In an age where the average American spends 24 hours a week online, financial marketers have no option but to get content. Today, content marketing must provide content an experience, must be different unique and engaging. Financial marketers must look beyond their financial services competitors and evaluate how companies in other industries are taking content to another level.
It’s always a good practice to have a commitment to writing a new blog article once a month but successful content marketing is more than having the commitment of writing 1-2 blogs per month, sitting down and thinking of a topic and posting it. Each blog should be part of a content marketing plan with a specific goal for writing it. Each message should have a specific call to action in mind. Is the goal to educate or inspire the audience to take an action? Whatever the goal is, the article should be written with the call to action in mind.
Here are 5 ways that Financial Marketers can get content right:
Content should be data-driven
Writing articles using real data and statistics to present a point is strongly recommended. Removing subjectivity and opinions out of the article is a better way to create credibility. Leveraging research from reputable sources to present a point is always the way to go. When points are backed up with facts and data readers will view the article as being more credible. Third-party sources with links show readers that data is coming from a reputable and known source. Research key data points that would make an article more compelling or work with your firm’s analytics team to get internal data that can be leveraged.
Creating content with a specific purpose
To do this, it’s important to understand your buyer persona and their pain points. If financial marketers have a strong understanding of their goals and challenges, then creating content that helps to achieve those goals and overcome their challenges would be easier. For example, if a client’s goal is to save for their child’s education, writing a series of articles on “how to invest for your child’s future” would be valuable information for that audience. When your purpose for creating content is clearly defined, it makes writing the article easier than if it had no direction.
Focus on quality over quantity
It’s always nice to commit to posting new content at a certain frequency but realistically if it is not quality content then there isn’t much of a point. When marketers get into the habit of creating content for the sake of creating content, they have lost sight of the purpose of the content. If the purpose is not clearly defined then don’t create it, take time to develop a purpose for the content. When financial marketers produce quality content and they see results from their efforts, they are likely to continue the same steps with future pieces of content.
Make a plan but be constantly willing to change
It’s always important to create a content plan but that plan should not be set in stone. There should always be some room for learning and analyzing what’s working and what’s not and apply it to the content plan. A content plan should have topics that target the buyer person at the awareness, consideration, and decision-making stage of the buyer’s journey. If new pain points are uncovered or new information is learned that impacts the decision phase then new content that addresses those areas should be also be created.
Ensure content is seen by the right audience
With so many tools and resources available it’s easy to get your content in front of the right audience. If no one sees your content, it can’t get the desired results. Marketers can research their target audience and know where they spend time online and in turn promote content in those places. Additionally, leveraging an email newsletter can get your content to the audience that you’re trying to reach. I’m sure you’ve heard the saying, “If a tree falls and no one is around to hear it does it still make a sound?” think about content marketing the same way. If you put content out and no one sees it or interacts, did it really get published?
Getting content marketing right is no easy task but with the right goals, planning, resources, and tools in place every financial marketer has the ability to succeed. As a next step after reading this article, carve out some time to evaluate your content marketing strategy and make a plan on how you can incorporate the 5 ways to get content right mentioned.
LISTEN TO THE WEBINAR
The Right KPIs Enterprise Marketers Must Measure for Advisor Marketing Success
