As the sister of a CFP®, I’ve watched my sister grow a financial planning practice  to beyond successful. I watched her from the beginning, attending every networking event she could to make connections, to the present day, where she’s able to raise her rates and pick and choose who she works with. That’s the dream, right? This has taken a lot of effort on her part – especially when it comes to marketing. Years ago, she attended a Michael Kitces event where he encouraged cons

When you’re a business owner, there is a fine line between being too “flip” and being so “professional” that it can be a turn-off. The point of implementing these tools is to create a memorable marketing experience. And humor can be a great way to go about this. Here are a few stats: 90% of consumers  are more likely to remember funny ads. 55% of executives  said humor gets attention better than no humor, and 72% said it attracts buyers to new products. 24% of companies  use

Do you remember back in the day when we used to spend a TON of time going to in-person networking events that may or may not have generated viable leads? Coffees that would last an entire morning, evening events when you had to find a babysitter, and rooms full of people that gave you just that slightest twinge (or full-blown) anxiety. These days, thanks to the wonders of technology, in-person networking can be just part of your business-building strategy because much of our

Because I work with financial advisors, the end of the year is all about wrapping up the year when it comes to your finances - celebrating wins, learning from mistakes, and generally just understanding what your money taught you this year. But as I've been working on client blogs, I've realized that you can also look at your marketing to see what it taught you this year. Here are some things to take a look at:  How consistently did I show up this year? Did you publish newslet

Key Takeaways Topic clusters signal authority and help you own an entire problem space, increasing your chances of being cited in AI-driven search results. Internal linking hubs keep visitors engaged, improving navigation, time on site, and the engagement metrics Google now prioritizes. User experience is a ranking factor, with page speed, mobile optimization, and scroll depth playing a major role in modern search performance. If the past year has taught us anything, it’s thi

Key Takeaways Treat Google as a discovery tool, not your primary funnel - its job is visibility, while nurturing happens on your owned channels. Shift focus to email lists, lead magnets, tools, and webinars to move prospects off “rented land” and into your ecosystem. If zero-click searches are the new normal (and they are), then it’s time to rethink how Google actually fits into your marketing strategy. For years, SEO was the engine: get found → get the click → get the lead.

Key Takeaways Zero-click searches reward generic content—so create what AI can’t summarize. Original insights, case studies, and lived expertise beat AI every time. Local knowledge gives you a competitive edge AI can’t replicate. Branded frameworks and tools make your content “zero-click-proof.” Your perspective and human storytelling are your strongest differentiators. If you read our recent breakdown of AI’s zero-click search trends , you already know the landscape has shif

Key Takeaways AEO focuses on answering questions directly for AI systems - not just ranking for keywords. Clear, structured, Q&A-style content helps AI pull accurate answers from your site. Strong E-E-A-T signals make AI more likely to trust and quote your content. Topic clusters and niche authority matter more than ever in AI-driven search. Optimizing for AEO positions your content to be used in   answers, not just found through them. Search is changing faster than most of u

Key Takeaways Zero-click searches are rising, meaning users often get their answers directly on Google without visiting websites—reducing traditional organic click-through rates. Informational queries are the biggest losers, with studies showing click-through rates dropping 34–45% when an AI Overview appears. Non-branded searches are hit hardest, because users looking for general answers don’t need to click when AI provides it up front. Branded searches remain more resilient,

When I first heard the term “case studies,” I groaned and wondered if this was yet another complicated marketing technique that I was going to need to add to my repertoire. Then I realized I was already implementing it. The term “case study” is really a fancy (and kind of pretentious) way of saying “storytelling.” As defined by Adobe , “A case study is a narrative that documents a real-world situation or example. A marketing case study is a detailed examination and analysis o