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Claire Akin:
Hi and thank you so much for joining us today. I’m Claire Akin with Indigo Marketing Agency. Today, I’m really excited to have a guest expert from GuideVine on our call today to go over growing your practice with social media and video. GuideVine is an organization that helps financial advisors, and they’ve sent an expert today to help share their insights on how you can grow your practice with video.
Let me tell you, before we get started, a little bit about my story. If you don’t know me, I’m Claire Akin. I’m a former investment advisor representative. I grew up in this business because my dad’s a financial advisor and he’s been in the business 37 years. I started working with him fresh out of high school and then after college, and then after I went back and got my MBA I actually became an investment advisor representative and ran his marketing department. I discovered through that process that what I really love to do is the marketing side of things, so I started working with a company called FMG Suite that helps independent advisors with their websites, and I created my own company to help advisors outsource their marketing department so that they can have cohesive, authentic marketing presences but with a minimum investment of their time, and so that’s what Indigo Marketing Agency does.
We do everything from websites to search engine optimization, social media profiles, which we’ll talk about today, and we have custom monthly marketing packages that help advisors who embrace a specialty to stay in front of their niche every single month. So say you work with doctors or dentists or divorcées, we create specific content that’s valuable to them and we share it each month for you on your website, by email, and across social media, keeping you top of mind to increase your referrals and your new clients. We also do custom reports and white papers, and we have exclusive courses and webinars like this one for financial advisors.
Today, we’re going to be talking with an expert guest from GuideVine, Nevin Gleason. GuideVine, if you don’t know, is the Match.com for financial advisors. It’s this great platform where people looking for an investment advisor can go on and search and filter through advisor profiles to find the advisor that really speaks to them. And so it helps advisors create powerful marketing videos, and we’ll show you an example of one of those videos today, and they offer a digital footprint scorecard evaluation. Because most advisors may not know whether or not they’re doing well on social media, you may not even know what your digital footprint looks like, and so GuideVine offers a digital footprint scorecard so they could show you exactly what your presence looks like and where you can improve. Stick around to the end of the presentation and we’ll give you a great offer to get your digital footprint scorecard today.
Today we’re going to cover a lot. We’ll move quickly because I know you all are very busy. But we’re going to talk about how strong your digital footprint is and how to tell whether or not you need a stronger digital footprint. We’ll also talk about why video and social media are powerful today. Where does digital fit within your business? How do you rate your online presence? How to use your digital presence correctly to actually grow your business? We’ll go over a case study of one advisor who’s done just that. And we’ll talk about how to get your free digital footprint scorecard worth over $450, and how to get an amazing marketing video using GuideVine’s services. So with that, I would like to introduce our guest, Nevin Gleason. He’s going to tell you a little bit about his background.
Nevin Gleason:
Thank you very much, Claire. My name is Nevin Gleason. I am the director of advisor success here at GuideVine. I really help advisors to highlight their strengths, tell their stories, and communicate the value that they bring to clients. I’ve done a lot of videos with advisors. I’ve coached over 140 of them, produced scripts for over 400 individual videos, really geared to help these advisors grow their web presences.
Just a little bit about my background. I graduated with a bachelor of science in Business Administration from UNC Chapel Hill, and I graduated from the Kenan-Flagler Business School undergraduate program. I previously worked at Vanguard where I helped individuals choose the right investments for their needs, and I also obtained my Series 7 and 63 licenses. In addition, I worked at U.S. Trust and I helped ultra high net worth families with their credit and investment solutions.
We’re going to look first here at why your digital footprint is important. When we talk about your digital footprint, we’re looking about your spaces online, where people can find you and interact with you digitally. Online competition in the advisory space is fierce and it really means a strong presence is all the more important. One in three consumers are influenced by social media in their purchases, meaning profiles like LinkedIn, Facebook, and other areas where you can showcase your brand are crucial to having that success. You could see that over 640,000 consumers in the U.S. search for online expertise every single month, and it’s really important that you have that strong digital presence to show that you’re actively participating in that space to attract a portion of those consumers. Even if you have a presence online, there are a number of ways that we’ll cover to make sure you’re following best practices. And really having a strong digital presence allows for direct communication with consumers, deeper relationships, and being able to use that channel for updates, news and important changes.
How can your digital strategy grow your firm? The goals of a digital strategy include positioning yourself to consumers as the best option for their needs, attracting new business, and standing out from your competitors. One of the first things you need to do is to define your target groups of clients, so who are you looking to attract? Examples of those could be doctors, engineers, business owners, or really anybody that you feel would be a valuable add to your business. Without knowing the types of clients you want to attract, your strategy’s never going to truly be successful. So once you want to define those target groups of clients, you can then figure out how to market to them. One of the best ways to do that is to find where they are online.
As an example, if your target group of clients is doctors you can be active within medical groups on Facebook, where individuals in this community may be seeking financial advice or general help. You can do things like create blog posts and videos addressing their common financial problems of this group as a whole and post them online. You should be aiming for communities, Facebook pages, Twitter accounts, and even using relevant hashtags to connect with these individuals. As far as your website is concerned, there are a number of things you can do including posting signups for information sessions, webinars just like this one, and offering up helpful information. Overall, you really want to clearly speak to your intended audience and demonstrate the value you’re providing to them specifically.
