Use content to market to existing clients, says coach

Founder of Audere Coaching & Consulting and business coach, Stewart Bell, said advisers should be aiming to market to their existing client base to become their source of financial information rather than securing new referrals.

“To be that person who can shoot out a personal blog or an email with information that’s relevant to your client base is key to me,” Mr Bell told ifa.

“Letting your clients know that they should read and pay attention to something is useful for clients who are in accumulation phase, transitioning to retirement, or are retired. Don’t forget, people in retirement have more time on their hands than they did in the previous phase of their lives.

“Marketing to them and letting them know that you are the curator of that information is vital.”

Mr Bell spoke to ifa ahead of the ifa Future Forum 2022, where he will moderate a session on how the retirement landscape and estate planning are changing in Australia and how advice models could evolve to serve the needs of clients entering retirement.

Content writing provides advisers an opportunity to provide their clients with context around relevant topics, something clients may be lacking amid media headlines and sensation, Mr Bell said.

“For example, you could write a short piece on what’s going on in Europe and the impact it may have on the economy and inflation,” Mr Bell suggested.

“When you’re writing that content, or curating other people’s content and pointing to it or providing context, you’re getting on the front foot by responding to clients’ concerns and questions before they ask them.”

If advisers are searching for content ideas, they could ask their clients about their concerns or questions related to their finances or wealth accumulation, Mr Bell suggested.

“Ask them if they talk about money. Ask them about what kinds of topics are coming up when they talk to their family and friends,” Mr Bell said.

As a result, advisers would be directly answering their clients’ burning questions through their content and prompting their clients to initiate these conversations with their acquaintances.

“On top of this, by definition, if you're writing articles about the things your clients are talking about with their friends, it’s more likely that they might share your articles with their friends,” Mr Bell said.

As such, while advisers may not have implemented their content marketing strategy to grow referrals, it might unwittingly result in a larger client base as their existing clients share their content with their friends, he added.

Mr Bell concluded: “If I’m having a conversation with someone about their SMSF at a barbecue, I might tell them about this great article my adviser wrote about with handy tips and strategies.

“This is how the adviser can grow their connections.”

To hear more from Stewart Bell and a panel of speakers about how financial advisers could play a key role in their clients’ retirement planning, come along to the ifa Future Forum 2022.

The free event will be held on 16 November at Montage in Sydney.

Places are filling up fast so to register for free, click here.

For more information, including agenda and speakers, click here.