Financial advice/planning firms don’t have unique selling points (USPs).

Many claim they do, and many go hunting for them. However, they don’t exist.

So, if you don’t have a USP, it’s impossible to stand out in a crowded market, right?

Wrong.

Instead of wasting time searching for a non-existent USP, we believe firms should create a list of differentiators; the things that, when combined, make their firm unique.

Creating your Differentiator List helps you to:

• Align your team around a shared story
• Explain to new clients what makes you different
• Create consistency in your marketing messaging
• Generate more referrals and recommendations from existing clients
• Sharpen your messaging (most firms think honesty and transparency are differentiators!).

Once you’ve created your list, the differentiators should be used throughout your marketing. For example:

• Consistently on your website
• As a checklist when writing award entries
• On your social media profiles and in your posts
• On directory profiles, such as VouchedFor and Unbiased
• In other marketing collateral, such as printed and online adverts.

A new reason to talk about what makes you different… ChatGPT

Explaining to your human audience what makes you different has always made sense.

However, in the age of AI, it’s not just humans who want to understand what makes your business different. That’s because ChatGPT and other LLMs (Large Language Models) will use the differentiators you showcase on your website and elsewhere to decide whether to recommend you.

For example, let’s say someone asks ChatGPT for a Chartered planner in Brighton who charges fixed fees and is happy to meet face-to-face. The AI will search various sources, including the internet, directories, and websites. If your business ticks those boxes, evidenced by displaying the information on your website and elsewhere, you’ll improve the chances of ChatGPT recommending you. Of course, if you haven’t…

So, to truly stand out from the crowd and attract the attention of both humans and robots, you should do two things:

1. Create your Differentiator List
2. Showcase your differentiators in all the places we mentioned.

We’ve made your life easy

Starting with a blank sheet of paper is always hard, so to make your life easier, we’ve created a template list of differentiators you can edit and add to.

We’ve broken the list down into the following sections:

• Your firm
• How you charge
• About your service
• Succession planning
• Social proof (firm-driven)
• Social proof (client-driven).

Your firm

• Employee-owned
• Culture and values
• Expertise in a particular niche
• Local heritage or family business history, if appropriate
• The diversity of your advisers, planners, and support team
• Dedicated client support contact – not just a central email or pool
• Community involvement: sponsorships, charity work, volunteering
• Client education events – workshops, webinars, in-person briefings
• The younger-than-average age of your advisers/planners (so the advisers/planners don’t retire before their clients do)
• Your location (most clients, if they aren’t looking for an adviser/planner with sector-specific expertise, will prefer to use a local firm).

How you charge

• No initial fee
• Lower than average fees
• Disclosing fees on your website
• Fixed fees rather than percentage fees.

About your service

• Independent
• Use cashflow forecasting software
• No broker fee (for mortgage brokers only)
• Choice of meetings: face-to-face or online
• Financial planning led (people, not product-focused)
• Coaching skills, supported by training and qualifications
• How the firm invests money (for example, evidence-based, active, ESG-focused – don’t overplay this one, clients are less interested than advisers/planners think).

Succession planning

• Employee-owned
• Not planning to sell out to a larger firm
• Carefully planning their internal succession.

Social proof (firm-driven)

• Firm accreditations:

1. Chartered (CII/PFS)
2. Accredited (CISI)
3. SOLLA member
4. B Corp

• Individual accreditations:

1. Certified (CISI)
2. Chartered (CII/PFS)
3. Resolution accredited

• Glassdoor reviews
• Regularly featured in the press or on podcasts
• Award-winning (firm or individual adviser/planner).

Social proof (client-driven)

• Google reviews
• VouchedFor reviews
• Client survey results
• Client testimonial videos
• VouchedFor Top Rated (either as an individual adviser or firm)
• Reviews on other platforms (we generally recommend using Google and VouchedFor, but very occasionally a firm might have reviews on Trustpilot).

Produce your Differentiator List

Now, you have three things to do:

1. Produce your own Differentiator List by copying and pasting the above into a document, then deleting those that don’t apply to your business and adding others in
2. Review your website to ensure it highlights all your differentiators
3. Start using your Differentiator List throughout your marketing. If you’re writing an award entry, use it as a checklist. When writing a social post, include a few differentiators. If you’re presenting on a webinar, include the relevant differentiators. You get the picture!

We hope this template list is helpful and will save time.

As always, if you have any questions or queries, you know where we are. Email hi@theyardstickagency.co.uk or call 0115 8965 300.