This takes us to using your digital presence correctly. Once you’ve identified the types of clients you want to target and you know where to find them, you want to use each channel available to you in the most effective way possible. Every channel is different and has its own set of best practices that you need to follow to be successful. The key point here for a lot of these channels is to post regularly and often, so you want to adhere to the right cadence for each channel, but in most cases more is better.
Along with that, you really want to make sure that you’re engaging with your audience. This can be liking, sharing, and replying to posts. The purpose of that is to boost enthusiasm, show consumers that you’re listening and that you’re there to help with their problems, and answer questions of theirs, and you really want to build that brand equity to show that you’re a person that they can reliably turn to for specific help. We’ll get into some more specifics shortly, but a quick example would be … for cadence, Facebook posts should be about two to three posts per day is a good guideline for a minimum, whereas LinkedIn could be closer to two to three posts per month, just because it’s a different type of channel.
Now we’re going to look at the importance of video. It’s really important that as part of your overall digital strategy you include video as a cornerstone of that. There are a couple of reasons for this. One of the first is because video drives consumers to take action. It’s also one of the richest forms of communication other than face to face, and it goes a lot further than just simple texts and a picture may do. Finally, using video is a great way to engage mobile users, which as we’ll see is a trend that will only continue to grow. You want to make sure you’re capturing value in that space.
We could see here, two key statistics. The first one is pretty striking. You could see that 96% is the click-through rate for an increase for consumers where you’re seeing video in that email. So if you don’t have email with video components, you should start doing that because it’s going to help drive those consumers to take action. It’s really just simple understanding that when consumers are engaging with video, they’re really able to form a deeper connection with you. They’re able to understand a little bit more about your background, how you operate, and get a sense of comfort before they even meet you face to face. Kind of alongside that, there’s the 46% of users taking some sort of action after viewing a video. So again, it’s really using that as a driver to try and develop the comfort, the trust, and then having those consumers do the action that you’re intending them to do.
One example of that is advisor Greg Brown. You can click on the link below here in this webinar if you want to watch the video. But he has a video here about his services, and this is something that GuideVine can help do, where you’ll be able to clearly communicate to clients or consumers watching these videos, how you’re able to help them, and it really helps to build that trust early on. We’ve heard time and time again from consumers that are thankful for being able to interact with advisors on our site because they are already going into meetings knowing what they want to talk about, they’re able to really touch on advisors services ahead of time and come prepared, and really have that trust before that face-to-face meeting occurs, which allows for quicker onboarding, a richer meeting experience, and, really, happier parties on both sides.
You can really use video effectively on a number of different channels including your website, social media, and for one-off events. It’s pretty straight forward in terms of adding it places these days. Adding video to your website is usually very easy and platforms like Twitter and Facebook make it even simpler.
Another key point that we had touched on was using video to reach more mobile users. Mobile phone use is only going to keep growing over time. It’s forecasted to go from just about 63% in 2016 to 67% by 2019, and that trend has no signs of slowing down. So as more and more consumers are watching video on their mobile devices, you want to make sure that you are well positioned to take advantage of that. The number of mobile phone users in the world is expected to pass the 5 billion, with a B, mark by 2019. So you want to make sure you’re using video early and often, and you’re able to engage your user base a lot more effectively in this way.
The last main section we’re going to cover here is how your online presence stacks up. We’re going to review some of the key best practices for a number of channels including your firm website, your LinkedIn, your Facebook, and your Twitter profiles.
We’re going to start off with your firm website. One of the biggest things here is having branding consistency. Branding consistency simply means using the same types of content across different channels, and it really all starts with your firm website, which is one of the key areas where consumers may interact with you. The same logo, like your sizing, colors, and fonts. The tagline, such as the firm for families, or anything that you’re using in that way. And really, anything that is associated with your firm in some sort of branding perspective should be the same anywhere you go. The point of this is really to establish legitimacy so that you’re not looking a little bit amateurish by using sort of different fonts or different sized photos for your logo as an example. You want to show that you are taking that seriously and to reduce any confusion that can occur when you have [inaudible 00:12:49] branding issues that don’t match up.
You also want to show that your website is easy to navigate. Consumers want to be able to find what they’re looking for quickly and easily, and this is only going to help them to take action if you have an easily navigable website. You want to make sure things like your header on your website is very clean and simply laid out. Not using too many pieces of media at once, this can be things like flashing videos or call to actions. You want to keep your website very clean and easy to understand. If a consumer has a question or they need to find something, they should be able to go do that very quickly and easily. And then, keeping that top header clean with only a handful of links for simplicity.
Similarly, for the firm website, using social follow buttons is a great way to add to your social presence, but you’ll need to make sure that they’re visible to consumers. They’re not going to go searching for them just to like your page on Facebook or to follow you on Twitter, you’ll need to put them in a place where consumers can easily find them and take the action that you want them to. Similarly with that is the calls to action that you want consumers to follow through on. So if you want them to download a white paper or attend a webinar of yours, you would really want to make that prominently found on your website so that there’s no confusion there and that consumers can take that action. On the homepage is genuinely best if you have an event coming up or if you have a link to schedule a consultation, things like that, you really don’t want to bury those or have those beyond the fold for the first page, they should be very clearly displayed so that there’s no confusion.
