A strong online presence in wealth management has never been more important. Financial advisors, who have historically paid limited attention to this area, are now focusing their efforts on website design and online marketing programs. In this article, we’ll provide some key financial advisor website design tips, including design techniques, website elements, and content creation suggestions.
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Color Choices Matter
Colors have a psychological effect on website visitors. When planning a color scheme, try to stick with something neutral, not too bright. Images and videos should stand out more than the background color of the website.
Shades of colors matter also. Advisor websites should not be bright red, but maroon is a good choice. Yellow in any shade is a bad idea. Blues and greens, in their lighter shades, are typically safe and easy on the eyes. A combination of the two can create a calming effect.
The color scheme for the website should reflect your branding and be incorporated into your other marketing materials. Colors are as much a part of an advisor’s brand as a logo and tag line. Be consistent in this area to stand out from the competition. Internet users are first captured by colors and images, not words.
Plan Your Site’s Content
Your site should provide a comprehensive overview of your brand and services, and your navigation menu should be organized in such a way as to make it easy for visitors to find the information they need.
Your Home Page
When designing your site, your first priority should be your Home page. In most cases, this is the first page that your clients will hit when they visit your site. It should make a strong impression. Keep content sections brief, but do include a thorough overview of who you are and the services you provide. You can then link from the Home page to various other pages on the site so users can find more info. Be sure to include engaging imagery and clear “Call to Action” sections to guide users where you want them to go throughout your site.
Service Pages
Robust service pages are important for several reasons. For starters, including your key services in your navigation menu lets prospects know what they can expect when working with you. Secondly, building out quality content to discuss your service offerings can help to instill confidence in prospects as they navigate through your site. And finally, building out dedicated service pages can help to improve your SEO, giving you a better chance to rank for terms like “financial planning”, “retirement planning”, “portfolio management”, etc.
Add a Blog
A running blog can be an invaluable resource to draw in new leads and create a community around your brand. Strive to provide quality content covering areas targeting your specific niche(s). As you post your content, consider sharing it through your other channels as well, like email lists and social media. When sharing, just share an excerpt with a link to the blog on your site, so you can benefit from the site traffic, which can help to improve authority with search engines.
Add Video to Landing Pages
Videos enhance user experience. They are an opportunity for advisors to state their value proposition in a format that immediately captures the user’s attention. A website visitor will almost always watch a video before reading written content.
The most effective financial advisor websites are built with multiple landing pages. If you’re prospecting in a specific niche, build a landing page for that niche and create a video targeting those prospects. This is a duplicatable process. Each iteration will produce new qualified leads.
Upload your videos to YouTube as well. This can help drive additional traffic to your website and opens up a channel for you to build a new audience. You can also add videos to Facebook, Twitter, and other platforms, extending your social media reach.
Place CTAs Strategically
Call to action (CTA) functions could be buttons, links, images, or forms. These all need to be placed strategically throughout your website. CTAs are more important than any other element, because they are where lead capture actually happens.
The top right corner of the website is prime real estate for CTA placement. Adding a “read more” link at the top and/or bottom of a page or post (as we’ve done here) is also highly effective. Just make sure that the link takes users to a page that offers some additional value to the user.
CTAs are also useful for search engine optimization (SEO). When visitors take no action on a website, they are listed in analytics tracking as a “bounce.” Too many bounces can damage a site’s rankings in search engines, reducing organic traffic.
Mobile Responsive Design is Essential
Today, over 40% of web traffic occurs on mobile devices. A mobile responsive website is essential to ensure you are not losing traffic due to a poorly designed mobile experience. With a responsive design, all of the content on the page automatically adjusts for the size of the screen it is being viewed on, delivering the best experience no matter the device.
The good news is that most modern content management systems (CMS), such as WordPress, offer out-of-the-box website themes that are already optimized for mobile device visitors. Even so, it’s always important to preview your content on both desktop and mobile before publishing, so you can ensure you are delivering the optimal experience.
Add FAQ & Privacy Policy Pages
Creating a “frequently asked questions” page can be helpful to screen out non-qualified prospects. Begin by designing a profile for an ideal client (ICP). Make a list of all the questions that client would ask. Customize answers that are relevant to your ICP audience.
A privacy policy link should also be included in the footer of your site. Security and protection of personal information is a primary concern for clients. Address it head-on rather than waiting for questions on the subject.
Create a Website that Converts with Good Life
An inviting website is a must for any business today. Good Life Companies can help you build a modern, mobile-friendly financial advisor website that converts. We also offer comprehensive digital marketing services, so you can find success online. Contact us today for more information.