The Long Runway strategy

In the world of corporate buzzwords, few phrases capture the essence of strategic patience quite like "long runways."

Originally borrowed from aviation—where longer runways allow heavier aircraft to take off safely—this term has found its way into boardrooms across the globe. In corporate speak, having a "long runway" means you've got time on your side: extended periods to execute your strategy, iterate your approach, and ultimately achieve your objectives.

(In my old career it meant screaming down LAX Runway 7L/25R bound for Sydney at 300km/hr, in a four hundred tonne B747-400, and the runway lights changing from white to red - which indicated that we had just passed the last 3000’ of usable length… suddenly ‘long runway’ became ‘short runway’! )

For financial services providers embracing social selling, understanding and leveraging long runways isn't just helpful—it's absolutely essential.

Why financial services demands extended runways

Unlike selling consumer goods or SaaS products with shorter decision cycles, financial services operates in a fundamentally different landscape. Whether you're offering pension advice, commercial insurance, or investment management services, your prospects aren't making impulse purchases. They're making decisions that will impact their financial future for decades.

This reality creates several unique challenges:

Trust is non-negotiable. People don't hand over their life savings to someone they met on LinkedIn last week. Financial advisers, insurance brokers, and wealth managers must demonstrate competence, reliability, and genuine care over extended periods.

Regulatory complexity adds layers. Financial services is heavily regulated, and prospects often need time to understand not just what you're offering, but how it complies with regulations and protects their interests.

Multiple stakeholders complicate decisions. A business insurance decision might involve the CEO, CFO, risk manager, and board. Each stakeholder needs nurturing, education, and reassurance—rarely achievable in a single sales cycle.

The social selling advantage: Building authority over time

This is where social selling truly shines for financial services providers. Traditional cold calling and aggressive sales tactics feel inappropriate (and often are inappropriate) when dealing with people's financial security. Social selling allows you to build relationships gradually, demonstrating value before ever asking for a meeting.

Consider the insurance broker who consistently shares insights about emerging risks in manufacturing. Over 18 months of valuable content, engaging conversations, and thoughtful responses to industry challenges, they become the obvious choice when a manufacturing company reviews their coverage.

Or the financial planner who creates educational content about pension planning for NHS workers. By the time someone approaches retirement, they already trust this adviser's expertise and approach.

Practical strategies for Long Runway Social Selling

Content consistency beats perfection. Rather than sporadic bursts of brilliant content, focus on regular, valuable insights. A weekly post about market updates or regulatory changes builds more long-term authority than a monthly masterpiece.

Engage before you promote. Spend time commenting thoughtfully on your prospects' posts, sharing their content when relevant, and offering insights without any sales agenda. This builds genuine relationships that pay dividends over years, not quarters.

Document your expertise journey. Share your professional development, certifications, and learning experiences. When prospects see you investing in your own knowledge, they're more likely to trust you with their financial decisions.

Layer your touchpoints. Combine LinkedIn engagement with email newsletters, podcast appearances, and speaking opportunities. Multiple touchpoints over time create deeper awareness and trust than any single channel.

Measure relationship depth, not just lead quantity. Track how often prospects engage with your content, share your posts, or refer colleagues to you. These indicators often matter more than traditional sales metrics in long-runway industries.

The patience paradox

The biggest challenge with long runway social selling is maintaining momentum when results feel distant. Sales leaders accustomed to monthly targets may struggle with strategies that deliver results over quarters or years. This requires a fundamental shift in thinking.

Consider implementing leading indicators that demonstrate progress: content engagement rates, profile views from target accounts, inbound enquiries, and relationship depth scores. These metrics help maintain confidence in your long runway strategy while traditional sales metrics catch up.

Managing expectations and momentum

Success with long runway social selling requires careful expectation management - both internally and with your prospects. Your leadership team needs to understand that this approach builds compound returns rather than linear growth. Your prospects need to see consistent value without feeling pressured to buy.

Create content calendars that extend six to twelve months ahead, ensuring consistency even during busy periods. Establish engagement routines-perhaps 30 minutes daily for thoughtful commenting and sharing. These habits compound over time, creating the sustained presence necessary for long runway success.

The time to start is now

The irony of long runway strategies is that the best time to begin was yesterday - the second-best time is today. Every day you delay starting your social selling journey is another day your future self will wish you had begun building relationships, demonstrating expertise, and nurturing your network.

Financial services will always be a relationship business, and those relationships take time to mature. The clients you serve five years from now are scrolling through LinkedIn today, watching who provides genuine value and who's merely chasing transactions. The choice of which camp you want to be in isn't one you can make tomorrow - it's one you must make now.

Your competitors who embrace long runway social selling today will have insurmountable advantages in three years' time. They'll have deeper relationships, stronger reputations, and more trusted voices in the market. The question isn't whether this approach works—the evidence is overwhelming. The question is whether you'll commit to the patience and consistency required to make it work for you.

In aviation, pilots know that longer runways enable bigger, more ambitious flights. In financial services, longer social selling runways enable bigger, more meaningful client relationships.

The altitude you'll reach depends entirely on how much runway you're willing to use.