The Science of Generating More Referrals

November 14, 2023, 11:00 am

In the world of financial planning, referrals are still the number one contributor to firm growth. However, the key to harnessing this growth potential requires you to understand the nuances of client satisfaction and engagement.

In this webinar, Vice President of Product Marketing, Amy Galli and President & Founder of Amplify Your Voice Studio, Ali McCarthy discussed the science behind the connection between referrals, client satisfaction, emotional intelligence, and the quality of your communications.

Short on time or just want the main points?

Here is your summary to skip ahead or scan through below.

  1. The Significance Of Referrals In Advisory Firm Growth [1:59]
  2. The Factors That Contribute To Your Referrals [4:55]
  3. What Are The Drivers Of Client Satisfaction [5:59]
  4. The Power Of Emotional Intelligence [10:51]
  5. How to Implement Emotional Intelligence To Grow Referrals [25:26]
  6. Use Content To Impact Client Engagement And Advocacy [26:15]
  7. Foundational Content Calendar [31:50]
  8. Game-Changing Ways To Create A Content Strategy [38:58]
The Significance Of Referrals In Advisory Firm Growth [1:59]

The Significance Of Referrals In Advisory Firm Growth [1:59]

  • Referrals remain at the top spot for advisory firm growth this year.
  • 71% of new business growth comes from referrals and 58% comes from existing clients.
  • Firms with client referral plans and business partner referral plans generated 1.6 times. and 4 times more new clients.


The Factors That Contribute To Your Referrals [4:55]

The Factors That Contribute To Your Referrals [4:55]

  • Client satisfaction: The Net Promoter Score (NPS) which measures client satisfaction drives revenue growth.
  • The client feeling connected: Advisors that are emotionally intelligent receive 2x more referrals.
  • Advisor’s communication style: 89% of clients said communication was a top factor in providing referrals.


What Are The Drivers Of Client Satisfaction [5:59]

What Are The Drivers Of Client Satisfaction [5:59]

  • Your Net Promoter Score (NPS) shares how likely you are to refer a firm to someone else.
  • It creates the power to show that you are actively listening to your clients.
  • The average financial services NPS is 45-Having a strong NPS is a great way to go deeper with your clients.
  • Advisors with higher NPS have higher client satisfaction and loyalty.


The Power Of Emotional Intelligence [10:51]

The Power Of Emotional Intelligence [10:51]

  • Emotions still impact a client’s overall satisfaction. (82% of clients surveyed said that feeling financially secure is important but only 52% actually feel financially secure.)
  • Emotional intelligence enables an individual to understand and control their emotionsso they can better understand and relate to others. In fact, 90% of top performers have high EQ!
  • There is a 6X increase in demand for emotional intelligence in financial services sector, and advisors with higher emotional intelligence have 2X the amount of referrals than those with lower EQ.


How to Implement Emotional Intelligence To Grow Referrals [25:26]

How to Implement Emotional Intelligence To Grow Referrals [25:26]

  • Emotional intelligence is something that can be learned over time.
  • Identify the key EQ skills that are important to your team and offer training when needed.
  • Deliver more meaningful and personalized communications and experiences.
  • If you provide more personalized communications then the following will occur: 1- Fear of investing will be reduced 2-The openness to change will increase 3-Connections will strengthen and 4-Referrals will grow


Use Content To Impact Client Engagement And Advocacy [26:15]

Use Content To Impact Client Engagement And Advocacy [26:15]

  • Focus on the topics that your clients care about, such as fulfillment, peace of mind, achieving goals and managing money.
  • Avoid jargon: whether it’s on your website or in your content marketing, write how your clients speak.
  • Think about timely financial planning topics. (Based on what is happening in the news, share ways that this could affect your clients and show how you can help.
  • Share interesting articles from media outlets.)
  • Use AI in your marketing (ChatGPT, Claude.ai and Bard).
  • Sprinkle in human interest (Write once and repurpose three different ways whether that’s with your blogs, the emails you send, social media posts, videos and more!)
  • When you’re on social, be social. (Share good deeds, share motivation, share speaking engagements and recognition)


Foundational Content Calendar [31:50]

Foundational Content Calendar [31:50]

  • Have a goal in mind for how much you want to communicate each month
  • Blogging: Write 2-3 a month (1 financial planning, 1 timely, 1 human interest).
  • Email marketing: Write 2-4 emails a month (1 timely, 1-2 planning related/general, 1 newsletter).
  • Social media: Try to do 6-12 social posts per month (2-4 financial planning, 2-4 shared media articles, 2-4 non-financial).
  • Surprise and Delight WOWs: Do 1-2 a quarter (This should be random acts of kindness. Sending birthdays and anniversaries are great, but these go beyond that!)


Game-Changing Ways To Create A Content Strategy [38:58]

Game-Changing Ways To Create A Content Strategy [38:58]

  • Set monthly goals to ensure consistency.
  • Find timely topics to use across blogs, social, and email - Repurpose your content!
  • Let AI help write your content - emphasis on help.
  • Use charts and graphs to convey complex information and expertise-Simplifying with a picture or a graph helps advisors to connect with clients.


Supplemental Resources:

Get the presentation slides right here.

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