Every day we are seeing more financial advisors venturing into the wild world of content marketing. Why? Well, it’s a new, slightly complex, yet proven way to generate new, qualified prospects. So, let’s go over the basics of what you need to know and how to get started. 

1. What is content marketing?  Content marketing is a strategic marketing and business process focused on creating and distributing valuable, relevant, and consistent content. Its purpose is to attract and retain a clearly-defined audience and ultimately drive profitable customer action. It is a way to use content like blogs, articles, whitepapers, guides, videos, podcasts, webinars, infographics, ebooks, and social content to relay valuable ideas and create relationships – rather than explicitly selling a product or service.

2. What are common objectives of content marketing? Content marketing uses a marketing funnel method for moving your prospects through six stages of engagement. You begin by gaining awareness, increasing exposure, driving people to your website, building your list, building your pipeline of qualified prospects and ultimately, generating new revenue.

 3. The ABCD’s of Content Creation: Here are some of the basics for getting started with content marketing.

A. Specifically Define Your Target Audience: What are their needs, wants, challenges, problems, questions, and interests? Where are they on social media (Facebook, LinkedIn, etc) and what may be interesting to them?

B. Generate Interesting Content Ideas: Using keyword research tools like SEMRush’s Keyword Magic Tool, Google Keyword Planner or Ahrefs (there are many more as well), determine the longtail keywords that your target audience could be using in their online searches. Longtail keywords are very specific and usually drive highly targeted visitors that are likely to be interested in your content. Then, write or record content and design offers using these longtail keywords. 

C. Promotion and Action: Where will your content appear and how will people be able to take action? Will you use paid advertising on social media or search engines, or will you try to engage organic traffic to your content? Do you have an email list to share your content? And, finally, what call to action will you have to lead them further into your funnel? A report, whitepaper, checklist, etc?

D. Content Workflow: How will you manage the content you are planning on, what has been written or recorded, and how can you keep track of everything? We use a Content Workflow & Calendar in Smartsheet. You can create your own. It could look something like this:

So these are some basics to dip your toe in the water of a marketing strategy that has been successful from some of the largest firms in the United States including firms like Fisher Investments. To get started executing the ABCD’s of your content marketing campaign, you can download our Content Marketing Quick Start Worksheet to help you prepare for a successful campaign. Good luck and good marketing!