Internet psychologist Graham Jones has told the Institute of Financial Planning's first social social media conference in London today that planners need realistic targets for their social media usage to maintain focus.
He said Kiwi Bank in New Zealand had grown from nothing to be one of the most powerful New Zealand banks within seven years by using social media to reach new customers. He said a Canadian credit union had followed a similar strategy underlining the effectiveness of social media.
He told delegates that these institutions had succeeded because they had a clear focus on what they wanted to achieve with social media and he urged delegates to apply science in choosing what social media tools to use and to have a clear idea of what they wanted to achieve with social media.
He told the IFP's Social Media Conference at the America Conference Centre in the City of London: "You need to have that single focus, that target of what you want to achieve in 2013."
He said planners should keep a close eye at "hype" cycles, which social media were hot at the moment. Some social media may be only a passing trend and planners should be careful not to back the wrong horse.
He also urged delegates to be careful of distractions. He said many planners were starting to use facebook but it had lost 600,000 users in January alone and may be past its peak.
"Focus on what works for you and not what others around you are telling you to do. But remember that social media is no longer just for teenagers, it's an essential part of doing business," he said.
The full-day conference will look at why social media is vital in business, how to add a personal touch to marketing, best practice strategies and defining goals and objectives.
Financial Planner will be tweeting live from the conference on Twitter @FPM_Online and running regularly updated news coverage onto financialplanneronline.co.uk To follow the conference on Twitter, use the hashtag #ifpsocialmedia.
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Speakers at the event will include Justine Priestley from Really Bright Media who will be speaking on utilising social media to showcase your business,  Bridget Greenwood on integrating social media into your business with care and Abbie Tanner of A Business Innovation.
Other speakers will include Philip Calvert from LifeTalk (formerly IFA Life) on LinkedIn essentials and Morris Pentel from Customer Experience Foundation on using social media via mobile phones and tablets.
The conference qualifies for six hours of CPD.

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