Now we’re going to move on to the social profile of LinkedIn. LinkedIn is a great way for advisors to post relevant content for consumers who may be browsing. A lot of people use LinkedIn now as a social channel. More so in the past, it used to be largely just for job searching, but it’s become quite a social marketplace, so it’s important to have a strong LinkedIn presence as well, in addition to a firm website and a Facebook and Twitter strategy. Overall, you want to do a couple of things for LinkedIn to make sure that you’re positioned in the best way possible.
One of the first things you can do is to have your employees of your company follow your page. This is going to be great for brand equity and consistency, and the more that you do this, the better it’s going to look for consumers who might be researching your firm before moving forward with you. A larger following builds brand equity and shows that you’re a respected firm within your space.
Along the same topic of professionalism. You really want to make sure you’re using high quality images that are consistent across your social channels. So one thing you want to avoid, similar to as we said with your firm website, is to use images that are different from your website or drastically different on your LinkedIn. You want consumers to not have any confusion and know exactly what your firm’s principles are and to understand what the value proposition is that you’re conveying, and using those high quality images with call to actions should all be consistent and really look good across all your channels no matter what you’re using. If you’re using images that aren’t sized properly, they have low resolution, it can create confusion and make consumers overall feel that you aren’t really legitimate or taking things seriously, so you want to make sure that that’s squared away.
As far as the posting cadence on LinkedIn, as a general rule, two to three times per month is a good minimum that you want to maintain to show that you are still active and really engaging with that base of consumers who may be looking for you online. You want to engage with your audience along the same lines and show that you’re liking, sharing, responding to posts so that they know that you’re there and that you’re actively taking an interest in their questions and what they want to know more about you.
That leads us to Facebook, which is obviously one of the larger social platforms that you can use. It’s one of the key ways that you can directly communicate with consumers online. It’s really important that you have your Facebook presence all squared away and have everything in tip-top shape. One of the best ways to reach consumers that you’re looking to attract to your firm is to actively participate in Facebook Groups. Facebook Groups is a feature that Facebook offers where communities of like-minded individuals can get together and share posts, respond to comments, talk with each other, and really have open discussion. As I mentioned earlier in the presentation, if you often work with clients like doctors, you can actively engage with groups in the medical profession that doctors might visit frequently. So the point of this here is to be visible in front of the places where those desired clients may be.
Something also that many advisors tend to miss is to have a fully completed About section on your Facebook. This is just one piece of your overall Facebook presence, it’s a really important one, and it’s because consumers need to know where to go next if they want to know more about your firm. So having a completed About section, including things like your physical address and your website URL, is really necessary to have a strong Facebook presence so that consumers can take the next step if they see things that they like and they want to reach out to you.
As far as posting goes, as a general rule here, two to three times per day is really what you want to do for Facebook. In contrast to LinkedIn, which is a little bit less frequent, Facebook is a place where you really want to be posting things pretty often. You want to show that you are engaged and that consumers can interact with you really at any time. This is also similar to LinkedIn in that you want to like and share and respond to those posts. You can also do more than two to three times per day, but you really want to use that as a minimum to have a relevant presence on Facebook.
Now we’re going to talk about Twitter, which is something that not all advisors use to the full extent that they could for success. It’s also unique because it allows for instant and direct communication with potential clients or consumers that might be interested in your firm. Facebook is a great way to share content and Twitter is a really great … excuse me, Twitter is a really great way to interact directly with people who may be asking you questions or want to know more about your firm in general. Kind of along those lines, you want to be able to post about two to three times per day on Twitter, but you can definitely go above and beyond this number because Twitter is really meant to have a conversation with individuals. So showing that you’re actively engaged, could even be up to six to seven times per day. As long as it’s relevant content to your audience and that they’re going to be interested in it.
Finally, we’re going to talk about the exciting part of the presentation here where if you are any advisor that joins GuideVine, you will get a free digital footprint scorecard worth $450. The scorecard is really helpful to revamp your social presence and understand where you can improve and what’s going well currently. It actually reviews your firm website and various social media profiles like your Facebook, your LinkedIn, Twitter, and even Google Plus. It helps to give you actionable steps for improvement. Along those lines, it’s got an overall score so you can see a summary page showing red, yellow and green buttons for each component of your online channels, so you can easily see what’s going right or what needs to change. And GuideVine advisors get SEO optimized profiles that are designed for consumers to engage with you. You also get optional video creation which includes script coaching and video production like you saw with Craig Brown, and a videographer will come right to office. So, you can get in front of engaged consumers looking for an advisor and take advantage of the power of video by joining GuideVine’s nationwide network of advisors.
At this point, I’ve said quite a lot here, so I’m going to turn it back to Claire to show you how Indigo can help you step by step, creating strong social profiles and getting your marketing on track.
