January 23

Financial Marketing: What WON’T Work in 2015

3  comments

Good (whatever time you’re reading this),

bradblog

When I was considering this topic (specifically focused on financial marketing), I really could have gone one of two ways …

I could give away all my secrets and plans…but I chose to go more the ‘warning’ route with the hopes that you would deduce the correct path for yourself 🙂

I’ll touch on the three main marketing channels and
advise you what NOT to do, in each, in 2015.  The hope is that you will listen…and make money!!

First let’s talk about email in 2015…

**Too Personal or Impersonal email copy WON’T work in 2015

I’ve seen a shift over the last year towards the more ‘formal’
type emails, with a more corporate/professional feel.

Those emails aren’t bad…unless you really have no corporate image, in which case they’re awful.

There are newsletters and companies that SHOULD have a more formal(corporate) tone to their emails, but for the most part, if you’re reading this…that’s not you.

That being said…you’ve gotta realize who you are writing to when you’re writing your email copy, especially with financial marketing.

Think of your demographic – unless you’re selling ringtones, you should never use ‘dude’ or ‘come on man’ or anything similar, it is unprofessional and your target demographic will instantly lose respect for you.

I saw it happen 🙂

So strike a balance between formal authority and friend…

Easy!!

Next, lets talk about advertising…

**Testing ONE Medium to Determine Funnel Value WON’T work in 2015

“Brad we ran the funnel on our Google ad word campaign and it just didn’t work, we want you to build us a new one.”

Although I love the business (hint hint) I’d rather provide you with a good view of a funnel’s value (even if I personally think it stinks) based on MULTIPLE channels, not just one.

Here’s the reality

Email traffic will convert differently than Facebook traffic,  which will convert differently than Twitter traffic, which will convert differently than Google AD WORD traffic which will convert differently than Google DISPLAY traffic, etc etc.

You get my point.

So when you create a funnel (or have me build you one**) you have to test it across different advertising mediums to really determine the value of conversion.

(**note: Funnels can be built to convert depending on the type of ad traffic.)

Lastly, let’s talk about the affiliate side…

**Relying ONLY on Affiliates for traffic and revenue WON’T work in 2015

This is something I’ve literally said over and over for the past 3-4 years…but people don’t listen all the time, and much like my (almost 3 year old) I have to say things over and over…

So…

Relying ONLY on Affiliates for traffic and revenue WON’T work in 2015 🙂

You have to consider the above point, much like your advertising where you test/use multiple mediums, but on an affiliate side if you just rely on them…SCALING will be your biggest issue/challenge.

John Carter, the MAN behind Simpler Options, has an affiliate program that did over 9mm in sales last year.  Yes I was a big part of that 😉 But over the past few months, he has been ramping up ad buys – preferring NOT to rely only on affiliates for MAX growth. His well structured formula is a great example of how diversity in financial marketing pays off.

Eventually you’ll hit a ceiling…so before you hit that and scramble consider advertising (with me helping you).

OK, now what do you think WON’T work in 2015? We want to hear from you!

All my best,
Brad

P.S. If you need to reach me here’s my contact info:

E: brad@bradstafford.com (email)
S: brad.stafford928 (Skype)


Tags


You may also like

Some news on the work front…

Some news on the work front…
  • Good stuff Brad. A couple things I would add:

    1. Not incorporating video into your strategy into 2015 just won’t work anymore. Consumers of all ages are busy and would much rather watch than read.

    2. Treating each channel as a separate funnel won’t work in 2015. You can’t isolate what you’re doing on Facebook from what you’re doing on Google and what you’re doing in email. They should reflect one another and be used for re-targeting the same audience in different ways.

    3. Not considering mobile just won’t cut it in 2015. Not providing a solution for smart phones and tablets? Say goodbye to half of your traffic right off the bat!

    • Great stuff Heather and agree on ALL POINTS! As we discussed the other day, traffic converts differently depending on source! And you’re right about mobile, the challenge is getting an actionable item accepted/taken from the mobile traffic.

  • Good points on all 3 areas, Brad, agree with you: adapt email copy/format to audience more thoughtfully, test multiple funnels/formats/ad buys, and no over-reliance on aff-only marketing. Smart list, you nailed it.

    I think traders are fatigued from webinar-burnout, and theory-only chart talking from marketers-posing-as-traders, so a call for more Authenticity and genuine expertise with proven case studies and actual results would be a step in the right direction; what won’t work is more theory-only bs from phony educators who aren’t real traders… 🙂

    Here’s to another successful year ahead –

    Ken

  • {"email":"Email address invalid","url":"Website address invalid","required":"Required field missing"}
    >