Why SEO and Your Online Visibility Matters for Financial Copywriting
Unlock Your Content's Potential
Imagine you bake the most delicious cookies in the world. But nobody will ever get to taste them if you keep them locked away in a secret pantry.
The same goes for your financial content. You can craft the most insightful and helpful advice, but it won't do anyone any good if people can't find it. And that's where SEO comes in.
Think of SEO as a spotlight that shines on your website and makes it easily visible to people searching for your financial content online.
In today's digital world, most people turn to search engines like Google to find what they're looking for. So, if your website isn't optimized for search, it's like burying your cookies in the deepest corner of the pantry - nobody will ever discover them.
According to Forbes, 75% of people online don't go past the first search results page—and 81% research before buying something big. So, making your website easy to find through search engines (called SEO) is very important.
Treat SEO as the Key to Getting Results
Doing SEO helps your brand and service connect with potential clients trying to find you. Let’s walk through some things you can do to improve your site’s SEO.
Study What Competitor Sites Do
Use tools like SEMrush, Ahrefs, or Moz to see your competitors' keywords and content. Find ideas and holes where you can write better content.
Break Down Money Topics
Research subsections in areas like investing, retirement planning, loans, etc. Target informational keywords for each specific area of service you offer. This helps attract various searcher intents. Use tools like UberSuggest, AnswerThePublic, and Google-related keywords to help uncover subtopics.
For example, if you offer retirement planning services, a subtopic could be retirement planning in your 30’s or retirement planning for the self-employed. You would choose the subtopics based on their search volume, how easy it is to rank on the 1st page of search results, and relevance to your target audience.
Optimizing Informational Intent Content
An open book with icons representing money topics like investing and loans.
Money subjects often involve buying intent. But you can also write articles that teach and inform. Answer popular money questions that people ask to get knowledgeable.
This expands keyword searches and website traffic. Use tools like Surfer SEO, MarketMuse, and Frase to find common money phrases people search for so you can write articles that teach them. It helps to build your authority on financial topics when you directly help by answering searchers' questions.
Continuing with our retirement planning example, questions you can answer in informational content could be: How to Start Planning for Retirement in Your 30s, or How Do I Start a Self-Employed Retirement Plan?
Connect Related Content
Link pages and sections about related money topics using keywords as anchor texts. This shows search engines all your good information on an idea. But vary wording.
In the article we titled earlier, "How to Start Planning for Retirement in Your 30s", you would link to other content on your site like so:
"Getting an early start on [retirement savings] makes reaching your [retirement goals] much easier thanks to compound growth over time. That's why beginning retirement planning in your 30s is so valuable. We help 30-somethings develop [customized retirement plans] suited to their vision."
In this example, the anchor text links to more content like this:
Retirement savings - "Best Retirement Savings Accounts for 30-Somethings"
Retirement goals - "Setting Retirement Goals Early On"
Customized retirement plans - "Personalized Retirement Planning for Any Age"
As you can see, we have connected topics around early retirement planning, savings, and goal setting, showing search engines your expertise. The wording flows naturally while linking related resources using varied anchor text. This helps associate your site with 30s retirement planning and questions about getting started early for retirement.
Organize Content by Main Money Topics
Structure site articles and blogs around main money topics, with supporting pieces connected by links. These target subsections are under the main focus keywords.
An organized diagram showing the main pages and supporting pages of a website.
You offer retirement planning services. Here is what this looks like:
Main Pages:
"Retirement Planning Services" - Overview of everything we offer
"401k Help" - Special help for 401k accounts
"Retirement Money Strategies" - Tips for making money last in retirement
Helping Pages:
"Moving Your 401k" - Changing 401k when you switch jobs
"Growing Your 401k" - Making 401k money grow more
"Budgeting in Retirement" - Planning what money you'll have
"Retirement Money Goals" - Helping pick needs after retiring
These pages connect through site links and related sections. For example, the "Retirement Money Strategies" page would connect to "Budgeting in Retirement" and "Retirement Money Goals."
