The application of social media in financial services continues to divide opinion but for some in the industry, it has become an invaluable tool to help connect with clients and drive business forward.

One of the arguments against investing in a social media policy is that success in the medium is hard to quantify but, according to Baz Gardner, founder of The Social Adviser, social media success can be measured by the number of leads generated.

"Only 1% to 5% of clients actively refer. Social media can solve this by creating low-gradient means for a client to make a referral. The referral is implied, and they are passing on your materials - not you," said Gardner.

"You use social media to see where your potential clients are, and then use their information to contact them. Social media allows you to reach your perfect customer."

AMP owned planning group, Hillross, has a presence right across the major platforms, and social media is a major part of how they do business, allowing advisers to maximise the time they spent face-to-face with clients.

"Clients are more demanding now. They are more aware of what is possible and we need to fulfill that demand," said Hugh Humphrey, director, Hillross Financial Services.

"In a world with a lot of time pressure, it is a great way to stay connected in between the face-to-face meetings," said Humphrey.

"There are industries that are just as complex as ours that are using social media really well," he said. "There are some financial planners who have been really active [on social media] for years."

Zurich Financial Services has a clearly defined social media policy and is now tackling the lack of understanding among advisers with 'boot camps'.

The workshops provide real-time demonstrations on how to use the different platforms and aim to show advisers what can be achieved through social media.

"People bring their phones or tablets, and we show them live, how to use social media platforms," said Marc Fabris, national manager, sales and strategy at Zurich Financial Services.

"We also show people how they can search for things or add value through Twitter, or we can show them how to create and upload a video."

Fabris said that the future of social media is in supplementing what is already going on.

"If you are meeting a client for the first time, and they are going to be coming into your office for the first time, in the past all you would do is send them an email. Now you can attach a short video where they see you face to face. It brings a lot more personality into it, you've built some rapport before you have met your client.

"You can pick up a cheap camera and do a thirty-second video very easily. If you merge all these tools together, you have a much greater capacity to market yourself."