It is no secret that content drives the financial service marketing revolution.
Storytelling emphasizes a pull instead of a push approach when engaging audiences.
Much of this has to do with how informative content offers an effective way to build relationships and nurture trust with potential customers, who grow increasingly tired of traditional advertising.
But for all the good that finance content marketing can do, not all sectors have embraced it with open arms.
Take financial services, for example. Since 2008, it has struggled to win back the trust and loyalty of consumers, particularly millennials. In fact, one study found that 30 percent of adults who were born between the early 1980s and mid-1990s do not trust financial institutions, while 43 percent could not really say how they felt about the sector.
Why finance struggles with content marketing
Compliance is perhaps the biggest question financial marketers have about content marketing. Due to self-regulation and government oversight, marketers must provide disclaimers when offering financial advice and market forecasts.
Consequently, finance content marketing teams shy away from financial content marketing.
But it is also true that in an industry evolving from face-to-face interactions to omnichannel engagement, finance companies, including banks and insurance providers, need something to effectively engage both existing and potential customers.
This is where finance content marketing comes in. Listed below are three strategies finance companies can use to establish their expertise and industry authority, building stronger relationships with their target audience.
Focus on building credibility
Banking, insurance, and finance are too complex for the average person to fully grasp, which is why mainstream consumers rely on expert counsel to break down these topics in a more digestible manner. But consumers first need to establish trust with an authority (whether an actual person, institution, or resource) to provide reliable advice.
Financial services brands can use this to their advantage by creating informative and authoritative content that establishes credibility, earning potential customers’ trust in the process. There are several ways to go about doing this:
- Blogs for casual readers
- White papers offering in-depth analysis on topics
- TED Talk-style videos with expert speakers offering advice on investments, savings, or money management
This connects to the next point in this guide.
Educate and inform the audience
While traditional advertising has always been about getting people to buy a brand’s product or services, content marketing pulls the audience in by providing relevant and useful content that answers questions and even helps solve problems.
This approach of educating the audience is far more powerful than just entertaining them, with one study showing that 68 percent of consumers found informative and educational content as most valuable.
It is for this reason that most finance content marketers today focus on creating high-value, educational content that revolves around tutorials, tips, how-tos, and other data-driven information. Financial services companies are in an ideal position to take this approach as consumers genuinely want to learn more about different kinds of financial services, issues, and problems.
Take advantage of multimedia
While written copy is a tried and tested medium for any content marketer, it is notthe only channel to use. In fact, several studies point to the effectiveness of visual and multimedia content, with infographics being 54 percent more engaging than regular blog posts.
Video content gets even better engagement, as shown by the following statistics:
- 80 percent of millennials turn to online videos to research products and services.
- 40 percent of consumers were encouraged to visit a brand’s website after seeing an online video ad.
Blog posts are not the only medium content marketers have at their disposal. There are several other ways to go about creating content to make them more marketable to audiences.
In summary
Successful finance content marketers know that today’s consumers are no longer interested in driving to and from brick-and-mortar offices to talk about investment options, financial issues, and other services. Future clients want to do it all online, and they are willing to dig for information on their own.
Content plays a critical role in this process, helping consumers determine whether or not a financial services provider is worth engaging. Bottom line? Risk-averse finance brands jeopardize future business when they ignore the potential of content marketing.
