American Century Investments: Financial professionals use LinkedIn to find business insights

Financial advisors are one group that has quickly flocked to social media, especially driven by the increase in smartphone and tablet ownership. A survey from American Century Investments, a U.S. financial institution, in the first quarter of 2012 found that 9 out of 10 financial professionals have at least one social media account. Facebook is the most popular website used by financial professionals, with a penetration rate of 73%, and LinkedIn is second at 62%.

But when financial advisors do business on social media, they use LinkedIn more than Facebook. LinkedIn is clearly a place where financial advisors do business, while Facebook serves multiple purposes.

The survey also found that among those who use social networks for business activities, the highest proportion of users (21%) use this network to find expert comments and insights. Conversation is also an important business activity. 13% of people said that their most frequent business-related activity is commenting. Then they follow industry or market news (12%), search for people, such as customers or contacts, 11%; promote business or brand building, 11%, and share relevant content with customers.

However, consultants still have concerns about the use of social media. The main concerns are regulation or complaints, at 42%. Privacy issues also received attention, with 19% saying privacy is their biggest concern.