IFA Life launches directory of financial advisers' websites

Since the launch of the IFA social networking site in July 2008, IFA Life has seen increasing numbers of visits from consumers who are looking for financial advisers and IFAs.

Consumers increasingly turn to the Internet first when looking for professional service providers, so it's important that financial advisers have a compelling and visible web presence.

However, the vast majority of IFAs and financial advisers launch a website and do nothing or very little to promote it.

Founder of IFA Life and Internet marketing expert Philip Calvert said: "There's a perception amongst many IFAs that once you've got a website you can sit back and wait for the enquiries to come in. It doesn't work that way. There are a lot of simple techniques which you can employ to make sure you appear high in Google search results, but one of the best things you can do in the meantime, is to broaden your Internet presence by listing your website on sites where consumers are searching for financial advisers."

"This increasingly includes social networking websites like Facebook, LinkedIn, Ecademy and IFA Life because they are seen by many as ‘human search engines'. You ask a question and get quick responses from real people. So as a social networking site which is dedicated to financial advisers, it's sensible to get your website listed on IFA Life."

Because social networking websites have high volumes of content such as articles, blogs and comments, they are also very attractive to Google and other search engines and often simply joining such a site can dramatically improve your results in consumer searches.

Philip Calvert continued: "We've been monitoring the number of financial advisers who are using Facebook, and it has been steadily increasing. Online social networking is no longer seen as just for teenagers; it's now a mainstream business and search tool."

The IFA Life website directory will list websites by town, and there is no charge for financial advisers to be included in the service.

Financial advisers can list their website at ifalife.com/websitelisting