How to Grow a Financial Planning Practice

As the sister of a CFP®, I’ve watched my sister grow a financial planning practice to beyond successful. I watched her from the beginning, attending every networking event she could to make connections, to the present day, where she’s able to raise her rates and pick and choose who she works with.

That’s the dream, right?

This has taken a lot of effort on her part – especially when it comes to marketing. Years ago, she attended a Michael Kitces event where he encouraged consistent content creation (blogs, videos) to grow your practice. She took that advice to heart (and often credits Michael for my marketing business that works with financial advisors) and got to work, writing short but impactful blogs every week, creating videos, and releasing a weekly newsletter.

This has all paid off in ways she might not have imagined as a young financial advisor starting her own business.

As a marketing professional, I see a direct correlation between how you market and the business you have.

• Marketing brings in your ideal client, creating the business you love.

• Clear messaging weeds out people you don’t want to work with and saves you time. Fewer prospect calls that lead nowhere!

• Ongoing outreach allows current clients to share your thoughts and contact information with the people they know – organically growing your business.

• Good content moves you up the ranks in a Google search.

After years of working with financial advisors, I’ve seen where we should focus our efforts and lean in, and I can sum it up in two words: email marketing.

I tell people all the time that you will always have a higher client conversion rate over email than you will over social media. Yes, social media has its place, but email marketing is often where the magic happens. And the good news is that some of this outreach can be automated, so it really is a one and done marketing tool.

How to Grow Your Financial Planning Practice

You probably have something on your website that allows people to either contact you with questions or sign up for a newsletter. But that’s not enough.

• Think about the last time you signed up for a newsletter.

• Now think about the last time you signed up for a freebie – whether it was to get a discount, a free guide, an event, whatever.

Good opt-ins are how you grow that email list which is how you grow your business. It’s all about capturing those valuable leads.

Build an Engaging Website with Clear Opt-In Opportunities

Your website is your digital front door, often the first interaction prospective clients have with your practice. A clean, easy-to-navigate website with clear calls to action (CTAs) will encourage visitors to take the next step in the customer journey.

Key Steps for Effective Website Opt-Ins:

• Place Strategic CTAs: Add multiple opt-in opportunities on your website—think about your homepage, blog posts, and service pages. Offer compelling reasons to sign up, like a free guide or a valuable checklist.

• Offer Incentives for Opting In: Prospects are more likely to subscribe if they’re getting something valuable in return. Consider offering a free eBook on retirement planning, a checklist for estate planning, or an exclusive newsletter with market insights.

• Keep It Simple: Limit the amount of information you request in the opt-in form. Often, a name and email address are enough to start, lowering the barrier for people to sign up.

Use Email Marketing to Stay Top-of-Mind

Once you have website visitors opting in, email marketing becomes a powerful tool for nurturing those leads and converting them into clients. Here are a few best practices:

• Segment Your Audience: Group your contacts based on their specific needs or interests. For instance, create segments for those interested in retirement planning, wealth management, or estate planning. This allows you to send targeted content that resonates with each group.

• Share Valuable Content Consistently: Provide your subscribers with information they can use, such as tips for market volatility, tax-saving strategies, or upcoming financial deadlines. By positioning yourself as a knowledgeable resource, you’ll build trust with your audience.

• Automate Your Campaigns: Use email marketing automation to create sequences that nurture leads at scale. For example, you could set up a “welcome series” that introduces new subscribers to your practice, shares your story, and highlights your services. Following up with a series on common financial pitfalls or retirement planning steps can further guide leads down the funnel.

 Make it Easy

You don’t need to spend your weekends writing blogs, designing lead magnets, or building a drip campaign from scratch. (You’ve got clients to serve — and probably a life to live.) That’s where Social Seed Marketing’s pre-built tools come in.

Think of them as your marketing starter kit — only smarter. Each asset, from ready-to-use eBooks that educate and convert, to automated drip-email campaigns that nurture new leads, is built specifically for financial planners. That means the tone, compliance considerations, and client journey are already handled, so you can focus on what you do best: helping clients build wealth and confidence.

These are plug-and-play marketing systems designed to fit seamlessly into your workflow, giving you the polish and consistency of a full marketing team without the cost or chaos of hiring one.

Because the truth is, you don’t need to reinvent the wheel. You just need to start rolling it in the right direction — with the right tools behind you.

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