This makes your site easy to understand for search engines, with primary retirement planning services backed up by pages with more details.
Get Links from Relevant Money Sites
Get links from niche finance sites, big-money blogs, and resources related to your specialties. Avoid random links. Staying on the money topic looks better.
Rounding up with our retirement planning service example, we want sites about money and investing to link to us. Rather than random websites, we aim for sites about:
Retirement planning
401k help
Investing to earn money in retirement
Healthcare for seniors
Good sites that could link to us include:
Money tips blogs like The Balance
Investing websites like The Motley Fool
Professional groups like the National Association of Personal Financial Advisors
Local radio money blogs that talk about seniors
For example, we could write guest articles on retirement issues for big personal finance blogs. If they link to your site, it shows search engines we know this topic.
The goal is to get links from sites about seniors, investing, money planning, and retirement. These keep it related versus random sites, even if the site is popular. Sticking to money and retirement looks better for a retirement planning service website as it is scanned by search engines.
Reaching the Right Readers
Good SEO means your financial advice can be found by people searching for it. This is better than waiting for a lucky visit.
Target the search terms people use to find help on investing, retirement, insurance, etc. Optimize so your valuable guidance appears when your target audience needs it. You'll connect with an interested audience much faster.
Building Trust
High search rankings make your financial services site look reliable. When you beat others for money keywords, people link that to expertise.
This credibility makes new visitors trust you to manage their financial matters and guide them correctly.
Getting More Leads and Sales
A funnel with people entering the top and coming out the bottom, symbolizing conversion.
The real test of good SEO is if it grows your business. More high-intent search traffic means more chances to convert visitors into leads and customers.
Helpful, optimized financial content shows you meet visitor needs. This persuades them to subscribe, download a guide, request a meeting, or hire you. More quality leads mean higher revenue.
Financial Copywriting Success
When combined with good SEO, compelling financial copywriting becomes a powerful tool for:
Attracting clients looking for specific financial information or services
Establishing expertise and trustworthiness on financial topics
Getting contact details and converting visitors into paying customers
Instead of a spray-and-pray approach, target buyers throughout their search process.
Create content matching what people are looking for at each stage. Optimize it for those related searches so you can guide prospects from awareness to a sale.
Invest Time in Being Easy to Find
In competitive areas like finance services, easy discoverability in search engines makes or breaks success. Even if you write excellent financial content, it fails if hidden from searchers.
SEO and writing work together – compelling content plus optimization reaches the right people. Done effectively, this strategy grows your business by:
Increasing website traffic
Building trust and credibility
Generating more qualified, interested leads
So, put time into optimizing your online visibility. Treat SEO as essential to your business results. This visibility connects your expertise and services with potential customers.
Conclusion
As a financial copywriter focused on SEO, I'm urging financial brands and service providers to make improving online visibility a top priority soon.
You create invaluable financial advice to guide your clients' journeys. But if hidden from searchers, what's the point? Your brilliant guidance never reaches or helps your audience.
I specialize in SEO financial copywriting to connect financial brands and service providers with their target clients. My strategy combines compelling, compliant copywriting with keyword optimization. I target the specific search terms potential clients use to make your expert advice appear at the right time.
The proof is in the search traffic, trust, and sales I drive. I want to get your invaluable financial advice found when buyers need it.
I offer a free, no-stress 30-minute video chat to explore boosting your SEO visibility. With no obligations, it is just an open discussion about the possibilities. You can schedule HERE.
Don't let your financial advice sit untouched in a hidden pantry. Let's work together to make your content visible when your potential client searches for it.
About the Author
Allison King is a Los Angeles-based financial copywriter. She was featured in publications such as Business Insider, Yahoo Finance, and Market Watch. She helps small financial services businesses write great digital content that is easy to find on the internet.
Allison has an MBA in Finance and has worked in banks, taught finance at the college level, and penned a personal finance book. She knows how to make boring money topics exciting and easy to find online.