Claire Akin:
Great. Thank you so much, Nevin, for your insights, that was really helpful. I just want to encourage all the advisors listening to check out GuideVine because this is a huge problem that I see out there, is so many advisors understand the power of video, and they understand why they need video on their site, but it’s a bit of a hassle to locate a videographer, shoot a video, go to a studio, and so GuideVine makes it so easy. They write your videos for you, they send the videographer to your office, they create beautiful professional videos, and they edit them and help you add them to your website. It’s just such a great solution that I’ve been looking for for a long time for the advisors out there, and so I encourage you to check it out. They’ll feature you on their site so consumers looking for an advisor in their area will be able to look at your profile and watch your videos. It’s just a great asset and they give away a lot of value with their service, so I encourage you to check them out if you haven’t already.
So, if you go through this process, you get your digital footprint scorecard and you’re disappointed, which I know a lot of advisors out there will be disappointed, because maybe you haven’t had time to create your LinkedIn company page or really fill out your profile or create your Facebook Business Page, we can help. You may not know, but most advisors who create their online social media profiles spend over six hours creating their profiles. It’s just a lot of work to do. If it’s the first time that you’ve done it, it can be very confusing.
When we create your profiles, we have a 50 point checklist that we go through to create your LinkedIn personal profile, your LinkedIn company page, your Facebook Business Page, and your Twitter company profile. 50 different things we do to add your background images, add your logo, fill out the About section, connect with the people that you know online, join any relevant groups. There’s a lot that goes into really building out a successful profile and it takes quite a bit of time. We do it everyday for advisors, including making any required compliance changes. So if you need help getting your digital footprint up to speed, that’s where we come in.
This is really our loss leader. This is how we start a relationship with people. You may give away a free financial plan or a free financial consultation. At Indigo, we upgrade your social media profiles for $250. We do your Facebook Business Page, your LinkedIn profile, your LinkedIn company page, and your Twitter profile for just $250. This is a way that we start a conversation with advisors. We start getting to know who they are. And we start having them understand that it’s really easy to work with our firm, and that we understand the industry and we understand what advisors are looking, which is a simplified marketing solution, and to be able to take marketing off their plate and get a professional presence with a minimum investment of their time.
To get started with our social media profile optimization service, you can go to indigomarketingagency.com. You’ll save $200, so it’s only $250 for all your profiles, including compliance edits. And if you go to indigomarketingagency.com/social you can check out example profiles and our checklist for the 50 point inspection that we do to bring your profiles up to speed.
Thank you so much for joining us today. I hope that you found some relevant information. I really encourage you to get in touch with GuideVine, talk about their platform, think about joining so you get those videos and that digital footprint scorecard. Thank you, Nevin, for being here, and thank you, advisors, for watching.
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Anne Wheeler is responsible for a variety of administrative tasks as well as updating social media pages for clients. Anne enjoys the creative side of her position and the ability to collaborate with the team to help advisors get started with Indigo.
Anne holds a bachelor’s degree in communication from the University of Tennessee. Outside of work, she enjoys walking, baking, spending time with her husband, Rick (a structural engineer), and two sons, Thomas and Turner. Anne loves being a full-time mom, and appreciates that Indigo gives her the opportunity to work part-time while still caring for her boys.
Leading the Indigo team with heart, Hugo Fernandez is passionate about helping our financial advisors attract a flood of their A+ clients with sustainable marketing campaigns. He enjoys running companies that are wildly successful and wearing a black t-shirt every day of his life. When his two favorite things come together, you have an average day at Indigo.
Hugo Fernandez is also CEO of Indigo’s partner company, Just Digital, and author of The Client Acquisition Blueprint. He has personally helped hundreds of entrepreneurs grow their business through his proven blueprint for creating an EPIC marketing strategy and online presence.
Kelli McLeod plays an integral role at Indigo while overseeing the Account Services Team, providing customer service, getting financial advisors onboarded and in serving as their primary point of contact during that process. Her team looks to her for her leadership and decision-making abilities For Kelli, the most rewarding part of this role is working with clients one-on-one to ensure they’re happy and that their needs are met.
Kelli has a bachelor’s degree in communications and public relations from Pacific Lutheran University. More recently, she’s done extensive work in the corporate housing and property management industries.
Kelli currently lives in Colorado Springs, Colorado, with her husband, Ian, who is an officer in the U.S. Army, and their two sons, Zachary and Cameron. When she’s not working, you can find her running or hiking, attending group fitness classes, and cooking. Kelli’s also an avid book club enthusiast, so be sure to reach out to her if you’re looking for a new read.
Sara Dressler manages all systems and operating processes while overseeing several departments. Sara is responsible for supervising many activities within Indigo and identifying areas of improvement to better meet company goals. She functions as the bridge connecting management to every department.
Sara has a bachelor’s degree in business administration and a minor in communications from Pacific Lutheran University. She leverages this degree, along with her years of experience as a virtual assistant, to keep our company running like a well-oiled machine. Sara is happiest when spending time with her family. Her three young boys and life as a military spouse keep her busy, but she wouldn’t trade it for the world. She lives an active lifestyle and loves working out, getting outside, and watching sports with her family (whether it’s on TV, at her kids’ games, or in the backyard).
