You’re putting together content for your financial services website, and you’re proud of it. But you’re still not generating the traffic you believe your content should attract.
What’s wrong?
Maybe your content is sufficient, but it’s not enough to lure readers away from their favorite websites and onto your own. Nailing content marketing requires commitment, but becoming a content leader is worth the investment.
Why?
According to Neil Patel, those leaders drive 7.8 times more traffic to their site than those who come in second or third. If your content isn’t yet sticky enough to keep visitors on your page, you don’t need to start over or re-invent the wheel.
In fact, a few simple tweaks will transform your website from a content provider to a content king.
Follow these easy tips for creating content for your financial services website that will bring visitors back time and again.
#1 Keep it Relevant
The financial services niche is broad which is great for content creators because it allows for plenty of wiggle room in your content calendar.
But just because it’s a broad doesn’t mean you can write about anything you want just because it’s “in your niche.”
The key to using your content to drive traffic is to make it relevant.
Why?
Because search engines love relevant content.
If you’ve typed a query into Google lately, you’ll notice that the search results don’t just include links anymore. Now, search results include a snippet of the actual information you seek.
Your mission, should you choose to accept it, is to write content so relevant that it matches a search query exactly and then some.
Relevance drives visitors to your financial services website and it keeps them there. If a reader arrives on your site only to find your information is outdated or altogether irrelevant, they will flee to one of your competitors without a second thought.
#2 Be Provocative
Want visitors to read the content on your financial services website?
Draw them in with a provocative premise that promises to tell them something they don’t know in a way they wouldn’t expect.
What headline would grab your interest?
“6 Ways to Spend Less on Credit Card Payments”
or
“6 Reasons You’re Spending Too Much on Credit Card Bills”
Both headlines promise a similar sort of information, i.e. how to spend less money on your credit cards.
But one is a dreary reminder that you’re spending too much on credit card bills and the other immediately informs you that your suspicions are confirmed – you are in fact spending too much on those bills.
The difference seems subtle – and it is, by design.
Being provocative is a fine art particularly well suited for subtlety. You want to shock and excite the reader, but you don’t want to offend them or even ruin your own credibility with a headline.
#3 Be Assertive
Your readers aren’t coming to you for lukewarm content – they want something they can trust.
Writing in an assertive manner is a good way to build reader’s trust and communicate messages more effectively. More importantly, it lets the reader know that reading your article will help them win. And who doesn’t want to win?
How do you write assertively?
First, use a relaxed tone of voice. To be pushy is to confuse assertiveness with aggression.
Second, don’t hesitate or hedge your message unless you need to for legal reasons. Everyone knows your message isn’t the final word on the subject, but show enough confidence in it convince your audience.
Finally, be sincere. Don’t forget to use your content to explore solutions including those offered by others. After all, good content marketing is like a conversation – it needs to include multiple voices.
#4 Get Graphic
If you’re writing for a financial services website, then you’re using numbers.
And if numbers weren’t so boring, we’d all be millionaires or at least able to file our own taxes. But they’re not. In fact, they put most of us to sleep.
Rather than trying to communicate stats and figures in the text, use them in a graphic instead.
Graphics aren’t just an easy way to communicate numbers, they’re also essential for creating engaging content.
Dynamic, interesting graphics break up the text and catch the reader’s eye. Even if they’re not fully engaged with your article, a good infographic or picture will show them the information they’re interested in and draw them back in.
There’s more.
Optimize your graphics for SEO to boost your rankings even further.
#5 Structure Accordingly
When was the last time you saw a wall of text and thought to yourself: “I’ll read that right now!”
Huge blocks of text signal work and readers come to you for information.
You’re writing an article, not an academic essay, so structure accordingly.
Start by “chunking” your content by organizing it into clear, well-titled sections. Avoid writing more than 300 words in each chunk. Got more? Add another header or sub-header to break it down further.
Then, break down your paragraphs into bite-size pieces that are easy to scan and help important information stand out.
Add lists and graphics to recap information you’ve already written out.
Want a good example? Check out Pecunia Systems. Its home page provides a clear-cut example of how to structure content in a scannable and digestible way.
And don’t forget to use the bold and italics format to help important words stand out on the page.
Transform Your Financial Services Website Into a Thought Leader
You’ve got plenty of good ideas for content. But you’ve got to make those ideas stand off the page if you want customers to see them.
By staying relevant, being provocative and assertive, and formatting your content correctly (graphics and all), you’ll find it’s far easier to increase your traffic and get eyes on your page.
Your content will be king before you know it.
Have you used these tips for converting page visitors into loyal followers?
Share your stories in the comments below or head over to our forums to join in the conversation.
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