5 Places to Look for and Find Your First Clients

Starting your own RIA is exciting. You're choosing technology, navigating compliance, building your brand, and creating a client experience you're proud of. Every decision brings you one step closer to launch.

But once everything is in place, one question tends to rise to the top:

How do I actually get clients?

It's one of the biggest hurdles new firm owners face. You can have the right technology, a thoughtful service model, and a beautiful website, but none of it matters if the right people don't know you exist.

The good news is that finding clients doesn't require a huge marketing budget or years of name recognition. It starts with consistently showing up, building relationships, and focusing on the people you're best equipped to help.

If you're wondering where your first clients will come from, you're not alone. Here are five proven places independent advisors can start building meaningful connections and growing their client base.

1. Look for Your First Clients in Your Niche Market

Defining a niche is one of the most important steps when launching a financial planning practice.

What type of client will you specialize in working with? It's not enough to stop at "Gen X and Gen Y," or "women." You must dig deeper if you want to truly make an impact in the market, get your ideal client, and build a name for yourself as an independent financial advisor.

You can start by thinking about the unique things you have experienced and the hobbies you enjoy. Those who are part of these groups will be your natural market, as you’ll likely already have trusted relationships with common ground.

Whether you’re a former military, a proud yogi, a cross-fitter, a soccer fanatic, or someone who adopted a child, you do have a niche that you can service. You just need to understand how to find that niche.

Having something in common with your niche market can help form stronger bonds and connections, too.

Consider these practical examples of how fitting into a niche via your unique experiences and connections makes a difference:

• Working with those who adopt in order to navigate the financial decisions associated with that particular situation (like issues of funding)
• Working with members of the military to help them understand their changing finances as they transition to civilian life

In addition, having a defined niche makes it much easier to streamline your practice by allowing you to market to your ideal client profile.

2. Lean on Family and Friends

Your family and friends are likely the people who love you most and are most excited about your new business (aside from you). Ensure that they understand exactly what your practice embodies.

Here's what your friends and family need to know about your new business:

• Who are you working with? Who is your ideal client?
• What types of services do you provide?
• How do you charge clients?
• How do you bring clarity and organization to your client’s lives?
• What does a good referral look like?

When you launch, you’re likely going to have friends and family talking about what you’re doing with people they know. They’re going to want to help you by sending anyone they can your way.

You may have a 65-year-old client who was referred by your grandma and a 30-year-old newlywed couple from your best friend. Make sure you educate your close circle on what you’re looking to accomplish so they can help you get there by sending the right people your way.

3. Reach Out to Others in Your Industry

Chances are, there are dozens, if not hundreds, of financial planners in existence in your hometown or area already. 

Your first thought might be to size up the competition, but how do you decipher what you do differently as an advisor?  What type of clients are you serving versus the types of clients they are serving? How does the type of planning you do differ from others in the same niche?

The truth is, there are a multitude of potential clients out there and only a finite number of financial planners. BUT, when you consider the specific areas of expertise each advisor specializes in and the types of clients those planners consider ideal, the number of people each professional can serve shrinks further.

Chances are, there are many, many planners who serve a different market than you and would love to work with you, so they can refer those they can't personally work with to another advisor who would better suit their clients' interests.

Getting in front of advisors and sharing what you do will make it easier for them to refer you to clients who are your ideal fit. But where do you start? Attending industry events or even reaching out to other advisors through various networking platforms is always a great start.

Learn more about their businesses, share your story, and build positive working relationships with other industry professionals, and it will get you far!

4. Use Social Media

Social media is one of those things that you just have to get active on, especially as the world continues to evolve digitally.

Not sure where to start? LinkedIn and X are great ways to connect with other industry professionals and to find potential collaborators.

By sharing your voice and opinions and engaging in conversation with others in the industry, you can build awareness of the type of business you’re building and the target clients you work with. This is helpful not only for referrals but also for getting press for yourself.

Many reporters for industry, national, and local publications are active on LinkedIn and X (Twitter). This grants you instant access and an opportunity to connect and engage.

(Side note: engage, don’t pitch yourself. Also, don't forget to pay attention to the SEC Marketing rules around social media!)

5. Send a Launch E-mail

This is your opportunity to reach out to your circle digitally(think your very extended circle) of friends, family, old co-workers, dentists, doctors, neighbors, and anyone else in your e-mail address book to share how excited you are about your new venture, but remember to stay genuine.

Start by sending them an email about your business launch, covering when you’re launching, why you're launching, what sets you apart from the rest, and where they can find more information about what you’re doing. Provide links to your social media accounts, your website, and your newsletter signup spot.

A launch e-mail is a great tool for landing your first client and a smart way to start growing your newsletter list right from the start.

(P.S. An email newsletter is a great first place to start marketing for your firm!)

Ultimately, it takes time and patience to build a book of clients, and it’s up to you to stay the course. Don’t be afraid to look outside the box when it comes to growing.

While traditional networking groups are a great way to connect with others, it’s also fun to dig down into your hobbies and interests and see the kind of impact you can make within those groups.