Planning Ahead
LetsMake APlan.org Enhances Awareness, Connects Consumers With CFP® Professionals
an all-time high of 91% among the target audience. Preference to work with a CFP® professional now stands at a record 89%. A Call to Action Through the Public Awareness Campaign, CFPBoardhasestablishedanationalmind- set around the value of financial planning and the importance of working with a competent, ethical CFP® professional. The messaging emphasizes the CFP® mark and drives consumers to ask the question, “Are you a C ERTIFIED FINANCIAL PLANNER ® profession?” The campaign’s call to action drives consumers to the LetsMakeAPlan. org website, where they can search for a CFP® professional. Omni-channel advertising through television, radio, digital platforms and social media meets the audience where they are. The target audience’s media hab- its inform placements in news, sports, life- style and financial programming. The 2024 campaign analysis showed that 30% of the target audience tunes into sports programming, so this year’s cam- paign included 10% more sports program- ming. Technology continues to evolve, allowing us to track audience response in real time to gauge the campaign’s ef- fectiveness in driving consumers to the LetsMakeAPlan.org website. In Local News This year, we also expanded our CFP Board Ambassador program, which en- gages CFP® professional volunteers to give local voice to our consumer advo- cacy and mission to benefit the public. In addition to writing articles for Lets- MakeAPlan.org, Ambassadors respond to media requests for subject matter ex- perts. Outlets including The Wall Street Journal,MarketWatch , CBS News and CNBC quoted CFP Board Ambassadors this year. The current cohort represents 28 states and includes military veterans, career changers, first-generation immigrants and even professional athletes. CFP® certification is the standard for competent, ethical financial plan- ning advice. Certification represents rigorous training and skills tested through a high-stakes exam and a com- mitment to high ethical standards. But it’s all for naught if consumers don’t rec- ognize what the letters C-F-P stand for. Because of the “It’s Gotta Be A CFP®” campaign, millions not only understand but actively seek out the designation.
networking event with firms and a ded- icated lounge for informal student net- working. Generous firm support spon- sored registration for 100 students. CFP Board also expanded its part- nership with The Externship, a well-regarded, eight-week financial planning training program. Externs gain hands-on experience, build pro- fessional networks and gain valuable insights into the day-to-day respon- sibilities of financial planners. Par- ticipants who complete the program earn 500 CFP Board standard pathway experience hours. Perhaps the most compelling evidence of the program’s e ff ectiveness is that 83% of Extern- ship participants said the experience increased their commitment to pursu- ing a career in financial planning. CFP Board continues to deepen our engagement and relationships on col- lege campuses. In collaboration with baccalaureate programs, CFP Board held several campus events to increase awareness of financial planning pro- grams and facilitate student engage- ment with firms. New Student Financial Planning Liaisons at several CFP Board Registered Programs helped promote fi- nancial planning education and careers through campus events and social me- dia, drawing hundreds of student at- tendees and highlighting scholarships, virtual career fairs and success stories. Over the past two years, the num- ber of CFP® exam candidates who com- pleted their educational coursework at degree-level Registered Programs has grown by 29%. In total, 1,410 candidates have completed the required education through these programs. This increase indicates that more individuals are pur- suing formal educational pathways to become CFP® professionals. April 2024 marked the launch of CFP Board’s Student Newsletter, a first-of- its-kind communication channel. The newsletter informs college students about the latest developments in the profession, including scholarship op- portunities, stories from CFP® profes- sionals about why they pursued the career, career fairs and news. With an impressive open rate of 46%, the newsletter keeps students engaged and motivated as they navigate their academic journeys. To further support the programs train- ing the next generation of financial plan-
STATS
First Impression
44 % UNAIDED AWARENESS of CFP ® certification among target audience (up from 17% before the Public Awareness Campaign began in 2011) 91 % TOTAL AWARENESS of CFP ® certification among target audience (highest ever tracked) 89 % PREFERENCE for CFP ® certification among target audience (highest ever tracked, up 5% from 2023) 2.5M+ USERS on LetsMakeAPlan.org 587,000+ SEARCHES to Find A CFP ® professional on LetsMakeAPlan.org (up 51% from 2023) 1.36B TOTAL AWARENESS IMPRESSIONS from paid advertising aimed at mass-affluent target audience 175,880
Expanding the Talent Pipeline Innovative new programs connect those pursuing CFP® certification with resources and guidance.
BY CYNTHIA KURTZ
CFP BOARD’S PUBLIC Awareness Cam- paign drives consumers to ask the ques- tion “Are You a C ERTIFIED FINANCIAL PLANNER ®?” with a call to action to visit the LetsMakeAPlan.org website. On LetsMakeAPlan.org, consumers can explore financial planning topics, learn how a CFP® professional can help im- prove their financial well-being and use the “Find A CFP® Professional” tool. In 2024, more than 2.5 million people visited LetsMakeAPlan.org and com- pleted more than 587,000 searches for CFP® professionals. LetsMakeAPlan.org blends ever- green content with timely articles on financial planning topics authored by CFP Board Ambassadors. Con- sumers can find the answers to com- mon questions, such as “How can a planner help me reach my goals?” and “How will I pay for financial planning services?” and read about tailored topics, including “Enter- ing Midlife.” A common thread in the content is the unique benefits CFP® professionals bring to the ad- visor-client relationship. The site emphasizes the ethical and compe- tency requirements for CFP® certi- fication, and the home page details the process to become certified. LetsMakeAPlan.org also includes a digital toolkit for CFP® professionals, featuring graphics, social media posts and other promotional materials to share with prospects, clients and oth- ers. Certificants can opt-in to share their public profile through the site’s “Find A CFP® Professional” tool. CFP® pro- fessionals can also share the content to help explain the di ff erence CFP® certi- fication can make and what to expect from the financial planning process.
BY LYNN MCNUTT
IN 2024, CFP BOARD welcomed 6,541 new CFP® professionals. Of these new certificants, 57% are under age 35, re- flecting a trend toward younger pro- fessionals achieving CFP® certifica- tion. Despite this trend, there are still significantly more CFP® professionals over age 65 than under age 30. This gen- erational divide underscores the evolv- ing landscape of the profession. According to financial market intel- ligence firm Cerulli Associates, Baby Boomers and the Silent Generation will pass down $84.4 trillion in assets during the next two decades. This wealth trans- fer will usher in a new wave of younger consumers who will benefit from com- petent, ethical financial advice to man- age these assets. As demand for financial planning continues to grow and firms of all sizes and business models adopt financial planning as a core service, the pro- fession faces a looming advisor short- age. CFP Board is uniquely positioned to address this gap, bringing together stakeholders in the financial advice
ecosystem to build a sustainable tal- ent pipeline for the profession’s future.
Where Money Meets Purpose
In 2024, CFP Board launched new dig- ital campaigns to raise awareness of fi- nancial planning as an attractive career choice among career changers and stu- dents. Several innovative programs also connected people pursuing financial planning careers with resources and guidance, helping them navigate the path to CFP® certification. In the fall, 275 attendees participated in new CFP® Pro Career Studios. These sessions provided education, engagement with CFP® professionals, interactive mock client scenarios, employer perspectives and resume workshops. The CFP Board Connections Confer- ence, held from September 29 to Octo- ber 1 at the Washington (D.C.) Hilton, also connected students with the pro- fession. A special track for student at- tendees featured recruiter and early ca- reer planner panel discussions, a speed
SOCIAL MEDIA ENGAGEMENT up 105% from 2023
THE STANDARD
A LOOK AT 2024
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