You could be a highly competent financial advisor but if few people know about you, you’ll starve for new business.
There are two main ways to become known to your ideal audience.
- Develop the audience yourself through marketing.
- Show up in the middle of somebody else’s audience and display your value.
I can assure you, the second option is by far the most effective both in terms of time and money (if you do it right).
In today’s episode, we discuss the mechanics of how to show up in the middle of a media outlet’s audience and share your voice, your opinion, and your insights to a large group of ideal prospects who are hungry for your wisdom.
My special guests are Jim Pavia, senior editor-at-large at CNBC Digital and Fred Gabriel, editor at InvestmentNews.
Jim and Fred are two of the financial industry’s top journalists and they share an incredible number of tips and insights on how to work with the media to get your message out.
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9 Key Tips to Working With the Media
To whet your appetite for the podcast, here are 9 direct quotes from Fred and Jim…
Fred Gabriel: Pay attention to the news that’s happening around you and then plug your story idea into that news.
1. It’s all about relationships with reporters and editors. If you want a reporter to call you on a particular story, they should know you well before the story breaks. Establish that relationship so the reporter knows what value you would bring to a story, what your expertise is, and what you can talk about, but lay that groundwork well before you expect to be quoted. Then you’re top of mind when a story breaks. Fred Gabriel
2. In developing that relationship with a reporter, if you go to a conference and you hear something that you think they’d be interested in, call them way before and say, “I was at a conference and I heard this. I want to give this to you. Do what you want with it.” That’s a great way to establish a relationship. Fred Gabriel
3. Another thing I think advisers can do is pay attention to the news that’s happening around them and then plug their story idea into that news. A reporter or editor will usually take that call or open that email if you’re saying, “I’ve got this idea around something that’s happening today.” Fred Gabriel
4. You don’t have to necessarily be controversial but you have to be smart, informative, and you have to have a point of view. Fred Gabriel
Jim Pavia: Investors cannot get enough information about retirement issues.
5. The advice I give all advisors is before you call me, before you send me an email, go visit the site. Our site is cnbc.com/financial-advisors/ and I suggest you go there and get a little bit of education about what we’re producing so it’s not a cold call per se. So you have an understanding of what we’re actually doing at the site. Jim Pavia
6. The consumer, the investor just cannot get enough information about retirement issues. That’s resonating with our audiences as well as healthcare issues and robo advisor interest is bubbling up, too. Jim Pavia
7. What we want to do here at CNBC is say, “Okay here’s an issue, here’s a problem, and here’s a solution,” and get advisors to weigh in on what can you do now. We want advisors to help us deliver a solution. We’re finding that the investment strategy stories we talk about for retirement are ones that are resonating because we’re not just saying the sky is falling. We’re saying it’s falling but here’s a way to protect yourself. It’s real hands on information from experts, from advisors. Jim Pavia
8. To cut through it and be able to explain it in plain English is really important. If an advisor can do that in a guest column or be a source for us and not speak in jargon that’s always a success. Jim Pavia
9. I tell advisors if they really want to work with me or work with other media, media training is one thing, but also make sure you have a voice, an opinion, and that you have something really interesting to say and also be a thought leader, be a solution provider. If an advisor is out there and they want to pitch something to me, explain to me this is what I can do. Jim Pavia.
Resources
– Follow Jim Pavia on Twitter @JimPavia
– Email Jim Pavia (but you better review cnbc.com/financial-advisors/ before you contact him!)
– Visit the CNBC Financial Advisor hub
– Follow Fred Gabriel on Twitter @FredPGabriel
– Visit InvestmentNews.com
– See all of Steve Sanduski’s guest posts at InvestmentNews by going to InvestmentNews.com and typing Sanduski in the search bar.
– Elliot Weissbluth of HighTower Advisors
– Ric Edelman of Edelman Financial Services
– Values Clarification Toolkit Click here to download this FREE tool and start living your values.
