When you’ve been running a successful financial advisory business for over 25 years, you know that having consistent and powerful marketing matters.
As the president of Armstrong Wealth Management Group, Regi Armstrong, CPWA® has seen many marketing trends come and go. With the marketing landscape continuously shifting in the digital era, Regi knew that having a strong presence in his local community was absolutely critical.
Knowing he wanted to increase his overall marketing presence, Regi decided to get an outside opinion on where the business could make some improvements.
“We hired a consultant to do an internal review of our firm to help identify both strengths and weaknesses and so we knew we had some opportunities to improve our marketing. One of the things that had been brought to my attention was that I had too many people on my team who thought exactly the same way as I did.”
Regi had first encountered Crystal when she was a recent graduate from the MBA program at Francis Marion University.
“When it was recommended I hire someone with a different skill set, I immediately thought of Crystal. What had stood out to me was that she seemed wired differently from other people I’d worked with previously. She was far more graphically minded and was able to think outside the box. So the consultant convinced me that I should take a chance and trust that she would be a great fit for our firm.”
Making the Transition From Employee to Contractor
Regi hired Crystal in a full-time position, handling tasks related to both marketing and services. She quickly integrated herself into the team, and before they knew it, she had been with the firm for a few years.
Then Crystal was planning to move home to Virginia. Initially, Regi was hoping she could continue working as a remote employee. However, due to compliance requirements at the time, that wasn’t a viable solution.
“It was a different time back then in terms of the ability to work remotely,” shared Regi. “But I knew she was great at her job so one of the things I chatted with her about was about starting her own business. I thought that since she was already doing a great job working for me, she could start a business that focused on LPL or other firms and financial professionals to provide assistance with their marketing.”
With an opportunity to work with Armstrong Wealth Management Group as an independent contractor on the table, Crystal went ahead and made her interstate move, and then started working with Regi in a new capacity.
“Once she was running things independently as Crystal Marketing Solutions (CMS), she no longer worked on the service side of things. She was there to focus on marketing. We were able to get it set up so that she could use the LPL compliance tool where we have to submit our advertising copy and the other marketing collateral. This saved a ton of time.”
Leveraging Strengths and Creating New Opportunities
One of the biggest things CMS helped Armstrong Wealth Management Group with right from the start was ensuring they projected a consistent brand.
“As things have changed in the industry and the world of tech, Crystal and her team have helped me change my website to keep it fresh. Like everything else, I bring ideas, she brings ideas, and then we figure out what makes sense to ensure we meet our main priority of brand and image consistency.”
The team at CMS is all about finding ways to work with clients that are right for them, and over the years Crystal and Regi have found a routine that works well for everybody.
“We work very well together because we each have our strengths. For example, I’m a decent editor. I have a hard time starting something from a blank slate when I have an idea. I struggle to describe what I’m picturing. When we work on something, CMS provides the first draft, and then I can work on it from there. Even if it’s not exactly what I was imagining, it gives me something to work with, whether it’s a newsletter or other marketing collateral.”
Several years ago, when the opportunity presented itself to do a radio spot, it was the CMS team who helped Regi get prepared so he could make the most of the short time he would be on air, which quickly evolved into a recurring radio segment that gives him an additional platform to educate listeners and increase name recognition for his business.
CMS Provides Agility to Move with the Times
With regular meetings, Regi is able to easily keep abreast of everything going on with his marketing plan. The use of interactive software by CMS means clientsAs the worlds of marketing and technology evolve, CMS is positioned to support their clients in adjusting their plans — and making it as easy on them as possible. can see what’s on deck, what tasks are coming up, and get the whole picture for their marketing.
“The world has changed and more and more things are happening remotely, so Crystal and her team have helped us adjust. Instead of doing in-person seminars, we’re now doing webinars. Crystal Marketing Solutions is helping us market the webinar, making it look professional, ensuring we get sign-off from compliance, and more.”
Regi has found that working with CMS has saved his firm both time and money. If he wasn’t working with the team, he’d either be doing the work himself or have to hire a full-time person.
“CMS fits that perfect spot whether you need them a little or a lot. If you want to bring a level of professionalism to your marketing or if you want to pick up your game they can help. You want to project the right image, from your website to your emails. If we’re doing an update in one place, like the website, they’re the ones ensuring everything is matching across all our channels. If we're doing a promo for the upcoming webinar, they’re making sure it's on Google My Business or it's been sent out on Twitter.”
CMS Anticipates Need, Helps Foster Growth
One of the best parts of any strong relationship is the ability to anticipate needs. After so many years of working together with Regi, the team at CMS understands his business so well that they know what he likes — and doesn’t like — when it comes to his marketing.
“After so many years of working together, Crystal can pretty much read my mind. When she gives me the first cut of something, it’s already anywhere from 90 to 99% how I want it. She gives me options, even when she already knows which one I’m likely to pick.”
When asked what Regi would say to someone considering hiring Crystal and the CMS team, this is what he had to say:
“Unless they already have a top-notch marketing person on their team — which if they're interviewing Crystal, they probably don't — they’d probably make a mistake not to hire her and her team. As financial professionals, our number one asset is time. We’re the rainmakers. So the smartest thing we can do is find good people, pay them well, and leverage our time. It’s the same thing with outsourcing to a good accountant or payroll person — you can absolutely hire good people to do those sorts of things, so why not your marketing?
"Using Crystal and her team will leverage your time multifold. Hiring CMS will more than pay for the cost because it will help your firm grow. I know for certain that no small part of our growth can be attributed to the effort of Crystal and her team.”
This case study was conducted and constructed by a third party on behalf of CMS. This reflects a summary of an actual client experience and is intended to serve as an example of what it is like to work with CMS. While CMS prides itself on consistency with our work and relationship, no results can be guaranteed.