Elizabeth Reider is a woman of many talents. She spent 10 years as a Chief Marketing Officer for a top-level independent financial advisor, and since her entry into financial services, she has networked and become friends with many advisors. Elizabeth admires their empathy, knowledge, and passion for their work, and has seen how independent advisors are more than professionals providing investment and planning advice; they are trusted confidants, life coaches, and guides. Over time, they become a part of their clients’ extended family—and she loves coming alongside that. (Check out this video to hear directly from Elizabeth about why she loves working with financial advisors.)
As Director of Marketing, Elizabeth helps get the word out about how partnering with Indigo can take an advisor’s marketing to the next level and beyond to grow their business and increase their productivity.
Elizabeth earned her bachelor’s degree in management information systems from the University of South Florida Muma College of Business. She also holds a life, health, and variable annuity license, which gives her a special understanding of the many products and services advisors offer. Originally from Clearwater, FL, Elizabeth loves to travel and has visited 12 countries, including extended visits to eSwatini, Africa, to visit family and assist with humanitarian relief programs. She has seen firsthand how independent financial advisors are providing advice to their clients that outpours into the lives of their own families, staff, community, and sometimes across the globe. When she’s not working, Elizabeth enjoys attending orchestral and theater productions with her husband, David, and taking their son, Julian, to art museums, as well as family evenings in the backyard playing baseball with her son and shih-tzu poodle, Wrigley. She is also an active participant in overseas humanitarian work—using her skills to make a difference in the lives of others.
It’s Katie Cress’s mission to help financial advisors reach their ideal prospects through custom digital marketing. On any given day, you can find Katie meeting with new financial advisors to learn more about their marketing goals, who they love working with, and why they’re passionate about helping others. Her favorite part of her job is meeting new advisors every day and continuing to learn how each firm and individual advisor is different, and using her marketing and small business background to help them craft a game plan that empowers them to grow their business and enhance their services. Often described by loved ones as a “helper” and “caretaker,” Katie is passionate about advocating for her advisors’ needs and supporting her coworkers to help them succeed.
Katie holds an MBA from Xavier University and a BA in Economics from Ohio University. A Midwest girl for life, she lives in Cincinnati, Ohio, with her husband, Brandon (who’s also a marketing guru), and their three kids, Charli, Lucy, and Teddy. She and her husband also own Clean Eatz Cafe, where they use their collective marketing prowess and love of food to create a welcoming space for employees and hungry customers alike. Katie is passionate about and for small business owners, being raised by her father who was an entrepreneur, being one herself with her husband, and working with them every day at Indigo. She loves the spirit, creativity, and drive of entrepreneurs. When Katie’s not working or helping run the family business, she enjoys working out with her husband at Orange Theory, loving on her three kids, and cooking delicious food.
Lori Koepke plays a major role as a liaison between Indigo Marketing Agency and its wonderful clients. She works directly with our advisor clients on their marketing strategies, marketing calendars, article creation, editing processes, compliance approvals, deployment of their content, and more. Lori enjoys helping strategize and be a support to her clients, and loves the camaraderie among the Indigo team members.
Before joining the Indigo team, Lori was a schoolteacher for 10 years. She has a Master of Education and Bachelor of Arts in Elementary Education from Concordia University in Portland, OR. She was born and raised in Vancouver, B.C., and lived in Vancouver, WA, for 25 years before moving to Boise, Idaho, where she currently resides with her husband, Jeremy, and four wonderful kids, Sophie, Tanner, Jonas, and Violet. In her free time, you can find Lori reading, watching football, and driving her kids to all their activities.
Watch this video to hear why Lori loves working with Indigo.
Heidi Wilson thrives on helping advisors create an online voice and streamline their marketing efforts. With her mother being a retired financial advisor and her brother-in-law currently a CFP® professional, she’s passionate about taking the marketing pressure off of advisors so they are able to focus on their clients. She loves when advisors tell her something we did for them helped; it can be as simple as taking something off their very busy plate or helping them land a new client with one of the articles we wrote. With broad-based consumer and B2B marketing experience, Heidi is constantly thinking outside the box and brings a fresh perspective to the Indigo team.
Heidi holds a bachelor’s degree in public relations from Florida State University and hails from Tampa, Florida. Her husband, Chris, is in the U.S. Army, and as they are constantly moving, they take every opportunity to explore the new areas where they’re living. Some of their favorite places they’ve called home include Hawaii and New Orleans. Heidi is thankful for the opportunity to work remotely with Indigo, which allows her to take her job with her, no matter where the Army moves her family next.
Watch this video to hear why Heidi loves working with Indigo.
Jillian Segrue acts as a liaison between clients and the Indigo team, using her 12 years of customer service experience in fields such as healthcare, financial services, and risk management to help hone their message and deploy it effectively and efficiently. Jillian enjoys building unique relationships with each of her clients as she uniquely helps them reach their ideal target audience.
