Why Using a Thought Leadership Platform is Standard Practice for Financial Advisors

Do political leaders write their own speeches?

Do top-tier business leaders write their own books?

Do best-selling artists write their own songs?

Of course not.

In each example, they are written, edited, re-written, and edited some more by professional ghostwriters.

This is standard practice for top-tier professionals. It would be crazy to assume that the highest leverage contribution for each of these professionals is to sit there and debate the choice of adjectives and verbs.

You must focus on what makes you special. Chances are you want to be out in the field building and managing relationships. To make this happen, you need a specialist partner that helps you deepen those relationships.

Let’s dig in to the main reasons why financial advisors are expected to leverage the benefits of a thought leadership platform.

Reason #1: Lack of time

You are swamped. Every moment counts.

Wealth management is a time-intensive industry. You need to juggle meetings with demanding clients, prospects, and employees. The list goes on.

And it doesn’t stop there.

Especially in your field, you need maximum flexibility in your day to react to unpredictable events.

Ideally, you could communicate to your clients at scale, providing value to them in a way that protects your time.

With all these time commitments, how do you have enough time to sit down and meticulously create insights that will engage your audience and grow your business?

Reason #2: Lack of expertise

Writing isn’t everyone’s strong suit.

Wealth management professionals are not expected to master the art of writing insight posts.

Financial advisors are highly emotionally intelligent individuals who excel in helping individuals and families put a financial plan in place to achieve their goals.

This is what makes you special, and what you love to do.

In an ideal world, you would have the missing ingredient that extends the value you provide clients in one-to-one meetings.

That missing ingredient is also the catalyst to the engaging conversations that deepen relationships. But you might not have the skill set to consistently sit down to write engaging and compelling materials alongside the intensity of your day-to-day.

Reason #3: Lack of desire

Writing can be a drag.

Let’s admit it: crafting detailed, engaging thought leadership can be a tedious process for many.

This disinterest in writing isn’t a flaw, but a common situation among professionals deeply immersed in their craft.

When your passions lie elsewhere, the quality of your work suffers.

You might also encounter an issue that many wealth management firms face. While you understand investment and financial planning concepts well, you might not know how to communicate that knowledge to an individual who is not as well versed in it as you are. It’s a challenge to remove yourself from the deep intricacies of what you do to write materials that explain your insights to a time-poor audience that is not as specialized as you.

So, what is the solution?

If you are going to rely on a third-party to help you communicate to your audience, you cannot just pick anyone.

You need a partner that specializes in investment and financial content creation for a time-poor and discerning audience.

For context, at Catalyst, our core offering is designed to empower wealth management firms like yours.

We help financial advisors scale their asset base by giving them the missing ingredient to deepen client relationships, drive referrals, and elevate their firm as a thought leader.

Financial advisors recognize the importance to communicate thought leadership that adds value to clients and prospects.

But the unfortunate reality is these same firms typically do not have the time, expertise, or desire to focus on and implement a consistent roadmap of quality materials.

By outsourcing the heavy lifting of writing, you allocate more time to what drives outcomes for your business: being there for your clients.

Want to know more best practices to establish your firm as a thought leader? Check out our insights library here. 

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