Still unsure how Twitter benefits a financial advisor? Who better to learn from than the co-creator himself, Dom Sagolla?
Dom Sagolla sat down with media at an international conference in Australia to explain not only why Twitter works so well, but how financial advisors can get started and the best way that they can leverage the social media platform.
1. The numbers
First of all, Sagolla says, know the numbers. He says that 10 per cent of the people that follow you are online at any one time, just by chance. Then only 10 per cent of the people that read your tweet will actually click through to your link.
“So for every action you require of someone, you lose 90 per cent of people, because people don’t really act,” he says.
2. Know your audience
Rather than simply getting as many followers as possible, Sagolla says that it’s vital to get the right kind of followers.
“If it’s a person with a large following and then they retweet you, there’s your value. Or, if it’s someone that has just the right person following them and the message gets to them, wow all of a sudden you have a job, or you have the information you need.”
3. Start small
“To get started, don’t write, just read,” says Sagolla. “Curate, make lists, follow the right people, make sure you’re following the right people. Follow other leaders, folks who do it well, folks you admire. Get people you care about – whether it’s in your industry or not – so you can figure out what it means to you personally.”
4. Keep it simple
The best way to tweet, is to fit your speaking voice into your writing voice, says Sagolla. It’s also vital that you don’t try to say too much, so just stick to one subject, one thing (at a time).
“A lot of folks try to cram a lot of stuff in there, then they get their hash tag at the end, it’s like the punch line or something. Just say one thing.”
Sagolla says that the discipline required on Twitter has helped him in real life, as he is able to respond to questions with quick, catchy answers, purely out of habit.
“I now have all these responses. I can recall these things. That habit is really valuable.”
5. Separate business from pleasure
Sagolla has different accounts for different uses, and he suggests that financial advisors starting out should do the same.
“If there was a piece of advice I’d give to folks with financial responsibility, it’d be to have your personal account where you do anything, you experiment and find your personal following.”
He says that once you’ve gained confidence and a voice you want to project, then create your professional account.
6. Better safe than sorry
“If you have to ask me whether you should or not, the answer is no,” says Sagolla. “If you ever have a doubt, the answer is no.”
It’s much better to be safe than sorry, particularly for advisors he says. Once it’s out there on the public record, there’s no taking it back.
