Do you ever feel like advisor marketing is a sea of sameness?
When advisors talk about what they do, it can be easy for things to sound similar. Financial planning has risen to the forefront, but fee-based firms also like to talk about their investment management services and their fiduciary duty to clients.
If a client hears all the same words from multiple firms, they might think advisory businesses are interchangeable.
But we know what you know: every advisory firm is truly unique to itself. Finding your voice and creating marketing that stands out like a lighthouse for others to find in that sea of sameness is possible.
We’re proud to serve so many advisors who have discovered the way to be different and communicate their true uniqueness to prospective new clients. One of those advisors is Terry Morgan, the CEO and President of OK 401k.
Terry makes fearless investing sound as natural as a conversation with your grandma—because he put that exact conversation into a radio ad.
So we thought we’d highlight the fun, innovative way Terry is reaching new clients with his radio commercials. Our hope is that you’ll feel as inspired as we do by the way he markets his advisory services.
Skydiving with Grandma
Many family members talk about finances together—but few offer advice like the straight-talking grandma in this radio ad, and that’s what makes it so memorable.
This could easily have gone the route of the stuffy advisor commercial with calming piano music in the background, but Terry’s focus is on helping the type of people who, in the words of the commercial, the “big boys won’t talk to.”
So, a skydiving grandma talks to her granddaughter about how her advisor (Terry) has made her a fearless investor by helping her rollover her 401k to a no-commission IRA with a retirement plan that fits her and no one else.
At the end, she skydives off into the clouds. She’s not just a fearless investor, she’s the most fearless grandma we’ve ever heard.
Scared to Death
In his second commercial, Terry keeps his focus on his target audience with another family conversation.
This time, two parents are “scared to death of retirement.” Their future is murky, they’re moving to Florida, and they’re leaving their son ten dollars as an inheritance to make sure they keep enough for themselves to live out their golden years.
It’s obvious they need help, but they’re “small fish” after all. That is, until their son tells them about his fiduciary advisor who helped him figure out how much risk he was comfortable with and worked with him even though he didn’t have $500,000 to invest.
In thirty seconds, the parents go from skeptical to knowing what they need to do to get their retirement in great shape.
Why This Marketing Works
Radio ads aren’t for everyone, but Terry’s are successful because of three key reasons:
1. They’re entirely focused on his ideal clients
The ads make it absolutely clear who should contact Terry: Anyone with a 401k who feels like they can’t work with an advisor because they don’t have enough money. Great marketing positions your clients, their needs, and their life situations at the forefront. These ads do that.
2. They’re attention-grabbing
If you want to stand out, you have to be different. These ads aren’t just a pitch for advisory services; they’re practically sketch comedy. They don’t feel out of place on the radio, but they sure break the mold of the traditional wealth management advertisement.
3. They’re professional
We’ve all seen YouTube clips of the local furniture store or auto dealer where the owner thinks they’re a Hollywood movie star waiting to be discovered. While Terry’s ads are funny, they’re humorous for the right reasons. They’re scripted, professional actors are involved, and the sound quality is top notch. Anyone who listens to the ads immediately gets the feeling that OK 401k is a quality, well-run business.