Being a young financial advisor has both advantages and disadvantages. While you bring a fresh perspective to the table, you may have a lot to learn about marketing and how to attract new clients. You may have clear goals for increasing your assets under management, but maybe haven’t quite figured out a strategy for reaching them. If that sounds familiar, here’s a closer look at how to drum up assets as a young financial advisor so you can build a thriving practice.

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How to Drum Up Assets as a Young Financial Advisor (5 Tried and True Methods)

There’s no magic bullet for growing a book of business and increasing assets under management (AUM) as a new advisor. What you need instead are some smart strategies for raising your visibility, building credibility and prospecting more efficiently.

With that in mind, here are some proven, actionable ways to spur growth.

1. Focus on Business Development

Business development is anything you do regularly to grow your business. Examples of activities that fall under the business development umbrella include:

Staying connected with people in your professional network, and actively adding new connections.
Creating spheres of influence with CPAs, estate planning attorneys, insurance agents and other individuals who may be able to generate referrals for your business.
Collaborating or forging strategic partnerships with other financial professionals or influencers who may lend you their platform to gain exposure for your business.
Attending and participating in networking events or financial advisor conferences, both online and offline

Consider where you can fit business development activities into your daily schedule. It only takes a few minutes to send an email to someone in your network. You can offer an update on your business and let them know that you’re actively looking for new clients, in case they have someone they’d like to refer to you.

2. Tap Your Existing Clients

If you don’t have any clients yet, then you’ll need to apply some of the other strategies offered here first. But if you do have clients, consider what you could do to increase your AUM organically.

That might include:

Expanding the range of services you offer or bundling complementary services to add value for your clients.
Offering a complimentary portfolio review to clients who have assets held away. This could open the door to a conversation about bringing those assets under your management.
Strategically asking clients for referrals, or taking steps to improve client user experience and engagement. This could encourage them to refer friends and family to your business

You can also use a generational approach to bring more assets under your management.

For instance, say your client base consists mainly of 50-somethings. They may have adult children who could benefit from your services and advice. You could attempt to bridge the gap by letting your clients know that you’d be happy to offer a free consultation if their children are looking for an advisor to work with.

3. Grow Locally

Your quest for how to drum up new assets as a young financial advisor may start in your own backyard.

What does that mean? It’s a combination of two things: getting involved in your community and increasing your visibility online in local searches. Being an active participant in your community helps people who are looking for an advisor in their area online connect a face with a name.

Here are some ideas for increasing your local footprint:

Sponsor a youth sports league.
Participate in or donate to community fundraising events.
Volunteer with local organizations that focus on financial education, or serve individuals in your target niche.
Host or participate in community events, such as seminars or workshops, which are designed to attract your target audience.
Set up a Google Business profile.
Establish a financial advisor website for your business and apply search engine optimization (SEO) techniques. This can help increase your rankings for local search terms like ‘financial advisor near me.’

If you have limited time to spend on these types of activities, consider which ones are likely to yield the best return on investment based on what kind of clients you hope to attract.

4. Buy a Book of Business

Buying a book of business can be a shortcut to drumming up assets as a young advisor, since you’re gaining access to an existing client base. Assuming that you’re able to retain most of those clients once the purchase is complete, that could increase your AUM overnight.

Research is key, however: You want to ensure that you’re buying a book of business that aligns with your target niche and paying a fair price for it. If you’re unsure how to value a book of business, that’s a good place to start.

As far as how to find a book of business for sale goes, there are a few options:

Talk to people in your network to see if they or anyone they know is interested in selling a book of business.
Use networking events as an opportunity to make new connections with advisors who may be preparing to exit the industry.
Check online listing marketplaces to find advisors who are selling their books.
Consider working with a business broker to find a book for sale that aligns with your needs.

Is buying a book of business a worthwhile investment as a young advisor? It ultimately depends on quality, cost and how many of those clients you expect to retain.

5. Work With an Advisor Marketing Platform

Digital marketing is one of the best ways to attract clients to your business. A typical marketing plan for a young advisor may include:

Social media
Email marketing
SEO, if you have a website
Content marketing
Digital advertising

All of those things can help you connect with prospective clients, but your efforts may be hit or miss if you don’t have a fully fleshed-out strategy. Working with an advisor marketing platform like SmartAsset AMP can help you streamline your marketing efforts and connect with leads.

This is a little different from buying leads outright, as you tell the marketing platform what kind of clients you want to attract and get matched up with prospects that align with your profile. That ensures that you’re getting quality leads, whereas buying them can sometimes be a mixed bag.

Bottom Line

A young financial advisor sits down with a new client.

What’s the best way to drum up new assets as a young advisor? It’s a combination of things, but it starts with being confident, having a clearly defined brand statement and vision, and knowing what kind of clients will benefit most from your services. The more targeted you are in your approach to marketing and client acquisition, the better your results are likely to be.

Tips for Growing Your Advisory Business

Finding new clients is one of the biggest challenges advisors face, whether you’re just starting out or you’ve been in business for years. Developing an online ground game is a good place to start your marketing efforts, as investors increasingly rely on search engines to find financial advice. Working with an advisor marketing platform can help you supercharge your digital marketing efforts. SmartAsset AMP uses a holistic approach to help you connect with leads. Schedule a demo to learn how you can leverage it to build out your client base.
If you’re having trouble getting your footing as a young advisor, consider whether you can find a mentor to work with. A financial advisor mentor who’s willing to share their knowledge and expertise with you can be invaluable for growing your business. Look at your existing network to see if you already know someone who may be willing to act as a mentor. Financial advisor conferences and networking events can also be opportunities to connect with more experienced advisors who may be interested in a mentoring role.

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