The Certified Financial Planner Board of Standards in America has discovered less than half of American CFP professionals use social media for professional purposes.
Research by the body questioned over 3,500 CFP professionals and found 73 per cent used social media but only 45 per cent used it for professional purposes.
The main reasons given for not using social media for professional purposes were compliance limitations, uncertainty over regulatory requirements and lack of time.
The most popular tool was LinkedIn which was used by 82 per cent of people, blogs used by 72 per cent and Twitter used by 45 per cent.
Over 40 per cent of people described themselves as 'Certified Financial Planner' on social media profiles while others used the terms financial adviser and Financial Planner.
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As a result, the body has produced a guide for Financial Planners on how they can use social media in their working days.
The guide contains information on best practice, social media strategies, quick tips and compliance issues for the four main social media sites (LinkedIn, Twitter, Facebook, Google+)
Kevin R. Keller, chief executive of CFP board, said: "These results indicate that CFP professionals are interested in using social media as a platform to educate the public about the value of Financial Planning and why they should use a CFP professional in addition to using it to network.
"More work needs to be done to help CFP professionals and others better understand the rules of the road when it comes to use of these communication tools."
The guide is available to view here http://www.cfp.net/certificants/social-media-guide.asp 

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