Four signs you need to network more

As a financial adviser, you will likely find yourself in a balancing act between servicing your client base and developing new relationships and prospects. But how much time are you spending networking and marketing your personal brand? Are you effective and strategic in your efforts? Below are four signs you may not be networking to your full potential.

1. You don’t have specialists to refer clients to. Whether it’s a complicated life insurance discussion, a real estate acquisition or a simple estate plan, you should aim to have several well-vetted specialists in each area of expertise available to help guide your clients. The benefit of surrounding yourself with a large network of specialists is that you will always feel comfortable sending your clients to professionals you trust and respect. If you send a client to a random specialist you have never met or haven’t yet vetted, then what happens to your valuable client relationship (and trust) if this person is unprofessional or attempts to upsell them?

2. You are not known in your community and profession. Some of the most successful advisers I have met are the ones who can walk into a restaurant, conference or event and instantly have someone wave or rush over to get the opportunity to speak with them. They are community celebrities and industry rock stars — the advisers who can work the room. If you are not known, you will easily be forgotten. The only way to become well-known is to broaden your circle of connections and contacts. Be a connector, an influencer, a leader — be more than an average adviser struggling to stand out from the other 285,000 advisers in the country.

3. Your referral pool is shallow. Are you only receiving referrals from one or two sources? You never know where your next referral will come from — so why not make your proverbial “referral pool” as deep as possible? A client referral can come from that guy at the gym always jogging on the treadmill next to you, the nonprofit group you just became a part of, or the homeowner’s association you reluctantly joined to make sure your community pool stays heated. The more visible you become and the more people you are able to meet, the better the chances are for you landing referrals from numerous sources down the road.

4. You are still petrified by public speaking. One of the many benefits of networking is that you will undoubtedly get the opportunity to speak often — whether in a one-on-one setting or in front of larger groups. For example, in my networking group, every meeting is a chance to speak and promote my brand. At each monthly meeting, every member gets the floor and a couple of minutes to shine. Practice makes perfect, so why not expose yourself to numerous speaking situations with different types of audiences?

If you want to gain public-speaking experience while networking, try attending a couple of Toastmasters meetings. Some famous Toastmasters alumni include Tim Allen, Napoleon Hill and Mr. Spock himself, the late Leonard Nimoy. If you want to practice speaking in front of a less intimidating audience, volunteer to teach personal finance to elementary-aged kids through a group like Junior Achievement.
Get yourself out there. Widen your network, increase referrals and make yourself known. The first step is getting outside of your comfort zone and acknowledging that you may not be as well-connected as you think.

Grant Webster is a senior wealth manager at AKT Wealth Advisors.