What to Know to Stay Ahead of the Curve

The financial industry faces a number of challenges when it comes to marketing to consumers. In a nutshell, financial services are often more complex than other businesses, with strict guidelines and subject matter that can make an amateur’s head swirl. Consumers who are just starting out on their financial journey can feel overwhelmed by decisions pertaining to mortgages, investments, and loans, and feel lost on who to turn to for information. As a result, they’ll start with a simple search online to find content that can break down these concepts and make them digestible.

As these searches continue, and phone calls quickly become a thing of the past, marketers will need to embrace a robust financial content marketing strategy that establishes their brand as a thought leader in the digital space. Here is a roundup of financial content marketing statistics to know now – so that you can get ahead of your competition. 

Educational Financial Content Matters

Consumers are turning to financial content to get educated. Unfortunately, many consumers have little understanding of how finances work, whether that be related to credit, making general financial decisions or otherwise. This lack of financial understanding means that educating users on financial matters has become increasingly important. Brands can leverage financial news or provide editorial and thought leadership content to address this need. 

Consider the following stats related to financial education content:
 

1. 47% of buyers view 3-5 pieces of content before engaging with a sales rep.

2. 90% of loan and mortgage consumers, 85% of check-cashing consumers, and 76% of tax return preparation consumers start their journey with an online search. For many financial services consumers, a search is the first step to assess their options.

3. Almost 9 out of 10 of investors surveyed (86%) are spending an hour or more researching.

4. More people are searching for banking solutions. Searches for “mobile banking app” increased around the world by more than 100% when compared to the previous year. 

5. 61% of consumers’ buying decisions are influenced by custom content.

6. 82% of marketers report actively using content marketing in 2021, up 70% from 2020.

Challenges with Financial Content Marketing

Every industry has its own unique challenges, and financial services are no exception. When it comes to content in particular, there are even more challenges. These include a lack of data, compliance, addressing the customer experience and understanding the customer journey.

Here are some statistics related to common challenges financial content marketers face.

7. The 3 biggest challenges cited when it comes to marketing financial products and services are 1. Reaching the right audience (52%), 2. generating traffic to new customers (48%), and, 3. keeping up with the competition (44%).

8. The top content marketing challenges financial organizations face or expect to face is lack of resources (37.2%), inability to measure effectiveness (36.7%), and lack of budget (35.7%)

9. When marketing financial products or services, respondents reported reaching the right audience, hiring top marketing talent, and keeping up with new marketing techniques as the top three challenges. 

10. Only 1% of respondents surveyed said that uncertainty regarding COVID-19 was a challenge they currently face while marketing financial services products. 

The Benefits of Financial Content Marketing

Those who have utilized a financial content market strategy have seen the benefits pay off. A value-added content strategy for financial services can deliver numerous benefits, such as building engagement, influencing behavior, and enhancing reach. Let’s explore some of the statistics behind these benefits.

11. The 3 biggest benefits of content marketing to financial marketers are brand awareness (70%), reaching a target audience (62%), and website traffic (61%).

12. Audiences spend an average of 1 minute and 51 seconds engaging with financial services content.

13. There is a 70% average engagement rate for financial services content.

14. There is a 52% average finish rate for content pertaining to the finance industry.

Digital Matters in Financial Marketing

It’s no secret that content marketing can support your digital strategy. However, marketer’s digital initiatives are becoming more important. Consumers are increasingly going digital for their own finances or to get educated.

15. The financial services sector makes up over 14% of overall spend in online advertising.

16. Nearly 97% of millennials are now using mobile banking

17. Consumers are increasingly going online to find financial advice and make decisions on financial products. According to Google, mobile searches related to “financial planning and management” and “best credit card(s)” have increased by 70% over the last two years.

18. The digital journey is beginning earlier and earlier. More than 50% of online investors aren’t tied to a brand when beginning their search

19. Contactless or touch-free is becoming more widespread. 41% of people who use cash have used a contactless card

20. Additionally, 42% of people think that physical credit cards will no longer exist within the next five years. 

The Benefits of Outsourcing Financial Content

Outsourcing content development and thought leadership benefits your financial marketing strategy by utilizing other’s expertise to improve your content ROI. Since developing content can take a significant amount of time and resources, outsourcing may ultimately be the better option for your business.

Consider the following content marketing stats:

21. 72% of financial marketers surveyed work with a third-party agency to assist with content marketing (generation, strategy, and distribution).

22. About 6 out of 10 customers (61%) want to be members of banks that have the same values as them. 

23. 59% of decision-makers believe that thought leadership content is a more trustworthy way to evaluate a company.

Final Thoughts

For marketers working in today’s digital age, utilizing financial content to bring in new audiences, educating prospective customers, and establishing your company as a thought leader in the space, is a no-brainer. Intimated about having the right resources to get started or to develop the right content? Content licensing is a great option for driving brand loyalty while saving time and money.