Jillian has a bachelor’s degree in healthcare administration and a minor in business administration from SUNY Brockport. Originally from Rochester, NY, she currently lives in Columbus, GA, with her husband, Tim (an Army captain), daughter, Macie, son, Henry, and two cats. As a military spouse, Jillian appreciates the flexibility Indigo provides—allowing her to juggle motherhood and excelling in her career—and its unmatched positive, supportive, and uplifting company culture. In her free time, Jillian loves to read, shop, and go running outdoors (just not in the Georgia heat!).
Amanda Laskey works with clients one-on-one to develop and implement marketing strategies that help spread the word about who they are and how they help. In her role, Amanda strives to deliver outstanding customer service to our clients. She is tech-savvy, an independent problem-solver, extremely organized, an excellent communicator, and thrives on helping others. She appreciates the ability to work remotely in a collaborative team environment while supporting her family.
Amanda holds a Bachelor of Arts in Education and a Master of Arts in Inclusive Education from Seton Hill University and has over 10 years of experience in secondary classroom teaching and over 3 years as an Executive Assistant. A proud Army spouse, Amanda resides in Pittsburgh, PA, with her husband, Brandon, their two sons, Jackson and Harrison, and their sheepadoodle, Waylon, and goldendoodle, Cash. Outside of work, Amanda enjoys spending time with her family, relaxing at the beach, traveling to new places, dessert, and all things Disney.
Beverly Anderson is the go-to contact point for advisors to create a targeted and cohesive marketing strategy that is unique to their specific goals. She loves seeing her clients experience positive results from their marketing efforts, and as a world traveler, she appreciates the ability to work remotely and connect with clients from any country.
Beverly holds a Bachelor of Science in Business Administration from Oregon State University. In addition to traveling, she enjoys making music as a singer/songwriter and anything outdoors (she’s an avid snowboarder and rock climber). She and her partner have a rescue pup, Toro, a former street dog in Cabo, Mexico, before they adopted him. Beverly has three older sisters, with whom she is very close, and they all, along with her mother, live in the Portland area. Although she spent the first half of her childhood in Fountain Hills, Arizona, Beverly considers Portland to be home.
Watch this video to hear why Beverly loves working with Indigo.
Kasey Yhap’s commitment to her clients is the driving force behind her work. Her diverse educational background (a bachelor’s and master’s degree in vocal performance from the Peabody Conservatory of Music and a master’s degree in communications from Syracuse University) has equipped her with the unique skill set required for success. Kasey’s strong communication skills and creative mindset, combined with her passion for helping her clients, make her a valuable asset to the team.
In her free time, Kasey stays active and maintains a healthy lifestyle through yoga, CrossFit, and spending time outdoors. These hobbies complement her professional life by allowing her to recharge and bring new ideas to her work at Indigo.
Dan Corcoran enjoys being on the front lines of financial advisor marketing, working directly with advisors to help them build a strong marketing plan to get their firm’s message out. Working remotely can be a challenge as talking to others, brainstorming, and sharing experiences recharges him; he maximizes touchpoints to connect with others to make every day at Indigo rewarding.
Dan holds a bachelor’s degree in journalism and mass communication from the University of Wisconsin-Madison. He enjoys drone photography and videography (he owns his own drone business, Forward Focus Photography), sports broadcasting (he was a hockey broadcaster for four years prior to COVID), spending time with family, camping/hiking, running, swimming, and road biking.
Originally from Sun Prairie, WI, Dan has three siblings, and prior to joining Indigo’s team, he worked for an RIA in Madison for two years.
Lisa Gaines spends her work days uploading blog posts to our clients’ websites and LinkedIn profiles, drafting emails, and making adjustments to content as advisors request. Lisa has learned a lot as a long-time member of the Indigo family and has enjoyed seeing the processes evolve to become more streamlined and efficient over time. And she loves working with the amazing Indigo team!
Lisa is a proud alum of Texas A&M University, where she received a Bachelor of Business Administration in Finance. As a military child, Lisa feels as though she grew up everywhere; however, she claims central Texas as home where most of her family is originally from. She currently lives in Fort Hood, Texas, with her husband, Korey (an active-duty Army officer), and two kids, Madelyne and Jameson. As a military family, Lisa moves quite a bit—often to areas where the job market is small. She loves that Indigo provides her with a steady job she can take with her wherever she goes. When she’s not working, Lisa enjoys dabbling in interior design, binging a good Netflix series, and spending time with friends and family.
Read more about why Lisa loves working with Indigo.
Joshua spends his days developing client websites, implementing automations, and troubleshooting website issues. He enjoys the challenge of working with websites while simultaneously learning new tips and tricks to optimize them for maximum efficiency.
Originally from Pulupandan, Negros Occidental, Philippines, Joshua holds a Bachelor of Science in Information Technology, and in his free time enjoys playing computer games and watching anime and movies.
Jennifer Farrior is Indigo’s go-to for all things proofreading and editing. Her attention to detail is unmatched, and she takes pride in making sure every article is clean and concise before it heads out to our financial advisors. She says, “Even a single typo can affect an advisor’s credibility, and we strive for perfection when it comes to how they’re presented online.” As Lead Writer, Jennifer trains and manages the team of writers, and also writes and collaborates with team members to create Indigo’s blog posts and promotional material.
