5 Non-Boring Blog Ideas for Financial Planning Month (2023)

October is such an exciting time of year. The nights grow longer, the air feels crisper, and kids young and old can’t stop thinking about their Halloween costumes.

As if that’s not enough to get your heart racing, it’s also Financial Planning Month.

I’m kidding (sort of). I mean, some people do get fired up about financial planning topics (the team here at SuperScript, for example). But chances are, your audience is a little more “meh” on the subject. If you’re a financial marketer who feels like you’ve covered all the financial planning basics already, finding a new angle can be a challenge.

Lucky for you, finding new angles to old money stories is our jam. Let’s explore some fresh takes on financial planning themes — and get your audience pumped for planning season.

What is Financial Planning Month?

Financial Planning Month is one of those “holidays” like National Donut Day (June 2nd) or International Talk Like a Pirate Day (September 19th) that seemingly appeared out of nowhere in the last decade or so. However, like the financial planning profession itself, the idea has grown to a point where even non-financial planners may be vaguely aware of its existence.

Why is Financial Planning Month in October? One theory is that it’s right before the holiday spending season and the end of the year, so it’s an opportune time to talk about budgeting, saving, spending, and year-end planning.

(Psst! If you know the true origins of Financial Planning Month, please comment below. After extensive Googling and decades working in this industry, we still can’t figure it out).

In any event, Financial Planning Month is a thing, and most of us financial marketers agree that it exists. Which is awesome, because it’s an opportunity to educate and engage our audiences about the wonderful world of financial planning. Some key financial planning topics include:

• Financial goal-setting
• Cash flow
• Debt management
• Retirement savings
• College savings
• Insurance
• Investing
• Tax planning
• Estate planning
• Psychology of money
• Behavioral finance

Basically, if it will help your audience plan for a better financial life, it’s a good topic to tackle this month. 

What are other financial marketers writing about?

Many financial marketers use themed months like these to cover the basics. Having a collection of evergreen blogs that educate your audience on the essentials will help them achieve their goals and help you build brand awareness and authority. 

Some evergreen financial planning themes include:

• What is included in a financial plan?  
• When do you need a financial advisor and/or planner?
• Financial advisors vs. financial planners — what’s the difference?
• Financial planning tips by generation (millennials vs. Gen X vs. baby boomers)
• Financial planning for life’s milestones (e.g., graduation, marriage, first job, retirement, etc.)
• Educational blogs about any of the financial planning topics listed in the section above

If your financial planning content is feeling a bit thin, these timeless topics are a great place to start. 

Tip: Evergreen content doesn’t have to be boring. Can you hit a trending theme in your intro? Can you customize a generic topic for your ideal audience? Either of these tactics should help liven things up — and don’t forget to update it on a semi-regular basis.

Some evergreen financial planning content we love:

• What is a Financial Planner, and Do You Need One? (NerdWallet)
• What is a Financial Plan and How Do You Build One? (SmartAsset) 
• 6 Golden Financial Planning Rules for Millennials (Forbes Advisor)

5 fresh takes on financial planning themes

If you’ve already covered the basics, you may need to dig deeper to attract interest to your blog and create some social media buzz this month. We’ve lined up 5 compelling content themes that make Financial Planning Month a fake holiday to get real excited about.

Theme #1: Money is stressful — but financial planning can help 

If you feel like we’re all more stressed than ever these days, you are not imagining things.

According to ValuePenguin, 84% of people report feeling stressed on a weekly basis, up from 78% last year. Not surprisingly, money is by far the biggest stressor. 32% say that money is their biggest source of stress, while 11% cite work as their main pain point. Considering the close link between the two, it’s pretty clear that our finances are freaking us out.

We see a lot of financial planning content that deals with dollars and cents, but not enough that gets into the emotional side of things. Your audience wants you to acknowledge their pain — in fact, 72% of respondents in an eMoney survey said having a financial advisor understand their stress was key to personalized services. 

The Angle

• How is stress/anxiety/fear holding your audience back from getting the financial help they need?
• How can financial planning processes and outcomes help to reduce stress?
• How can your audience have more upfront conversations about the emotional side of finance with their financial professional? What role can an advisor play in reducing day-to-day stressors? 

Blog Inspiration

• What is Holistic Financial Planning and How Can it Help You? (MassMutual)
• Smart Financing Makes for Less Stress and Healthy Living (Forbes)
• 7 Ways to Help Reduce Financial Stress (Citizens Bank)

Theme #2: Financial planning in a post(ish)-pandemic world 

The pandemic changed a lot of things in our society, but arguably one of the biggest shifts was how we “do” work. People quit their jobs en masse in the Great Resignation, choosing to switch careers, start businesses, seek new employer benefits, or better handle the growing workload at home.

