Picture two financial planners.
They don’t walk into a bar, sadly, as they’re both sitting in a first meeting with a prospective client. Let’s listen in.
Planner A:
“I hear where you’re coming from. One of my clients, Sarah, was just like you. She ran a design agency for over 20 years. When she came to me, she didn’t think she’d ever be able to step away. The business was her whole identity.
We worked together for 18 months. Last month, she sold the company, bought a cottage by the sea, and now spends her mornings walking the dog and her afternoons painting.
She says she finally feels like she’s living, not just working.”
Planner B:
“Yes, we can help. For another client similar to you, we looked at cashflow forecasting over a 20-year time horizon. Based on their asset base, projected growth, and assumed inflation, retirement was feasible by Q4 2024.
We rebalanced their portfolio to align with a moderate risk profile and restructured their drawdown strategy.”
Planner B is spot on, of course, but nobody buys into a plan.
They buy into what the plan can achieve.
That’s where storytelling comes in
Most advisers and planners never move past describing the process.
But it’s not the cashflow model that turns a prospect into a client.
It’s the story of:
- The person who rebuilt their life after a divorce.
- The client who sold their business and finally started living.
- The couple who realised they could stop working five years early.
That’s what makes someone stop and think, “That’s me. That’s what I want.”
There’s absolutely a place for the stats and spreadsheets. But effective storytelling is what helps someone picture the life they want, and believe it’s possible.
Here are four ways to confidently tell the stories that will transform your marketing.
1. Focus on the transformation
Your marketing should lead with the moment that matters. For example:
“When I first met Martina, she was navigating life after a divorce. She felt overwhelmed, especially as her ex-husband had always handled their finances. A year on, and she’s much more positive about her financial future. She knows her money is being looked after and invested wisely. Money is now one big area of her life she no longer feels anxious about.”
The transformation doesn’t need to be a grand “one-way ticket to a dream retirement destination” story. For someone going through a separation, simply living independently without stress is the dream, and they likely haven’t got the headspace to make it happen alone.
Telling a recent divorcee, “We can model various outcome scenarios using stochastic forecasting over a 25-year period,” isn’t going to calm anyone’s nerves!
Stories first, process later.
2. Let your clients take the stage
Client testimonial videos are the gold standard of social proof. They’re relatable, human, and far more persuasive than a service page or brochure.
There’s nothing more powerful than an existing client explaining to a potential client exactly how you’ve changed their lives, so these short clips massively uplift your marketing.
Check out a few of our favourites:
Sprinkle them across your homepage, upload them to social media, and have them playing on a TV in communal areas of your office.
If you need a hand collecting them, we have a dedicated team who can help. Just email hi@theyardstickagency.co.uk and we’ll give you a rundown of the process.
3. Make it about the potential client, not you
There’s a very simple way to do this. Review your marketing, find every instance of “we” and “us” and ask yourself if you could use “I” or “you” instead.
So, “We offer pension consolidation advice tailored to your long-term goals” could instead read, “You want to know if you can stop working at 60 without worrying about money”.
Your thought process should be to:
- Focus on your reader
- Tap into what keeps them up at night
- Talk about their feelings, not their pockets.
As Donald Miller tells us in StoryBrand, you are the guide, but your client is the hero.
4. Your own story matters just as much
People don’t just want to know what you do, they want to know why you do it.
Now, if the answer is “money”, maybe keep that one to yourself!
But financial planning is personal and emotional. When a potential client is deciding who to trust with their future, they want connection, not just competence.
So give them something real:
- Why did you become an adviser/planner?
- What do you love most about your work?
- What do you believe about money that most people get wrong?
Because, when you share your own story, people feel more compelled to share theirs.
Possibilities > process
Whether it’s a post on social media, the words on your website, or a first meeting with a prospective client, ask yourself:
- Is now the time to explain how it all works?
- Or is it the time to show why it matters?
Both are important but, as Simon Sinek famously says – “start with why”.
Most advisers and planners default to the “how”. So when you do things differently, you stand out to the individuals, families, and businesses you’d love to work with.
We have a 50-strong team of experienced financial services marketers ready to help share your “why” through the stories that matter.
Email hi@theyardstickagency.co.uk or call us on 0115 8965 300 to start communicating the real value of what you do.