Jennifer holds a bachelor’s degree in English from UCLA. In addition to her role at Indigo, she runs her own copy editing and proofreading business, She Proofreads LLC. Jennifer hails from San Diego, California, but now lives in Louisville, Kentucky, with her three kids, Joshua, Julia, and Joel, and goldendoodle, Dexter. She loves working at Indigo because it provides her with the income, flexibility, and the community she needs as a stay-at-home mom. Outside of work, you can find her spending time with her kids, friends, boyfriend, or working on a puzzle while watching Netflix.
Sarah Robichaud uses her love of spreadsheets to create engaging content calendars for our clients’ social media pages. Sarah holds a bachelor’s degree in psychology from Salisbury University and a master’s degree in marriage and family counseling from Liberty University. In addition to her role at Indigo, Sarah volunteers as a virtual administrator for Army Wife Network, a nonprofit organization that aims to empower and educate military spouses through blogs, podcasts, and various other resources.
Born and raised in Maryland, Sarah currently lives in Rochester Hills, Michigan, with her husband, Andrew, two children, Emily and Logan, and two fur babies, Penny and Chewbacca. As a military spouse and mother, Sarah loves working for Indigo because of the flexibility it affords her, allowing her to continue to build her career while frequently relocating around the globe and working on her own schedule to accommodate a busy lifestyle. Sarah also loves Indigo’s supportive team atmosphere. Outside of work and volunteering, you can find Sarah enjoying time outdoors with her family, typically running, camping, or traveling. An avid traveler, she’s visited 16 countries and is always planning her family’s next great adventure.
As a natural problem-solver, Peter Wardenaar uses his skills to help financial advisors find new ways to grow their site traffic and attract more clients they love. Peter enjoys the dynamic nature of his role; the challenges are never the same as every situation is unique and requires a different approach. But don’t let Peter’s technical prowess fool you—he also has quite the creative side! Before joining the Indigo team, he worked as a first-grade teacher and university English professor in Cali, Colombia.
Peter has bachelor’s degrees in education and in music from Portland Bible College and a master’s degree in music production and technology from Berklee College of Music. In his spare time, he loves writing and recording music, graphic design, engaging with people, and studying leadership and theology. Peter is also one of the most well-traveled people you’ll ever meet! He was born and raised in the Netherlands but lived in the Pacific Northwest for over 12 years. Today, he resides in Cali, Colombia, with his wife, Gloria Isabel, and their three kids, Emanuel, Paloma, and Violet.
Kourtney Kearney is a data-driven woman with a knack for coding. On any typical day, you can find her building web pages, troubleshooting bugs in code, and setting up automations to make life easier for our clients. Thanks to her technical background, Kourtney has a vast understanding of the inner workings of websites and the data associated with them. She’s always on the lookout for new technology that will help us improve our workflows so we can focus on what we do best—helping financial advisors grow their business. Kourtney enjoys the variation of tasks and loves the challenge of taking an existing website and making it better without completely rebuilding it.
Kourtney is originally from Newark, CA (Bay Area), but currently resides in Antelope, a suburb of Sacramento, and holds a Bachelor of Arts in Art History and Curatorial Studies. Outside of work, Kourtney spends her free time reading, playing volleyball, baking with her two sons, and hanging out with family.
Adrian Bachini works on tasks requiring technical knowledge and other various administrative tasks. A software developer by day, prior to joining Indigo, Adrian had very little knowledge on how nontechnical positions operate. His position at Indigo allows him to both learn and experience a variety of platforms and gain more knowledge about how to maximize marketing initiatives.
Adrian holds a bachelor’s degree in computer science with a specialization in software technology from De La Salle University Manila. Adrian considers himself somewhat of a workaholic, with a full-time day job in addition to working with Indigo. When he’s not working, he enjoys watching documentaries, action movies, and anime, and also loves cycling on muddy downhill trails or cross-country rides, playing video games, and simply resting when he can. He is also a licensed commercial pilot and flies in his free time; he obviously also enjoys traveling. Adrian lives with his family and more than a few pets (11 dogs, 6 cats, a few birds, and fish)—he has more pets than humans in his home!
Adriana Escalante thrives on creating an online representation that looks and feels true to our financial advisor clients as she builds their websites to best represent them and their businesses. Her experience working on travel and tourism websites motivates her to make sure every site she works on is exciting and engaging to web visitors. A graduate of University of Texas in Austin, Adriana double-majored in International Relations and a Liberal Arts program called Plan II. She also received a certification for front-end development from a coding academy in Austin, which has equipped her to serve as a great liaison between developers and clients.
After living in Austin, TX, for most of her adult life, Adriana now resides in San Antonio, TX (a city with a ton of history and many things to do), with her partner, Russell, and their dog, Abbey. She also has a brother and sister with whom she’s very close and tries to see a few times a year. Most of Adriana’s hobbies revolve around nature. She grew up spending lots of time on a sailboat or at a beach, and her family has a small cabin in Creede, CO, where she spends half the year hiking, camping, skiing, or snowshoeing (depending on the season). When she’s in Texas, she tries to get out most weekends to kayak. A Texas Master Naturalist, Adriana loves learning about all the plants, birds, and animals in her home state. She also dabbles in making stained-glass suncatchers!
