For years, financial advisors assumed people who come online to search for the phrase “financial advisors near me” are ready to buy right away. However, research shows that 71% of online searchers don’t buy from generic searches. Instead, they go through blog posts, read reviews, watch videos and ask for recommendations from friends.
So, unless you’ve established your online presence by creating highly relevant content that brings in consistent leads, you will be at the mercy of referrals that rarely bring “pre-sold” prospects. This is why modern-day advisors have devised an alternative means of proving their expertise by offering prospective Clients free value in the form of lead magnets to persuade them into leads.
However, attracting leads doesn’t end in client sign up. There should be a proven pathway to converting those leads to clients that help you build your AUM. This is what a lead magnet funnel help you achieve
Going down this post, you will learn the following:
- What’s a lead magnet funnel?
- Why do you need a funnel?
- What does a lead magnet funnel contain?
What’s a lead magnet funnel?
A lead magnet funnel is a pathway created for converting leads to clients in your financial firm. The starting point of a lead magnet starts with offering free value to website visitors in exchange for their contact information. By using a lead magnet, you will be able to filter out ready-to-work with clients and filter out those who can’t afford your fees or don’t need your expertise.
Hence, a typical example of a lead magnet funnel is displayed below:
However, before jumping into creating your lead magnet funnel, you need to ensure your lead magnet is appropriately crafted and tailored-made for your ideal client, so you won’t have a problem moving them along the sales ladder.
You can learn all the details to creating a highly converting lead magnet from our financial advisor lead magnet authority guide.
If you master these two processes well, you will never have to guess where your next client will come from, and your AUM will steadily grow. After all, more leads equals more clients for your firm.
What does a lead magnet funnel contain?
Like a sales funnel, your lead magnet funnel contains items that nurture leads to customers. Every lead magnet funnel starts and ends with the following:
- Lead magnet: Free guide, Case studies, Webinar, White Paper or Checklist.
- Lead magnet landing page
- Thank-you page
- Follow-up emails
- Welcome offer/ service upgrade
- Create a value ladder
Let’s start with the first element of your funnel:
Lead magnet
The first asset in your funnel is your lead magnet. This helps you get prospective clients’ contact information such as email addresses to kickstart the sales journey. Your lead magnet could either be a free guide, checklist, template, worksheet, case studies, white papers, or free access to a podcast.
The idea is to give value upfront, so the prospect sees you as an authority and a thought leader in your industry. If you’re just getting started and have little credibility to rely on, our lead magnet authority blueprint teaches you how to structure your lead magnet, so you’re perceived as someone who knows your stuff.
Landing page / Opt-in page
This is a visually appealing page that gives a little detail about the value the lead magnet offers. This page usually contains an opt-in form where visitors provide their contact details.
Ensure your landing page is easy to navigate and provides a visible CTA button. The image below is an example of an appealing lead magnet landing page from authentic advice:
Thank-you page
After a user submits their contact details, the next step is to direct them to a thank you page to acknowledge their action and lead them to the next step.
The content on your thank you page has to be friendly and personalized. Even more importantly, it should inform them of what to expect from you. Will you send them emails weekly or bi-weekly?
Unless mentioned, most contacts forget to check their email to download their lead magnet. Ensure you let them know that their free guide is on its way to their inbox on your thank-you page
Follow-up Emails
If you look at the sales funnel image above, you will notice the presence of emails. These are called follow-up or nurture sequences. Your lead magnet helps you get one foot in the door, while the emails help you build a strong connection with your leads to convert them to clients.
When creating your nurture series, here are some things to keep in mind:
- Decide on when and how the emails will be sent – Delivering emails at the right time increases Open rate. You can choose to email once or twice a week.
- Provide value in your emails – carry out relevant research and deliver value they won’t find elsewhere in their inbox.
- At the end of every month, track and measure email performance. See how metrics such as your subject line are performing. You can continuously improve the open or click-through rate if you’re not satisfied with the current numbers.
Offer value/service upgrade.
The best content marketing strategy relies on helping your customers take the next step. For instance, someone who downloaded and read your free guide titled: how to invest in the stock market will seek your advice on buying stocks and bonds.
This is why you need to offer your services to help them fill that gap. Every lead magnet should include a CTA button that offers a complimentary service to the subject matter of the lead magnet.
Create a value ladder
Internet marketer Russell Brunson introduced the concept of the value ladder. The value ladder aims to present a range of products or services that increase in value with each step, just as seen below.
The value ladder starts with a bait, which could be a lead magnet, and continues with a low-cost front-end service, which could be a 60-minute consultation call. Then your middle offer could be a 6-month financial planning package. The goal of the value ladder is to offer more to your customers while increasing your assets under management as well.
The value ladder ensures you get to sign retainers rather than one-off clients.
Finally, we’re aware that most financial advisors think of a value ladder as a value proposition. However, a value proposition helps you differentiate your service from your competitors. It simply expresses your firm’s uniqueness.
Conclusion
The success of your sales funnel starts from the top, which is your lead magnet. If you fail to get it right at this point, nothing else that follows matters.
The financial advisor lead magnet authority blueprint ensures you create lead magnets your audience will love to read and share. Click the image below to get yours delivered to your inbox.