to find your authentic voice and to communicate with your audience in an authentic way through your marketing, you’re better able to own your value. You’re able to talk about the value you provide more easily. Prospect calls suddenly become a breeze, and your close rate will increase, because you know who you are, and the value of what you provide.
DIY-ing your marketing helps you to step into your brand, and learn to market yourself and your services in a way that feels right to you. You might even find that you’re more passionate when you talk about what you do. Heck – you might even find more enjoyment in your day-to-day! Why? Because you’re so focused on building an authentic business from the ground up that everything you do – marketing and otherwise – ties back into who you are, and what you’re all about as a business owner.
#4 (Bonus!): You’ll Be Better Able to Organize Your Future Marketing Budget
We’ve talked about how there are many different ways to market your business. If you try to outsource all of your marketing simultaneously, especially in year one of your business, you might get a bit of sticker shock. And the worst part? If you haven’t tried to DIY your marketing before, you might not know what marketing strategy works. This might mean you end up dumping a ton of time and money into an outsourced marketing service that doesn’t fit your authentic brand, or your ideal client audience.
When you DIY your marketing as a new business owner, you’ll be able to test a lot of the strategies that you may choose to outsource and pay for in the future. You’ll know what strategies you love, and what type of content fits your business. This helps you to hone in on finding a marketing expert who meets your exact needs. For example, maybe you love video, and know that after you DIY editing for a little while that you’ll outsource editing and transcribing because your audience loves your video content. Maybe you love blog writing and content creation, and are getting steady results. You can find an expert content creation team to help you create content in the future.
DIY-ing your marketing can help you to build a future marketing budget for yourself, and eliminate any wasteful spending on marketing strategies or outsourced solutions that won’t work, or won’t fit your brand’s needs.
Need a Little Bit of Help?
Just because you’re a new advisor who’s hustling and DIY-ing your marketing doesn’t mean that you don’t need help. No way! Even if you’re DIY-ing your marketing, you don’t have to walk this journey alone. Working with a coach or consultant can be the perfect solution. Coaches and consultants can offer insight, and push you to create a marketing strategy that you’ll actually stick with. You’ll get all the benefits of DIY-ing your marketing as a new business owner, but still have access to the expertise you may need to create a strategy that converts and helps you achieve your goals.
Want to know more about marketing coaching – or what a coaching program might look like if you want to DIY your marketing? Click on the icon above to get our coaching services guide, or click here.
Have questions? Reach out! I’d love to chat with you. Schedule a call with me here.
