Short answer
Referrals are the most widely used way advisors win clients, and they rank among the lowest-cost channels in Kitces's analysis, so most marketing plans start there. Other channels add reach at a higher cost in time or money. Whatever mix you choose, a communication that offers your services to more than one person is an advertisement under the SEC Marketing Rule, and paying for referrals or testimonials triggers disclosure and contract requirements. [3] See the SEC Marketing Rule in plain words.
In Kitces Research's earlier survey, 93% of advisors said they gained new clients through referrals in the preceding year, the most-adopted tactic, and especially efficient because it is mostly inbound. [1] In Schwab's 2025 survey of 912 independent advisors who custody assets there, the top three-year priorities were gaining new clients (71%), raising assets per client (59%) and driving more referrals (55%). [4]
Six channels, what each takes and what to measure
| Channel | What it takes | What to measure |
|---|---|---|
| Client referrals | Mostly inbound; the time to earn them is part of serving clients well. [1] If you pay a client for a referral, that is a compensated endorsement under the Marketing Rule. [3] | Share of new clients from referrals; referrals per 100 clients; revenue per referred client |
| Centers of influence (attorneys, accountants) | One or two dozen hours per referral relationship. Efficiency ratio of 3.0 and over $15,000 of average revenue per client. [1] | Introductions and signed clients per relationship; hours invested; revenue per referral source |
| A niche | Define the client group so referral sources know whom to send you. Specialists serve fewer clients and spend more time with each. [5] | Revenue and hours per household; share of inquiries that fit; capacity (see below) |
| Content and search | SEO and paid web listings rank among the lowest-cost channels per client won, while social media and blogging bring less affluent clients. [1] | Visits to your contact page; inquiries; the source recorded on every new client |
| Events and seminars | Seminars show a median efficiency ratio above 1.0 and draw relatively affluent prospects. Client appreciation events average nearly $10,000 of revenue per new client but are costly. [1] | Attendees to meetings to clients; cost per event; revenue per new client |
| Social media | Kitces found its efficiency ratio so low it "rounds to zero" and its time-adjusted cost among the highest. [1] | Inquiries traced to a post; time spent |
| Paid channels | Typical firms earned about 1.4 times their spend on online ads and 2.8 times on marketing lists; paid web listings were above 1.0. [1] | Cost per lead; cost per client; payback time |
Kitces compares channels by client acquisition cost, which combines dollar costs with the imputed value of the advisor's time. SEO, paid web listings and referrals ranked lowest, and networking, centers of influence and social media highest. [1] A 2020 Kitces.com analysis, cited by Institutional Investor, put the average client acquisition cost at $3,119. [6] Treat all of these as reference points from specific surveys, not promises.
Events and seminars: the regulatory history
In 2007 the SEC, FINRA and state regulators released the results of examinations of 110 firms and branches that held free lunch seminars. Every one of the "seminars" examined was a sales presentation, 59% reflected weak supervision by the firm, 50% featured exaggerated or misleading advertising, and 13% (14 examinations) showed possible fraud and were referred to the appropriate regulator. [2] The report recommended closer supervision of seminars. [2] Treat any seminar invitation, slide deck and handout as an advertisement you must review and keep, and describe the event honestly. Extemporaneous, live, oral remarks are outside the advertisement definition; slides and handouts are not. [3]
Referral and lead-generation arrangements
A person's endorsement or testimonial that you pay for in cash or otherwise is itself an advertisement, whether or not it reaches many people. [3] SEC examiners found advisers using lead-generation firms, social media influencers and adviser referral networks, and "refer-a-friend" programs with small payments to clients, in some cases without recognizing that the arrangement created an endorsement or testimonial. [7] Before you pay anyone to send you clients, read the Marketing Rule guide and ask counsel.
What to measure
- Source. Record the source of every new client in your CRM (see the technology stack guide).
- Conversion. Inquiries to first meetings to signed clients, by source.
- Revenue per new client. Annual fees from clients won through each channel.
- Cost. Dollars plus your own hours, valued at a rate you set. Kitces counts both. [1]
- Payback. Months of fees to recover the cost of winning the client.
Before you spend on growth, check capacity
New clients help only if you can serve them. The advisor capacity calculator turns your hours, service model and admin share into the number of households you can serve. If you are near the limit, see hiring your first advisor or operations hire, and set your pricing with fee schedules and pricing models.
Rules to know before you launch
- Who is covered. The Marketing Rule applies to advisers registered or required to be registered with the SEC. [8] State-registered advisers should check their state's advertising rules with their state regulator. [9]
- Records. Keep a copy of every advertisement for five years from the end of the fiscal year it was last disseminated, the first two years in an appropriate office. [10]
- Also a broker-dealer representative? Your broker-dealer's supervision and FINRA Rule 2210 apply to your communications too. Ask your firm's compliance team which rules cover each piece.
This guide is educational, not legal advice, and it does not recommend a channel or a vendor.