It’s pretty clear that values around making a living have evolved, and financial plans will need to evolve with them.

The Angle

• How did the pandemic disrupt your audience’s long-held beliefs about what their financial journey might look like? How can they adapt their plan to account for this new reality?
• How do career shifts — like taking a remote position, starting a business or side hustle, or accepting less pay for more gratifying work — play into a successful financial plan?
• How can a financial plan account for the increase in unpaid labor happening on the homefront?

Blog Inspiration

• Do Freelancers Need Financial Advisors? (Contently) 
• What COVID Taught Us About Personal Finance (Ayco Personal Finance Management) 
• COVID Has Rewritten the Rules on Financial Planning. Here are 3 Strategies to Adjust (Fortune)

Theme #3: The rise of alternative financial planning models 

Historically, you could get financial planning services in one of two ways. Your could go to an advisor, who likely has a hefty investment minimum and charges a percent of assets under management. Or you could pay hundreds — even thousands — for an ad hoc plan from a financial planner.

Both of these models have flaws. For example, the first one is not accessible to people who don’t yet have assets to manage, and the second one is just a plan on paper that clients can easily ignore or forget after leaving the planner’s office.

Fortunately, new models have come into play to solve these problems, including subscription services and financial coaching. These approaches typically don’t require investment minimums and are usually more budget-friendly. And because they’re designed to provide ongoing support vs. a one-and-done financial plan, they can evolve with the client’s needs.

Coaches in particular focus on the behavioral aspects of finance, which tends to be a gap in traditional financial planning. They may also offer group coaching services which can significantly lower the price of admission.

The Angle

• How have financial planning options changed over time? What exists now that didn’t exist a few years ago?
• How can people take advantage of financial planning before they’ve built wealth?
• How do the services and credentialing differ among these new models of financial planning — for example, roboadvisors vs. subscription-based planners vs. financial coaches?

Blog Inspiration

• What is a Financial Coach and What Can They Help You With? (NerdWallet)
• Financial Coach, Financial Advisor or Financial Planner: Which Should You Choose? (Forbes)
• Not a Millionaire? Pay for Expert Financial Advice the Same Way You Pay for Netflix (CNBC)

Theme #4: Retirement goal posts are moving disappearing

Retirement has long been the undisputed champion of financial goals, but that may be changing.

A recent Transamerica study found that 49% of Baby Boomers and 38% of Gen Xers plan to work past age 70 or, get this, do not plan to retire at all. The reasoning appears to be a combo of not being financially prepared and also wanting to stay active and healthy in old age.

From a financial planning perspective, there’s a lot to unpack here. The report also includes data on Millennials and Gen Z — worth a read to understand how different generations view and plan for retirement.

The Angle

• Economic and environmental factors impacted each generation’s view of retirement — are these views accurate or should they be re-assessed?
• How should a financial plan adjust for a delayed retirement age? What costs or risks should people be aware of even if they plan to continue to work?
• Retirement guidance should differ greatly for each generation, not only because of time horizon but also their disparate life experiences and views on investing/retiring.

Blog Inspiration

• Delaying Retirement Could Have Health and Financial Benefits (Brighthouse Financial)
• Generation X: All Eyes on Retirement (Investopedia)
• The Millennial and Gen Z Guide to a Sweet Retirement (Morgan Stanley)

Topic #5: The great generational wealth transfer 

A lot has been said about the great generational wealth transfer — where an estimated $84 trillion in accumulated wealth is expected to pass from older to younger generations in the next few years — so we won’t go into detail here.

Suffice it to say, this is a big deal in the financial planning space. As Stefon would say, this story has everything — estate planning, tax planning, charitable giving, and that thing where a lot of families don’t talk about money until something terrible happens and everyone has to drop everything and deal with it.

The Angle

• Many of those who inherit will be millennials, who may not currently have a financial advisor — or a solid financial plan for how they’ll deal with the inheritance. They’re likely looking for advice on a range of topics from tax ramifications to investments. 
• Older generations are looking for guidance on planning out their finances for retirement as well as securing their legacies. 

Blog Inspiration

• 3 Ways to Prepare Yourself for the Great Wealth Transfer (Entrepreneur) 
• The Great Wealth Transfer: Is Your Family Ready? (Bank of America)
• Women and the Great Wealth Transfer (U.S. Wealth Management)