Content Without a Plan is Like Traveling Without a Destination

In previous blog posts, we have discussed the first two phases of our 8 step process of creating great content – EVALUATION and RESEARCH. Armed with the data you have hopefully collected during these stages, you’re now ready to approach the next essential step in elevating your firm’s content to attract new investors and AUM - PLANNING. 

Step 3: Plan

When you work with GK3 Capital as a partner in your digital distribution strategy, our content strategist collaborates with you to thoughtfully develop your goals-driven content plan.

Our content strategist collaborates with you to thoughtfully develop your goals-driven content plan.

Why a “Buyer Persona” is Important

Great content begins with the client in mind. So, we identify and profile your best current and future clients. For each client profile, we create a Buyer Persona, a semi-fictional representation of your ideal client types. For example, as an asset manager active in intermediary distribution, you may work with two types of allocators: financial planners and due diligence analysts. What are their specific needs or pain points, and how can you solve them?

Taking the time to develop clear buyer personas will help focus your content plan and deliver superior results for your content marketing efforts. Are your clients family offices, high net-worth individuals, or retirees? Do you seek to reach institutional investors such as large defined benefit plans, foundations, or sovereign wealth funds?

Each client type responds to different types of content and presentation formats (or even tone). Some personas may prefer short videos; others, a comprehensive white paper. Can you describe the profile and preferences of your key client types? We work with firms across the financial industry to develop on-point buyer personas customized to their investment focus.

Below are examples of Buyer Personas we developed for a private fund sponsor active in the financial intermediary channels. We develop customized personas for each of our clients, whether they seek to reach institutional, intermediary, or high net worth clients.

Buyer Persona examples from an institutional real estate sponsor distributing in intermediary channels.

Customizing Content to the Buyer’s Journey

With your key buyer personas clearly in mind, we begin to develop your content plan. In the plan, we list the content that will guide each buyer persona along their Buyer’s Journey, from new contact to committed investor.

Types of Content for Each Phase

Note that content type will vary depending on the stage of the Buyer’s Journey. Different types of content are effective at each stage:

Bringing it All Together

After we collaborate to develop your Buyer Personas and answer the key questions for each stage of your buyer’s journey, we then develop your content topics. We build out a roster of topics and content types encompassing the buyer’s journey.

The amount of content will vary depending on the frequency and depth of your content program. The roster of topics can be expanded based on the scope of your content program and the nature of your strategy or offering. This table is an example of a basic content topic roster.

Conclusion

We recognize this planning process may seem laborious compared to how your firm currently creates content. But we assure you that following the steps we have outlined is the only effective way of reaching the types of prospects you’re interested in and engaging them with timely insights on the topics they are most interested in.

In our next blog post, we’ll discuss the process of implementing your content plan, and that begins with SCHEDULING.