Most professional marketers spout the importance of content marketing. That is, creating original and relevant blogs, videos, and podcasts that provide prospects such value that they want to learn more about your business.
I agree that content marketing is an effective form of marketing, especially when selling a service based on expertise. However, content marketing for content marketing’s sake will not produce results. It is important to choose the topics that connect with your niche and encourage them to act.
The best topics are the ones that directly address your niche’s primary pain points—the ones answering the questions that are top of mind and keep them up at night. Focus on things that your niche is curious about or even afraid of. And consider topics that would be top of mind for your prospect within 90 days of hiring you.
For example, if your niche is divorce financial planning, consider the issues on a prospect’s mind before hiring a financial advisor to help with their divorce. For example, it could be “Why Getting Half Isn’t Always Financially Fair in a Divorce.” If your niche is people who have received an inheritance, a topic could be “Common Tax Mistakes People Make with Their Inheritance.”
Help your niche understand that the content is specifically for them by inserting them into the title. If you address retirement planning for business owners, then you can tailor the title to be “3 Mistakes Business Owners Make When Selling Their Business That Can Damage Their Retirement Plans.”
Whatever you do, do not include generic topics, such as economic outlooks. Every subject must be specific to your niche, use their language, and provide examples that resonate with them. If you must write about a generic topic that applies to any investor, tailor the topic title and examples to your niche.
Choosing topics when you first work with a niche can be challenging. But as you gain more experience, it will become easier to find issues to address. To help do this, take notes about the situations your prospects face. Your notes will tell you exactly what you should address in your content.
Specifically, here are the things to make note of:
Triggering Events
What event was happening in the prospect’s life that triggered them to reach out to you in the first place? In the example about women getting a divorce, the triggering event could be finding out a spouse is cheating, talking to a divorce attorney who referred her, filing for a divorce, or going through a divorce and having the gut feeling she isn’t getting a fair settlement. These are just four different triggering events for the same niche, and I’m sure there are many more.
Primary Financial Concern
What does the prospect say their primary financial concern or frustration is? For a divorcing woman, her primary concern may be “Will I have enough money to maintain the lifestyle for myself and the kids that we are all used to?”
Goals and Aspirations
What does the prospect say is their ultimate goal or aspiration? What would they like to achieve after working with you? For the divorcing woman, she may say her goal is to rebuild a life on her terms where she feels happy, confident, and secure.
Services and Solutions
What services or solutions does the prospect say they need? Make note of these even if they are not services you offer. For example, the divorcing woman may say she needs to refinance the house in her name. You note that she may need mortgage services, and you write content on refinancing a home as part of a divorce settlement.
Words and Phrases
What specific words and phrases does the prospect use to describe their situation? It will be important to reflect this wording back to your niche in your content.
For example, the divorcing woman may not say she needs to “refinance” her home. She may say she needs to lower her mortgage payment or get her husband’s name off the mortgage. These would be key phrases to write down that you could use as a topic. The topic, in this case, would be “How to Lower Your Monthly Mortgage Payments So You Can Afford to Keep Your House After a Divorce.”
Avoid using financial services industry jargon. Instead, use the language your niche clients would use.
Final Thoughts
Your content marketing can be a powerful tool in getting niche prospects to schedule a call with you. The key is to focus on your niche’s triggering events, concerns, services, and aspirations. You also want to use the language that your niche uses, not your industry’s. By speaking directly to your niche, you can get their attention and, ultimately, their business.
About Kristen Luke
Kristen Luke is the President of Kaleido Creative Studio, a marketing consulting firm that positions Registered Investment Advisors and their employees as experts in a niche, making them uncomparable to other advisors. Over the past 16 years, Kristen has consulted with hundreds of financial advisory firms and shared her marketing expertise via industry conferences and publications nationwide. This article is an excerpt from her upcoming book, due out in 2023.