Kaitlin Thornal helps clients onboard as they begin their marketing journey with Indigo, and she loves meeting new people and learning new things. She holds a Bachelor of Arts in Journalism and Mass Communication/Public Relations, International Studies, and a minor in French from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, as well as a Master of Arts in Communication and Leadership Studies from Gonzaga University.
Kaitlin was born at Fort Lewis, Washington, but she moved around a lot growing up, spending the most time in North Carolina. She now resides in Fort Moore, Georgia, with her husband, Mason, and their four children, Caroline, Mason, Jack, and Bo. Kaitlin’s favorite place to live has been Europe (Italy, Ireland, and Belgium) and she would go back in a heartbeat! In her spare time, she enjoys long-distance running, reading, and spending time in the mountains of western North Carolina.
In her integral role, Samantha Triglia schedules social media posts, deploys email campaigns, and updates Google Business Profile pages for clients’ new blog posts. She also assists with lead generation/tracking and other administrative tasks. Helping out wherever she’s needed, Samantha appreciates the opportunities she has to learn and grow in her position. She says, “I love being a part of the team, especially when content deployment involves many moving parts and collaboration to get done and ready to go.”
A former teacher for 14 years, Samantha holds a Bachelor of Arts in Childhood Education from St. Francis College in Brooklyn, New York. She also holds a Master of Arts in Middle School Earth Science Education from CUNY Brooklyn College and a Master of Science in Educational Administration and Leadership from the University of Scranton. (Yes, TWO master’s degrees!) While in college, Samantha was the assistant to the Chief Compliance Officer of a brokerage firm on Madison Avenue in New York City for high-net-worth individuals and families, so she’s quite familiar with the types of clients Indigo serves.
Born and raised in Brooklyn, Samantha currently lives in Rockaway Beach in Queens, New York (the place the Ramones song is about!), with her husband, Matt (a Navy veteran and currently a New York City Firefighter), and their three sons, Matthew, Thomas, and James. Outside of work, Samantha enjoys spending time with her family riding bikes on their neighborhood boardwalk and going to the beach. They love to travel, including yearly family trips to Hershey, Pennsylvania, and Universal Studios in Florida (they’re big Harry Potter fans!). Samantha also stays active exercising and playing on a women’s softball team and a co-ed beach volleyball team with her husband.
Amanda wears a few hats at Indigo, bringing value to the team by creating custom social media posts for advisors, assisting with the onboarding process of new team members, and tackling behind-the-scenes team tasks. She loves to collaborate with our amazing clients and supportive team members.
Born and raised in Fort Myers, Florida, Amanda holds a bachelor’s degree in English Literature from the University of Central Florida and a master’s degree in education from North Carolina State University. She worked as an educator for about a decade before pivoting to a career in writing and marketing. A Space Force military spouse (former army), Amanda and her husband, Michael, are currently located in Colorado Springs, Colorado, with their two children, Mikayla and William, and two fur babies (a cat and a dog). When she’s not reading or writing fiction in her spare time, Amanda enjoys hanging out with family, hiking, trying new foods, and traveling.
A marketer at heart, Adam finds satisfaction when consulting, strategizing, and implementing strategies to improve his clients’ business. He specializes in organic and paid social campaigns, as well as email and SEO optimization.
Adam holds a bachelor’s degree in philosophy from the University of Central Florida and a Juris Doctor degree from Thomas Jefferson School of Law. Raised in Boca Raton, Florida, by his mom (an event planner) and dad (a private boat charter captain), Adam currently lives in Astoria, New York, with his wife, Olivia, who works in pet care. When he’s not cooking up killer marketing strategies, he enjoys role-playing games, Brazilian jiu-jitsu, and reading non-fiction and philosophy books.
With her marketing expertise, Melanie Valdez leaves no stone unturned when helping clients hone their marketing strategy. She loves interacting with clients and brainstorming new ideas to enhance their marketing results. No two days are ever the same, and that’s the way Melanie likes it!
Melanie holds a bachelor’s degree in psychology from Western Washington University as well as an MBA from Western Governors University. When she’s not rocking her role at Indigo, she enjoys cooking (trying out new recipes every week), painting, and discovering new restaurants with friends. She and her husband, Dat, love to travel and go on walks with their dog, Brutus, a pomeranian-chihuahua whose personality is definitely not proportionate to his small size!
Hugo Fernandez acquired ownership of Indigo Marketing Agency from founder Claire Akin in 2022. Leading the Indigo team with heart, Hugo is passionate about helping our financial advisors attract a flood of their A+ clients with sustainable marketing campaigns. He enjoys running companies that are wildly successful and wearing a black t-shirt every day of his life. When his two favorite things come together, you have an average day at Indigo.
Hugo Fernandez is also CEO of Indigo’s partner company, Just Digital, and author of The Client Acquisition Blueprint. He has personally helped hundreds of entrepreneurs grow their businesses through his proven blueprint for creating an EPIC marketing strategy and online presence.
To get in touch with Hugo, email him or connect with him on LinkedIn.