Publishing and promoting blogs or articles regularly is an essential part of most marketing strategies. Unfortunately, our research shows 74% of advisers and planners don’t publish frequently enough.

On the first day of August, we visited the websites of 558 financial advice and planning firms, looking for two things:

1. To see if they published blogs or articles
2. If they did, when they last added new content.

The results are fascinating and show:

• 41% (229 firms) don’t publish blogs or articles on their website
• Of the 329 firms that do, 58% have added new content within the last month
• 33% of firms haven’t added a new blog or article in the last three months – the most out-of-date blog page was last updated 10 years ago, way back in 2015!

Not adding new content = missing significant opportunities

If you’re in the 33% and haven’t added a new blog or article to your website for at least three months, you’re missing out on three significant opportunities:

1. A vital client touchpoint: Firms that get their client touchpoints right receive more referrals and introductions. Producing blogs and articles is vital for building a monthly newsletter, which in turn should be the foundation of your touchpoint strategy.
2. Converting prospects: Not all “right-fit” prospects immediately become clients. Those who don’t should be nurtured and, you guessed it, your blogs, articles, and newsletter should be the foundation of your nurturing strategy.
3. Telling AI what you’re all about: To get on ChatGPT’s radar, you need to publish source information, including blogs and articles. If you aren’t doing that, you’ll make it much harder for AI to recommend you and your business.

We also need to consider how visitors to your website, and potential clients, will feel about seeing out-of-date content, or pages that aren’t updated regularly. Last publishing a blog in 2015 hardly says “on the ball”.

So, this is one of those few occasions when a binary, black and white answer is called for: your business should either be an enthusiastic publisher and promoter of content, or not do it at all.

10 quick-fire tips to build an effective content strategy

#1. Publish at least three blogs or articles per month on your website.

#2. If you don’t have the time or skill to do that, then outsource to a team that does.

#3. Send your content in a monthly newsletter to clients and every prospect who makes an enquiry. And, if you’re still unconvinced about the value of a monthly newsletter, check out this LinkedIn post from Tom Brookes, former “monthly newsletter heretic”, at Arboretum Financial Planning.

#4. If professional connections are important to you, produce content specifically aimed at their pain points.

#5. Maximise your returns by repurposing your blogs and articles into social posts, video scripts, guides, and webinars.

#6. Invest time writing engaging headlines that encourage someone to read the article and improve click-through rates.

#7. Every few months, look at which type of articles are popular (publish more of these) and which aren’t (publish fewer of these).

#8. Write down all the questions clients, prospects, and professional connections ever ask you, then answer them in your content.

#9. Think carefully about the length of your articles; they need to include enough detail to add value, but you don’t want people nodding off!

#10. Spend four times as long (or four times as much) promoting your content as you do producing it – this isn’t the field of dreams, you need to share your stuff.

Take away the pain and hassle with our done-for-you service

If you, or someone in your team, has the time, skill and inclination to write content, it’s perfectly possible to produce it in-house.

However, if you don’t have someone in your team who can do it, then outsourcing is your only option.

And that’s where our Yardstick Membership service will help.

It’s a done-for-you service, which includes:

• High-quality blogs and articles written and added to your website
• Syndicated, bespoke, and mixed content options to suit your needs
• Full communication with your compliance department so you don’t need to be involved
• A monthly guide on a key financial topic, in your branding, added to your website and newsletter
• Electronic newsletters sent to an unlimited number of people, with management information that allows for effective follow-up
• The opportunity to opt in to ad-hoc mailers that keep your clients informed about key events such as the Budget, Spring Statements, and market volatility.

If you’d like to learn more about Yardstick Membership and how it will benefit your business and clients, email abi@theyardstickagency.co.uk or call 0115 8965 300.