Having worked with many of the nation’s top advisors over the years, one thing we’ve learned is that when a prospect visits a financial advisor’s website, the page they spend the most time on is the Team page.

 

Why?

 

Because as we’ve said before, advising is a personal business. Even when an advisor is part of a DBA, people are referred to him or her by name. So when prospective clients visit your website, they’re there to vet you. They might check out some things about the company as well, but they are always going to do their due diligence and vet the individual advisor. They want to be sure you have the ability to help them with whatever they need.

 

When it comes to vetting, every prospect cares about different things. For some, education and designations are really important; others don’t care at all. It’s the same with awards. Some prospects want to know more about your personal life; others don’t. That’s why a comprehensive bio is crucial for advisors. You want to be sure to include everything someone may want to know about you. And because of that, this is the one place in your website content where the “less is more” rule does not apply. (If you’re worried about it being too long, don’t worry—we have a solution for that.)

 

The bottom line is, you need to make a great impression with your bio. To do that, you need to answer two key questions, and you need to avoid several common mistakes.

 

2 Key Questions to Address With Your bio

When prospects click on your bio, they are wanting to know the answer to two key questions:

 

• Does this person have the knowledge and experience I need in a financial advisor?
• Will I like them and enjoy working with them?

 

The first question is the most straightforward. Prospective clients need to know if you work with people like them, and they want confidence that you’re great at what you do. To that end, you want to include information about what areas of planning you specialize in, how long you’ve been in the industry, and what designations, licenses, degrees, and even awards you have.

 

That said, many advisors fear that detailing their knowledge and accolades will make them sound salesy or braggy. But reading your bio is part of the client’s vetting process, and they’re looking for reasons to say yes or no to working with you—so if you have something impressive to share, share it. After all, you don’t worry about sounding braggy on a resume, because it’s the appropriate place to share all the high points about you; the same is true of your bio.

 

Plus, website bios are traditionally written in the voice of the company (e.g., “Mark has been serving clients for more than 30 years”), which allows you to share all the reasons a client would want to work with you without sounding self-important.

 

The second question, “Will I like the person and enjoy working with them?” is a little less straightforward to answer, but it’s also crucial to a compelling bio. Your bio should have some personality; it should give prospects an idea of the type of person you are. Much of this can be accomplished by sharing information about your personal life, like your hobbies and family, but there are ways to lift the veil even if you want to keep things a little more private (more on that below).

 

The key is to reveal some things about yourself that go beyond your expertise as an advisor. Something that will give the reader an idea of the kind of person you are, like whether you’re comfortable cracking a few jokes in a meeting or you keep things straightforward and professional.

 

Segmenting Your Bio

Sound like a lot of information to fit into one bio? It is. But that doesn’t mean it’s overkill; different people care about different things, so the best practice is to leave nothing out. To ensure it’s not overwhelming for the reader, we recommend segmenting it into several sections so they can skim and quickly find what they’re interested in. Here are some section examples:

 

• Areas of Expertise
• Clients Served
• Education & Designations
• Awards & Accolades
• Community Involvement
• Personal Interests
• Photo Gallery

 

You can use different sections based on what kind of story you want to tell and the kind of information you share, but these are some of the common categories. Here is an example of a team that has segmented their bios.

 

4 Mistakes to Avoid When Creating Your Bio

Now that you know the elements of a great bio, here are a few things to avoid:

 

1. Outdated Information

Review your bio at least once a year and update information as necessary (new designations or awards, a new baby in the family, etc.). It’s also a good idea to include all numerical information in an evergreen style. So instead of saying you’ve been in business for 31 years (which will be 32 next year), say “more than 30 years.” Instead of listing your kids’ ages, say they are “young,” “in grade school,” “adult children,” or don’t specify at all.

 

2. Grammatical Errors

If you’re writing your own bio, always have one or two people proofread it. Even if you have someone else write it, it’s a good idea to have a second and third set of eyes check for misspelled words, missing punctuation, and other errors. Small mistakes like this can give the impression that you’re sloppy or don’t pay attention to details.

 

3. Sparse Content

To reiterate, most prospects want to know as much as they can about you, so if you have a lot to say, say it! If you’ve been in business for more than 30 years and you’re the principal, a few sentences won’t cut it. Even if you’re not someone who focuses on getting lots of designations or awards, you can share about your approach to the business and what your experience has taught you. If you work with lots of business owners or retirees, say a little about why you’re a great fit for that type of client.

 

4. Lack of Personality

In our professional opinion, the more you share about yourself as a person, the better. It helps people get to know you and connect with you, which helps them trust you. Talk about your family and what you love to do together; include pictures of your dog or your favorite vacation moments; mention a charity you’re passionate about. In short, if it’s lighthearted (i.e., not politics) and important to you, share it.

 

Of course, everyone has their own privacy threshold, and that’s fine, so do what’s comfortable for you. If you want to keep things a little more surface-level (but still personal), you can include a section of “Fun Facts” with details like your favorite restaurant or sports team, an impactful book you’ve read recently, or a movie you could watch over and over again. Here’s an example of a team that has implemented this concept really well.

 

Upgrade Your Bio

Want help crafting a thorough, compelling bio? We’d love to help! Just give us a shout by clicking the Consultation button below.