When Donald Trump was inaugurated as president of the United States in January 2025, I wrote this article shortly afterwards. In it, I made an argument for financial advisers/planners to address political issues in a sensible, professional way.
Now the government has announced this year’s Budget will be delivered on 26 November. Even though it’s more than two months away, there’s already no shortage of media noise that is, quite frankly, likely to scare the daylights out of your clients.
As an adviser/planner, the way you talk about the Budget before, during, and after the event could make (or break) your clients’ trust in you.
Here’s how to set yourself apart from the ever-droning media noise as the Budget approaches.
Keep your language professional
Scrolling through the home pages of major news outlets, I’ve come across the following words and phrases:
- “Tax raid”
- “Looming Budget”
- “Punishing policies”
- “Assault on landlords”
- “Disaster in the making”
- “Rage at Rachel Reeves”
- “Dragged back to the 1970s”
- “Hitting pensioners in the pocket”
- “Reeves scrambles to find more room for defence spending”
- “Mansion tax” would “kill off the upper end of the property market”.
And the list goes on. Remember, we’re more than eight weeks away from the event itself and nothing has even been set in stone. As Budget day approaches, this media noise is only likely to intensify.
Reassure and guide
Chances are, your clients are already asking you about the Budget. They may also follow your social media pages, read your newsletters, and turn to you when they feel worried about their financial circumstances.
Here are some words and phrases you could use, instead of those above:
- “Uncertainty” rather than “rage”
- “Potential increase to your tax bill” instead of “tax raid”
- “Changing landscape for landlords” rather than “assault on landlords”
- “Prioritising defence spending” instead of “scrambling”
- “Upcoming Budget” not “looming Budget”.
By maintaining a calm tone, you set yourself apart from scaremongering headlines and establish yourself as a true professional.
Focus your Budget content on your audience, not on yourself
When posting about the Budget on social media or on your blog page before or after the event, remember to:
- Stay “you” focused. Content that makes your reader feel seen goes a long way. For example, “Here at X Firm, we are qualified, experienced, and well-equipped to deal with Budget announcements” could be improved if you said, “Here at X Firm, our qualified team of financial advisers is here to help you reach your long-term goals, no matter what the government announces”.
- Keep personal politics to yourself. Wherever you fall on the political spectrum, it may not always be useful to share your views on a professional platform like LinkedIn or your business’s Facebook page. Your clients and prospects want you to listen to them, not wax lyrical about your own political persuasions.
- Put solutions at the centre of the conversation. Whatever challenges the chancellor presents this autumn, your clients will look to you for solutions. Even if you can’t promise a quick fix, reassuring clients that you’re there for them over the long term will help.
Before long, clients and prospects will get sick of reading sensationalist headlines. This is your chance to be the adult in the room here – make sure you take it.
We’re producing 2 timely Budget articles to help you communicate effectively with your clients
Our content team can help you communicate effectively with your clients and mailing list in the run-up to and on the day of the Autumn Budget.
Before the Budget
In the weeks leading up to the event, we’ll be producing a compliant, professional summary of the expected events. This piece will be reassuring and calming, reminding your clients that you can’t make recommendations until after the announcements, and that you’re there for them no matter what.
If you want to opt in, for £150 + VAT, we will send this mailer to your clients and connections in the weeks prior to the Budget.
If you don’t take Yardstick Membership, we can still help by sending the summary as a Word document for you to distribute internally. This costs £195 plus VAT.
When your client base is looking for reassurance, you’ll be there to provide it.
On Budget day
On the day of the Budget, our writers will produce a full breakdown of the announcements, ready to send to your clients that afternoon.
At a cost of £150 + VAT, we will provide:
- The article, uploaded to your website
- A same-day send-out of the article in newsletter form (this could be delayed by external compliance processes if you have them).
In our experience, most firms don’t engage with their clients during major fiscal events. We think that’s a mistake. For your clients, hearing from you on what could be a stressful day reinforces your role as a trusted adviser who never lets them down.
If you don’t take Yardstick Membership, we can still help. On Budget day, we can provide an article summarising the key points. This costs £195 plus VAT, which means you can spend time distributing the content rather than writing it.
Work with us
To learn more about our social media and content writing services – or for more information about the Budget content we’re producing – email hi@theyardstickagency.co.uk or call 0115 896 5300.
