Why Influencer Marketing is Essential to Financial Sector SMBs
May 8th, 2020
Becoming a Financial Advising Influencer
"I've put this off for long enough. Once and for all I have to make this work. I have to try things I haven't tried before, and I'm going to be uncomfortable."
This is likely the inner monologue of many business owners in America, if not the world today. Now more than ever, we are experiencing increased digital connectivity between friends, loved ones, and hopefully our customers and clients. Why is this relevant to new opportunities for influencer marketing in the financial sector?
The influencer’s approach to connectivity is one of interconnectedness, built on time invested in creating an authentic relationship with their audience and brands. The influencer's ability to connect is equal to that of currency, and personal referrals through meaningful relationships are the goal.
A New Light
For many SMBs today, this brings to light the need to improve social media performance. Promoting yourself on social media can be uncomfortable, especially when your dedication to staying current is challenged by the difficulties of successfully engaging your audience. Becoming an influencer means consistently challenging your perspective in order to identify points of connection where people find relevance to themselves, their surroundings, and to one another, all while tying these aspects of life to your business.
So, what is to be gleaned here?
Consumers nowadays, no matter what level of society you exist in, want to see how human you are. As Keith Gregg puts it, "We work to live, not live to work." When we're talking about branding, the companies who are connected to their audience in such a manner have been staying afloat during this pandemic.
Pizza Pizza
Let's take Italian-American fast food for example. Chains like Dominoes and Pizza Hut embrace the idea of lifestyle in their marketing efforts by speaking directly to their multiple audiences, and they deliver food directly to an individuals' doorstep. They are literally one of the most “connected” types of businesses in the world. Not in terms of professional relationships, but in that they are entirely customer-centric. There's no more personalized service than the delivery of a hot meal to your front door, outside the setting of a restaurant. But it’s not about the what, it’s about the why, which is essentially providing modernized convenience. Pizza Hut, for instance, is a trendsetter for home delivery services, effectively making them influencers.
"This generation interacts with brands differently, so establishing genuine relationships with influencers is extremely valuable as we look to connect with them," said Sarah Beddoe, Pizza Hut's vice president of marketing in a Forbes article.
"These real-life touchpoints let us make authentic connections and build real relationships. They're also a great way to put a face to the Pizza Hut brand name for a lot of these people, and help build the loyalty that we're after," Beddoe said. "We want to stay relevant and distinctive, especially in today's marketplace, in helping a new generation to create those moments that matter."
Adaptability Comes With Wisdom, Not Age
Yes, brands work with outside influencers, but today's greatest are the influencers of their own brands. And truthfully, it's not only the younger generations who have adopted and thrived from these social media normalities, but the number one principle behind expanding your social media presence is the value of a personal recommendation. These usually occur when you have hit home with your client or customer, which takes being incredibly selfless, in such a way that inspires a genuine feeling of gratitude.
Do not make the common mistake of limiting yourself on how outside the bod you can go, based upon what is perceivably normal. Try improving your social media performance by engaging your audience in ways that only you can provide! Now more than ever, business owners need to personalize their messaging and extend an ear to their worried clients.
Bringing Life to Your Social Media Presence
A common misconception of older business owners is that self-promotion on social media isn’t relevant to them, or that they won't be a good fit for it. Don’t be discouraged, there are countless ways to get started, such as:
Delivering personalized content
Creating video updates for clients
Making periodic phone calls to clients
Creating a podcast
Posting articles and resources to your website
If you still don’t think you can go it alone, that’s okay. Some would say that going it alone isn’t really what it’s about anyway. Chalice is here for you as a partner in every aspect of your business. We have a very comprehensive set of solutions in our marketplace, many with overlapping services. Being a Chalice member means you can find a totally customized set of options that make the most sense for your business.
"You can get everything you want in life if you help enough other people get what they want." A quote from the book Positive Power People highlights this time tested, golden principle of entrepreneurship. This idea alone has given rise to the fastest growing industry of all time, affiliate marketing, and is also the secret sauce that allows us to provide these solutions on your behalf, at the discounts we're able to achieve.
Engage Your Niche–Strengthen Your Community
What we are talking about here are solid foundations. Your clients are your foundation, and the way you communicate with them is a major ingredient to the glue of your connectivity. So if you don't have the natural desire to connect with others around you, or you don't have the desire to help others, adopt it now. Invest in yourself.
Heads up, advisors! There’s a new form of currency you could be collecting right now, and while it has nothing to do with money, it will turn into dollars later, and that's trust.
Businesses need to build trust with their prospective customers. Recent studies show it takes more than 10 online interactions to even get a glimpse of someone's real attention. So keep it fresh! We know that's challenging, but Chalice is here to help.
