A strong online presence is crucial for any business, including financial advisors. However, with the constant changes and updates in the digital world, it can be easy to overlook important details in your online listings. That's why regularly reviewing and checking in on your digital listings is essential.
What are digital listings, you ask? They are online listings that include information about your business, like your address, phone number, website address, company description, client reviews, and even photos. And whether you set them up yourself or not, they exist, so identifying and claiming them is important for managing your business’s reputation. You may find digital listings of your business in Google, Yelp, Bing, BBB, and others.
That's why I've put together four steps for effectively reviewing and updating your digital listings to ensure they are accurate and up to date.
Google Business
Google My Business is a powerful tool that helps prospects find financial advisors. A Google My Business account allows businesses to manage their appearance across Google, including search and maps. Having a Google Business profile ensures that clients and prospects can find you when searching for advisory services in your area.
One of the main benefits to advisors of using Google My Business is to control how your business appears in Google search results. By creating or claiming your Google My Business listing, advisors can provide potential clients with pertinent information, such as your location, hours of operation, and contact information. This makes it easier for potential clients to find your business and contact you.
In the image, you can see what my Google My Business listing looks like to Google users. Because I do not see customers in my office, my address is not listed. But if it were, the map would show our approximate location, and our address would be displayed. To call my firm, you only have to click the “call” button or tap the phone number, and to read reviews and find out what other people think of our business, you just click the reviews link. There is much valuable information included in this card which is displayed to the right of search results when someone searches for Crystal Marketing Solutions.
Google My Business also allows advisors to manage and respond to online reviews from clients. This improves your online reputation and makes it more likely that potential clients will contact you.
To effectively set up and manage a Google My Business listing, you should:
Claim and verify your listing: This will ensure that the listing is accurate and that you have control over the information on the listing.
Optimize the listing with relevant information: Update your business’s location, hours of operation, and contact information to make it easier for potential clients to find and contact you.
Monitor and respond to online reviews: With SEC updates to testimonials and allowance of reviews, be sure to check and respond to reviews regularly.
Use Tools to Simplify Monitoring
To make managing your online listings easier, use a tool to aggregate them all in one place. This makes updating and correcting your information easier across multiple directories and search engines, including Google My Business, Yelp, and Bing. Moz Local is one such tool. Not only does it help you keep your basic listing data current, but it also allows you to monitor your online reviews and track your local SEO ranking, and it recommends areas of improvement.
Set Up Online Alerts
To keep up with what’s said about you online, you can create alerts to stay informed about your online reputation and presence and address any negative feedback or inaccuracies. Added bonus: Alerts can notify you if you’re mentioned or quoted in an article, which can then be shared on your social platforms.
Key Google Alerts to track are:
- Advisor full name, including any variations or nicknames;
- Associate names; and
- Full business name.
By setting up and maintaining online alerts, you can stay informed about your online reputation and presence and take action to maintain or improve it.
Professional Profiles
To increase visibility and credibility, list your business on industry-specific directories such as the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) or the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). Potential clients commonly use these directories for research and comparison purposes. You should sign up for online review sites such as Yelp or the Better Business Bureau (BBB). This allows potential clients to read reviews and ratings from past clients, helping them to make informed decisions when choosing an advisor.
In case you missed our previous tips from this series, Financial Advisory Marketing Solutions, you can view them here:
