SEC Marketing Rule Articles
Establishing Your Policies and Procedures
As an SEC registered investment adviser, the policies and procedures you develop for your firm’s testimonials and endorsements to comply with the SEC Marketing rule will need to be incorporated into your existing written policies and procedures established to prevent violation of the Advisers Act.
In this article, we’ll guide you through important topics discussed by the SEC in the Marketing rule, including opportunities and potential risks you’ll want to consider to help you prepare your policies and procedures for supervision of your firm’s activities associated with testimonials and endorsements.
⭐ At the end of the article, you’ll find a template you can download to help you prepare policies and procedures for your firm.
Preparing Compliant Disclosures
In this article, we explain the specific disclosure requirements prescribed by the SEC for testimonials and endorsements to help you craft disclosures that are compliant with the SEC Marketing rule.
Beyond regulatory compliance, we also discuss how thoughtfully prepared disclosures instill trust and confidence in consumers, helping them make more informed and educated decisions when evaluating financial advisors.
⭐ At the end of the article, you’ll find an online review pre-publication checklist template you can download and use to ensure your testimonials and endorsements published online are compliant with SEC Marketing rule requirements.
Choosing the Right Advisor Review Platforms
Where you choose to collect, display and promote testimonials and endorsements matters. This is especially true for financial advisors and wealth management firms subject to SEC oversight.
In this article, we compare features and policies of general online review platforms (specifically Google and Yelp) to a dedicated industry online review platform (Wealthtender), and your own website to understand the pros and cons of each. We also share insights worth considering for compliance with the SEC Marketing rule.
⭐ Within the article, you’ll find a table highlighting relevant features and policies you’ll want to consider when choosing the platforms you’ll use to collect, display and promote your online reviews.
Asking for Reviews and Testimonials
As a financial advisor subject to SEC oversight, how you ask for testimonials and endorsements matters.
In this article, we’ll explain how you can solicit reviews from your clients (testimonials) and non-clients (endorsements) for compliance with the SEC Marketing rule.
⭐ At the end of the article, you’ll find an email template you can use and further customize to ask for testimonials from your clients (along with a separate email template to ask for endorsements from non-clients).
Testimonial Marketing Strategies to Grow Your Business
Once you’ve begun collecting testimonials and endorsements online, you’re all set to turn your reviews into a powerful source of new referrals.
Without lifting a finger, the positive reviews you’re collecting online are already sending signals to search engines like Google that you’re trustworthy and deserving of increased visibility in search results.
In this article, we’ll show you how you can promote your testimonials and endorsements both online and offline to attract new clients while maintaining compliance with the SEC Marketing rule.
