Summer is over. Children are back at school. The ‘ber months have arrived, though I’m still waiting (and wishing) to feel the chill. 

September is the month of getting back into routine for many people now that the holidays are done.

And if your marketing routine has disappeared slightly over the summer then that is completely understandable.

Summer is often an odd few months for many businesses, not just financial advisers. Between annual leave, clients going away, colleagues being out of the office and people generally wanting to make the most of the warmer weather, it’s natural for routines to differ from the rest of the year. 

So if you haven’t posted on LinkedIn for a few weeks or asked a client for a review, there’s no need to feel guilty about it!

Having a break from your marketing doesn’t mean you have failed at being consistent or lost any of your previous progress. You just need to pick up the routine again. 

Here are five ways to get re-started.

1. Think about what you’ve learned during your break

You might not have been actively marketing your business over the summer, but that doesn’t mean you haven’t been gathering lots of ideas. Take a moment to think back over the last couple of months.

• What client meetings have you had? 
• What questions have people asked you? 
• Have you attended any webinars? 
• Saw something interesting on your holiday? 
• Had a conversation with another adviser? 
• Read an interesting article that made you think about something?

All of these things could become marketing content.

Before you start agonising over what to post about, just spend an evening thinking back over your summer. Then write everything down in one place – trust me, ideas are very easy to forget again after you recall them!

In no time, you’ll have a list of topics to start posting about throughout the autumn.

2. Start small

When you realise you haven’t done any marketing for a short while, it can be tempting to try to make up for lost time.

You’re probably wanting to post every day or start using multiple platforms again. But instead, it’s best to start small to avoid burnout.

Pick one platform such as LinkedIn and focus on getting into a manageable routine with that first. You might decide to:

• Post three times a week
• Spend 10 minutes commenting on other advisers’ posts
• Reply to anyone who comments on your posts.

That’s it. And you can always build on your marketing once you get comfortable back into the habit again.

Remember: three posts every week for the next few months will be far more valuable than posting every day for two weeks then disappearing until Christmas.

3. See what other advisers are talking about

Sometimes the hardest part of restarting your marketing is simply knowing what to talk about.

Take some of that pressure off your back and spend a bit of time looking at what other financial advisers and planners are sharing.

Of course, I’m not suggesting copying their posts, but do take a look at:

• The topics they are talking about
• Posts you find interesting to read
• The questions or feedback people are leaving in their comments.

You could also use this as an opportunity to refresh your LinkedIn network and connect with some new financial advisers or professional connections whose content you find interesting.

4. Go back to what worked before

Have a look back at what you were doing before the summer.

• Was there a type of LinkedIn post that regularly received comments? 
• Did one of your blogs get particularly good engagement? 
• Were people opening newsletters about a certain topic? 
• Did clients respond well when you started asking them for reviews?

If something worked before then there is no reason why you can’t return to it. You could even dust off older content, refresh it, and post it again. For example, if you wrote a useful blog last year that is still relevant, share it again – maybe even with a new update on the subject. 

5. Find a routine you can stick to

Finally, decide what your new marketing routine is going to look like moving forwards and make sure to make it realistic.

If you know Monday mornings are always filled with emails and catching up after the weekend, don’t make Monday morning your dedicated marketing slot. 

Choose a time when you are most likely to do it. If you’re unsure when this is, test different times and days over the next few weeks and decide which is the best time for you. You just need something that fits around your way of working. 

And whatever you do, don’t make September the month where you promise yourself you’re suddenly going to become a marketing machine always putting out new content.

Just make it the month where you start small and get back into a simple routine.

And if you’d like some help getting and staying on track with your marketing again, our Client Success team would love to help. Email hi@theyardstickagency.co.uk or call 0115 8965 300.