How to Follow Up With a Potential Client as a Financial Advisor

Lead generation is critical to your long-term success as an advisor, but getting a prospect into your sales funnel is just one part of the picture. Once you make first contact, it’s time to begin nurturing that relationship so you can convert prospects into clients. Knowing how to follow up with a potential client – and what to avoid – can help you generate more sales as an advisor.

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Why Advisors Should Follow Up With Leads

A prospective client may be actively looking for an advisor to work with, but you might be just one of many advisors they’re considering. Just as the early bird gets the worm, the advisor who’s proactive about following up may be the one to land the client.

Following up is an opportunity to:

Start an ongoing conversation with a prospect about what they need
Build trust while demonstrating your knowledge and authority
Answer questions and counter objections
Emphasize the value you provide
Determine if you and the client are a good fit for one another

What if a prospect isn’t ready to commit to working with an advisor right now? Continuing to follow up periodically keeps you on their radar so that when they’re ready to take the next step, you’re primed to help.

How to Follow Up With a Potential Client

Developing a system or strategy for following up can help you avoid missed opportunities to convert prospects to clients. As you build your system, consider incorporating some of these best practices for following up effectively and avoid annoying your clients.

1. Ask

One of the simplest ways to encourage prospects to be more receptive to your follow-up efforts is to ask when and how they’d prefer to communicate.

Say, for example, you’re using a lead magnet to encourage prospects to join your email list. Joining triggers an automatic email welcome message that briefly introduces who you are and what you do. At the end of the email, you could include something like this:

I’d love to talk to you in more detail about your financial needs. When is a good time to connect and how do you prefer to get in touch?

You’re expressing interest and giving them some control over the communication between you.

The same closing message works with cold-calling if that’s your preferred lead-generation strategy. The goal is to let the client know you’re ready to chat when it’s convenient for them.

2. Don’t Delay

Timing matters when it comes to when you make your first follow-up effort and how often you follow up thereafter.

Leaving a prospective client hanging after they’ve filled out a contact form on your website or left a voicemail asking you to return their call is not the first impression you want to make. At the same time, you don’t want to appear too eager, as that could suggest to a prospect that you’re desperate for leads.

Following up with a call or email within the same day or the next business day can set the right tone. After your first meeting, you may follow up with the prospect later that day to thank them for their time and express your desire to keep the conversation going.

3. Use Multiple Contact Methods

Advisor marketing is about leveraging different resources to your advantage. Limiting yourself to a single follow-up method could hinder your progress with a client if the message goes unnoticed.

Some of the channels you might use to follow up include:

Phone calls
Texts
Emails
LinkedIn or other social media platforms
Direct mail

Connecting on social media can also yield some insight into your client’s personality and lifestyle, which could prove valuable in determining how to address their financial goals and needs.

4. Automate

Automated workflows can increase efficiency and save time when following up with potential clients via email. You can draft follow-up messages ahead of time and schedule them to be sent at specific dates and times.

These emails don’t need to be lengthy; that’s what your regular financial advisor newsletter is for.

You can keep it short and sweet, maybe using something like this:

I noticed you joined our list to access our free e-book on retirement planning. Are there any questions I could answer for you? If there’s something you’d like to discuss, reply to this email or give me a call at [your number].

This is a no-pressure way to put yourself at the top of the prospect’s mind. And it includes a clear call to action, prompting them to reach out.

5. Be Helpful

Prospects don’t want to be bombarded with pushy sales calls or emails that have absolutely zero value. One of the most effective ways to follow up with a potential client is to provide something useful in every communication.

For example, you might:

Answer a question
Share an interesting financial resource you came across
Offer to break down what the latest interest rate changes or market trends might mean for their portfolio
Overcome an objection

In other words, be helpful. You may have to spend some time showing a prospective client what they can expect from working with you before they’re ready to commit.

6. Have an Exit Plan

Some prospects will never become clients, and it’s important to recognize when it’s time to put your follow-up plan on hold. Setting some metrics can help you evaluate when a client simply isn’t interested.

For example, you might stop following up if a client:

Hasn’t returned any of your phone calls since your first contact
Does not respond to email queries or doesn’t open the emails you send (this is a metric you can track through your email marketing provider)
Initially expresses interest in working with you but then goes silent

One commonly used sales tactic to get a response from leads that have gone ice cold is to send an email telling them they’ll be removed from your email list if they don’t respond. They’re often worded something like this:

Subject line: Is this goodbye?

I’ve noticed that you haven’t been opening my email newsletters. If you don’t find my messages valuable, I can unsubscribe you from my list – no hard feelings.

If you’d like to continue receiving updates on market trends, firm happenings and the latest financial news, hit reply to this message and let me know. And if you’re not an email person, I’m always ready to chat about what I can do to help you reach your financial goals.

Give me a call at [your number].

This message makes it clear to the prospect that you won’t be following up further and it gives them a clear CTA on what to do if they want to stay in touch.

Don’t Limit Follow-Ups to Prospects

Following up isn’t just for prospective clients. It’s also something you should be doing with your existing clients.

Regular communication, even if it’s a simple check-in message, lets clients know that you haven’t forgotten about them. It’s also an opportunity to:

Chat about any changes the client has experienced since your last meeting
Share information about new products or services your firm is offering
Confirm your next scheduled meeting (or invite them to schedule one if there’s nothing on the books)

Effective communication supports client retention and loyalty. It can also drive more referrals and sales if you consistently exceed client expectations.

Bottom Line

An advisor following up with potential clients.

Knowing how to follow up with a potential client can take time and practice to get the formula down. These tips can help you approach follow-ups more strategically so you’re not wasting your time or a prospective client’s.

Tips for Growing Your Advisory Business

Building a digital footprint matters, as prospects turn to online searches to find financial advice. You might have a professional website, social media accounts and an email list that you use to attract clients, but those aren’t the only tools at your disposal. SmartAsset AMP is an advisor marketing platform that takes a holistic approach to growth. Schedule a demo to learn how you can leverage it to get more leads for your business.
Compliance is an important aspect of client communication. Regulatory rules require advisors to maintain accurate records of client communications and use appropriate language in marketing messages. Reviewing marketing and communication compliance guidelines for advisors can ensure that you’re not inadvertently breaking any rules.