Posting regular blog content is an excellent way to maintain strong relationships with existing clients. If you’re growing your business, it could help attract new ones too.
Your blog can turn prospects into loyal clients or even be the starting point of a working relationship.
Yet, it’s something many financial planners are missing out on. Indeed, Phil’s recent blog notes that around 7 in 10 financial planners don’t publish blogs regularly.
If you’ve been putting off creating a regular blog schedule or are struggling to make writing content a priority, here are six ways it can help you grow your client list to motivate you.
1. Blogs showcase how you can help clients
Think of each blog as a potential entry point for a prospect that could lead to an ongoing relationship.
The more content you have on your website, the more likely it is that a prospect will find something that resonates with them or answers a question they’ve been pondering. So, by publishing content regularly, you have more chances to capture their attention.
2. Content can help build rapport with prospects
Freely sharing useful information helps you build rapport before you even speak to a prospect.
For some, a lack of trust may hold them back. A report from the Financial Services Compensation Scheme found that only around half of people deem financial advisers to be trustworthy. There are many other reasons why someone might be hesitant to get in touch, such as concerns about scams or feeling nervous about sharing the details of their financial circumstances.
Your blog provides an opportunity to demonstrate your knowledge and commitment to clients, and explain what they can expect. It could put some prospects at ease and mean they feel comfortable reaching out.
3. Sharing information means you’re the first choice when circumstances change
Someone who doesn’t need financial advice today might tomorrow.
An employee in their 30s may not have accumulated enough assets to benefit from financial planning yet. That might change when they receive an inheritance, move up the career ladder, or prepare to retire.
Becoming a reliable source of financial information could mean you’re their first choice when they need financial advice as their circumstances or goals change.
You might not have direct contact with these future clients either. They may visit your website because they know you’ll publish useful information after a government Budget or provide guides about how to get the most out of their pension.
4. A blog can demonstrate why you add value
With the ability to take a DIY approach, use robo-advice, or rely on social media for information, it’s important to highlight the value of working with a financial planner. Your blog is one of the perfect places to do this.
Not only can you demonstrate the financial benefits of a tailored plan, but you can also highlight often-overlooked advantages of working with a financial planner.
You might include content that discusses the mental health benefits of working with a professional, how it can lead to clients having more time to focus on what’s important to them, or how you might consider essential areas they’ve never thought of.
It’s an approach that can prompt prospects to get in touch to discover how you might help them.
5. Regular blogs support your SEO goals
When was the last time you went to the second page of a search engine’s results, or even reached the bottom of the first page?
SEO (search engine optimisation) is about helping your website rank higher on the search engine result pages to generate more organic traffic.
Tips on how to improve your website’s SEO could fill several articles, and your blog plays a role.
You can’t rank highly for a particular search term if it’s never mentioned on your website. Fresh blog content that’s valuable to your target audience can help you climb up the search result pages, and a prospect is more likely to come across you.
6. Shareable content helps you reach new audiences
As a financial planner, word of mouth can be a powerful way to connect with prospects.
Creating shareable content can have a similar effect. Producing content that’s useful and interesting may encourage your existing clients to share it with their family and friends who could benefit from working with you.
As the prospect is introduced to you by someone they trust, they’re more likely to get in touch.
Talk to us about your blog content
Email hi@theyardstickagency.co.uk or call 0115 8965 300 to find out how we can write and publish regular, engaging content for you that adds value to your existing clients and attracts new ones.
