Only a few IFAs believe they can survive without financial newsletters.
This is because you must regularly engage clients to build on trust.
There is no better way to communicate with your clients than to “touch the base” every month with an update, company news or industry insights.
Financial adviser newsletters can be hard to master.
Although they are a great tool for client engagement, many financial advisers have unrealistic expectations when it comes to email newsletters.
It’s important to be realistic about open rates, reply rates, etc.
According to Mailchimp, the average email opening rate in the financial services sector is 21.56%.
Anything above this should therefore be considered a success.
The industry average click through rate is even lower at 2.72%.
See what we mean about being realistic?
If you send your newsletter to 100 people, it is reasonable to expect about 20 of them to read it.
Then about 2 to 3 people click on the link to visit your website.
Is this to say that financial adviser newsletters are not important to engage your client base?
A big fat, no! They’re incredibly important.
Your newsletter subscribers will familiarise themselves with your content over time.
They may read it, they may not, but as long as they see regular communication from your brand, that is all that matters when it comes to the trust building aspect.
Once you build a loyal and engaged audience, they may look forward to your newsletter, if it is good.
They may even share the links in your newsletter to their social media if it is value-adding and relevant.
Your financial adviser newsletters, combined with other marketing efforts, such as social media or re-marketing, can over time create more power to connect clients and prospects with your brand.
Do not be disheartened by click through and open rates – instead look at the bigger picture.
Writing Financial Adviser Newsletters that people want to read
It is important to create financial newsletters that people want to read. How can you do this?
These are our top 5 tips based on our expertise in financial services marketing and financial newsletters:
#1 Decide What Type Of Financial Adviser Newsletters You Would Like To Send
IFA newsletters have one common problem.
They are often non-focused, generic and cluttered.
That’s because they try to support all aspects of a business.
Blog posts, company news, PR stories, testimonials, new starter introductions and some information on the event next week.
It’s all a little chaotic.
Emails and newsletters need a common thread, just like any other information.
This can be achieved by focusing on a single issue.
Where to start? First, consider which blog posts are most read on your site? Is there a specific subject that is particularly popular?
Next, conduct a survey among your clients.
What topics are they most interested in reading about? Are there similarities between what they are reading and your financial website?
For example, you may find that clients or prospects are particularly interested in your views on current affairs.
Your monthly newsletter could focus on your view of the political events of the last week/month from the perspective of your firm.
You should not be contentious about political and social events at the moment!
#2 Make your newsletter content 90% informative, 10% promotional
A common mistake in financial services is talking too much about your business and not focusing on the client’s needs.
IFA newsletters should revolve around your client base and prospects needs, and be there to add value. Don’t blow your own trumpet.
Our service. Our advisers. Our event is coming up. Our unique approach. Our values. Our team.
See why the above newsletter structure wouldn’t capture someone’s attention?
Instead, you should focus on your clients: their savings, investments, pensions, protecting their family, their hopes and dreams. Why they shouldn’t have to worry about X and why they should care more about Y.
This way, your IFA newsletters will become more valuable.
Nobody likes being sold too.
Although this doesn’t mean you shouldn’t use promotional content.
You should allow 10% promotional material in your emails and wider financial content.
People know that you are a company and need to attract clients and prospects.
Just make sure to soft sell.
#3 Set Subscriber Expectations
The landing page of your website should clearly explain to visitors what the financial newsletter is and what value they will receive by signing up.
Let them know how often they receive content from you, and what you will do about any personal information they provide.
Transparency addresses the fears of potential subscribers and prevents them from being an obstacle to signing up for your newsletter.
Of course, potential subscribers need to actually find your landing page to subscribe to it, but that is a topic for another post.
#4 Use email subject lines to express your creativity
There is no guarantee that people will open the emails you send, even if they sign up for your financial newsletter.
IFA newsletters often try to increase open rates by using the same subject line month after month, in the hope of building trust and familiarity.
While this may make sense for the first few sends, it quickly becomes tedious for your subscribers.
Why? They don’t have the motivation to open “this particular email at the moment.”
It is a better idea to create a subject line for each email you send.
No matter what your approach may be, you need to remember your audience and test different words and phrases so that you know what works best for them.
We suggest:
- Be descriptive about the email content
- Keep it short and sweet
- Limit Punctuation
- Be careful with emojis – only ever use one and test to ensure your emoji works on various platforms.
#5 Use One Call to Action
Most IFA newsletters are a compilation of financial content, with several calls for action.
Although this does not necessarily mean that every CTA needs to be equally prominent or important.
Instead, choose a CTA on which your readers should focus.
Your other CTAs should be “if you have a moment,” such as related blogs.
#6 When It Comes To Copy & Design – Less Is More
Remember the previous discussion about clutter in IFA newsletters?
One way to avoid clutter in your newsletter is to simply reduce the amount of copy.
What is the point of keeping things short? You don’t want your subscribers to read your newsletter for hours, you just want to touch base.
Provide information that is of value to them and their peers.
Keep things short and to the point to whet the appetite of your subscribers, and allow them to click to learn more if they wish.
Ready To Write Financial Newsletters?
If you need help putting all the above tips into successful financial adviser newsletters, we are here to help.
Here at Opulent Media Group, we’ve worked with financial brands globally, across the financial services spectrum, to create bespoke, high-end financial newsletters, blogs and other forms of financial content marketing and strategy.
We use our financial industry and long form content writing expertise to create newsletters that connect with your target audience and clients to articulate your voice.
For a free consultation or to learn more about how to create or improve your financial newsletter, contact us today.
