If you’re a financial advisor who’s struggling to grow your book of business, let me start off by saying one thing:

I hear you.

Over the years, I’ve talked to a lot of people who work in financial services. One of the most common pain points they’ve shared, time and time again, is how difficult it can be to connect with new clients.

Regardless of industry, there are so many service-based salespeople who are looking for the magic bullet—that easy formula for getting more business quickly without spending a fortune.

The truth is, that magic bullet doesn’t exist. But what doesexist are effective methods that have been proven to get results over time. Today, I’m going to share four of those methods with you.

Referrals

When you’re a financial advisor looking to grow your business, referrals need to be a priority. Since compliance regulations make it difficult to market your business in “traditional” ways, positive word-of-mouth exposure is worth its weight in gold.

So, how do you get those valuable referrals? First and foremost, you get them by keeping in good graces with your current clients. Provide them with the best service possible, follow up frequently, and make sure they’re aware you’re always looking for more great clients like them.

When you can leverage your existing clients for more business, that takes a lot of the hard work out of prospecting. But what if those clients aren’t delivering the referrals you’d hoped for.

Here’s the thing: not all of your referrals are going to come from your client base. You can also encourage them by tapping into your sphere of influence. Talk to colleagues, friends, or neighbors. Have conversations with the people in your life who are champions of your business without necessarily being customers—real estate coach Sean Carpenter calls them your “bullseye.”

Find out who the biggest advocates for your business are, and get them invested in your success. Watch the power that brings to your business.

Partnerships

Whether you’re a new advisor or have been in the business for years, relationships are crucial to your survival. And it’s not just the relationships with your clients that are important. Partnerships are an amazing way to connect with people who you might never have reached otherwise.

What are natural partnerships you can have, as an advisor? Think about the service-based professionals who provide services your clients might need. Their clients will be equally in need of an advisor.

Here are a few professionals you might want to create a working relationship with:

• CPAs
• Real estate agents
• Estate planners
• Insurance agents
• Mortgage brokers
• Retirement homes

What do all of these people have in common? They all deal heavily with big life events and significant changes to people’s finances. Many of their clients might be in need of your services—either because they don’t have an advisor, or because they’re working with someone they aren’t happy with.

Download a PDF sample of American Lifestyle to stay in touch with past clients.

This is also a net-positive for your current clients. By creating partnerships with these other professionals, you’ll be better prepared to recommend professionals who will make your clients’ lives easier.

Seminars

When someone is looking for a financial advisor, they want to be sure they’re working with someone who knows what they’re talking about. After all, their financial wellness is at stake.

This is why seminars are such a popular lead generation strategy. Advisors are able to show off their expertise, which builds trust with prospective clients. In turn, those potential clients are getting value right off the bat. When investors walk away from your seminar knowing more about a given topic, they’re far more likely to want to work with you.

Of course, if you’re going to commit to hosting a seminar, you can’t go in unprepared—you have to be an expert. Have authority on the subject matter. Don’t be salesy. People will see right through a pitch every time, and they’ll be less likely to work with you. Instead, focus on educating your attendees and providing value. Then, after the presentation, you can use your customized, branded magazine from ReminderMedia to follow up.

If you’re looking for help hosting a seminar, White Glove is a great resource. They take care of everything from booking the venue to marketing the event, and they offer a triple guarantee—meaning that if you don’t get any new clients from your seminar, you don’t pay. [Disclosure: ReminderMedia and White Glove have an ongoing partnership. However, neither I nor ReminderMedia has received any compensation—financial or otherwise—for this personal recommendation.]

Community Events

While seminars provide an awesome opportunity for getting your name (and face) out there, there are other ways to build good feelings around you and your business.

In a lot of ways, there’s simply no substitute for getting out there and being an active participant in your community. When people get to know you on a human level—not just as an advisor, but as someone who legitimately cares about the community you serve—they’re much more likely to trust you with managing their wealth.

Here are a few ways you can get involved in your community:

• Volunteer your time with a local charity.
• Start a book drive for your neighborhood library.
• Coach a Little League team (or referee their games).
• Start a running, yoga, or cycling group.

Notice how none of these activities have anything to do with your business? That’s because the goal isn’t to draw attention to the services you provide. Instead, it’s to position yourself as a positive presence in your community.

When your neighbors already know, like, and trust you, they’ll be sure to remember what you do for a living, once that topic inevitably comes up.

At the end of the day, no one strategy is going to grow your business on its own. But, over time, these methods will get you that much closer to being the go-to advisor in the market you serve.