The 2021 Broadridge Advisor Marketing Study explored how financial advisors are approaching marketing / business development, the challenges they face, and the impact of COVID-19 on client acquisition strategies.
This is an annual study, with the first wave conducted in 2019. The 2021 study of more than 400 financial advisors found:
- A brighter outlook: advisors have increased confidence in meeting practice goals compared to 2020
- Renewed focus on growth: % of advisors actively adding new clients exceeds pre-COVID levels, and demand for advisor services increased over the prior 12 months
- Marketing spend rose in 2021, and most expect to spend more in 2022
- Digital marketing on the rise: four of the top five areas of marketing investment are digital (website, social media, digital newsletters, webinars)
- Value of a defined marketing strategy: advisors with a defined marketing strategy report greater marketing ROI (yet only 26 percent indicate they have a defined marketing strategy)
- Top marketing challenges are: finding the time for marketing efforts, developing a digital marketing strategy and selecting the appropriate technology to leverage
