How a Financial Advisor Generated 28 Annuity Appointments in 30 Days with Facebook and TikTok Ads

An annuity advisor was already getting clients through networking events, seminars, and referrals. The issue was not that those channels never worked. The issue was that they took time, were difficult to predict, and made appointment volume depend too heavily on traditional relationship-based prospecting.

Advisor Systems helped the advisor build a more predictable appointment-generation system using Meta ads, including Facebook and Instagram, plus TikTok ads. In the first 30 days, the campaign generated 28 appointments across the two channels, with TikTok producing the lowest cost per appointment.

Important disclaimer: This case study shares what worked for one client. Results vary based on the offer, audience, budget, sales process, creative, follow-up, market conditions, and other factors.

Key Results

The Problem: Traditional Prospecting Was Working, But It Was Not Predictable Enough

Before the campaign, the advisor relied on networking events, seminars, and referrals to generate new client opportunities. Unlike some advisors who come to Advisor Systems because their lead flow is broken, this advisor was already doing well with those channels.

The problem was that the process was time-consuming. Networking events and seminars require planning, attendance, follow-up, and a constant commitment of calendar time. Referrals can be powerful, but they are difficult to control because the advisor cannot simply choose to receive more referrals whenever the calendar needs more appointments.

The advisor wanted a better way to generate leads and, more importantly, qualified appointments each month without needing to chase leads, depend on cold calling, rely on seminars, or wait for referrals to arrive.

The Solution: Build an Appointment-Focused Funnel

The campaign was designed around appointments, not just leads. That distinction mattered because a lead is only valuable if the system can educate the prospect, build trust, and move the right people onto the advisor’s calendar.

The funnel started with traffic from paid ads. When a prospect clicked an ad, they were taken to an opt-in page where they could enter their name and email to access a free educational video. This kept the first conversion step simple and avoided asking for too much information before trust had been built.

Why the Funnel Asked for Name and Email First

Many campaigns ask for a phone number immediately, then require the business owner or sales team to chase the lead. The problem is that a new prospect usually has not developed enough trust yet. They may have clicked an ad, but that does not mean they are ready for a phone conversation.

For this campaign, the first step was intentionally softer. The opt-in page asked for name and email so the prospect could access a free educational video. After the video built more trust and explained the advisor’s solution, interested prospects could complete the application and schedule a call.

This structure helped the advisor avoid treating every lead as if they were ready to speak immediately. Instead, the funnel allowed the most interested prospects to raise their hand and book an appointment.

The Video Sales Letter and Confirmation Page

The video sales letter was one of the main trust-building assets in the campaign. It helped explain how annuities could solve the audience’s retirement-income concerns and positioned the advisor as someone who could help prospects think through their options.

After someone scheduled a call, they were redirected to a confirmation page. That page confirmed the appointment, showed the advisor’s picture and name, and included an additional educational video. In this case, the confirmation-page video was longer and went deeper into how annuities work, the types of annuities available, and related rates.

This extra content was not required for every campaign, but it helped prospects arrive at the call more educated. It also gave the advisor another opportunity to build trust before the appointment happened.

The Ad Strategy: Test Facebook, Instagram, and TikTok

Once the funnel was ready, the next step was ad creative. Advisor Systems wrote the ad copy, sent it to the client, and had the client record video ads on camera. The team then edited the videos by adding B-roll, subtitles, cleanup, and polish before launching them on Facebook, Instagram, and TikTok.

The same video ads were tested across Meta and TikTok to see which platform would produce the strongest economics. This was important because different clients can see different channel performance. Some campaigns perform best on Facebook and Instagram. Others perform best on TikTok. Some perform well on both.

Rather than assuming which platform would win, the campaign tested both and judged performance based on cost per lead and, more importantly, cost per appointment.

The First 30-Day Results

Within the first 30 days, both ad platforms produced qualified appointment flow. Facebook generated 256 leads at about $10 per lead. With about $2,560 in Facebook ad spend, the campaign produced 11 appointments at approximately $233 per appointment.

TikTok produced even stronger lead costs and appointment costs. The TikTok campaign generated 566 leads at about $5 per lead, then converted those leads into 17 appointments at approximately $175 per appointment.

Although TikTok generated the lower cost per appointment, Facebook and Instagram were still profitable enough for the advisor to keep running. Because the difference was about $60 per appointment and both channels were within a strong range, the advisor kept both platforms live instead of moving the entire budget to only one channel.

The Main Takeaway

This case study shows why appointment generation is different from simple lead generation. The advisor did not just need more names and emails. He needed a system that could create trust, educate the market, and convert interested prospects into scheduled appointments.

The campaign worked because each part of the system had a specific job. Ads created attention. The opt-in page captured interest. The video sales letter educated prospects. The application and calendar flow converted motivated prospects into appointments. The confirmation page increased trust before the call.

For annuity advisors, the lesson is not simply to run Facebook ads or TikTok ads. The bigger lesson is to build a complete appointment system that can be measured, improved, and scaled based on the advisor’s goals and calendar availability.