The busy founder's marketing blueprint: Maximum results without being chained to your computer
If I was a busy founder in financial services, here's exactly how I'd plan my marketing for maximum results without sacrificing my sanity or my time.
Start With Solid Marketing Foundations
Being crystal clear in your messaging comes from having firm marketing foundations, because confused customers don't buy.
In a crowded and competitive space, you can't afford to leave people second-guessing why you're the best fit. Once you're clear on the who, what, why, and how of your marketing, all your messaging not only flows easily but has purpose and impact.
This is a simple exercise to do once, and then you have the understanding of how to turn your expertise into content that attracts and converts.
The five pillars you need to nail:
Who you are (lock into your personal brand straight away because YOU are the product in a service-based business)
Who you serve (your marketing should be attracting the right people)
What you offer (your unique service, skillset and experience)
Why you do it (your mission and values are what create an authentic connection with potential customers)
How you deliver results (your process and approach will help you articulate your proposition)
Focus on one channel first
Your time is precious, and if your resources are limited, focus on doing one social channel really well.
Consider your strengths. On Instagram, you're competing with content from every industry, and creating content is harder as you have video, reels, posts, and stories to consider.
On LinkedIn, the competition is lower as it's a professional network, and creating content is less time-intensive. You can share posts with photos of you, no photos, and video isn't a massive requirement for the algorithm.
My recommendation for financial services founders: Start with LinkedIn. Your ideal clients are already there, the content creation demands are lower, and professional networking is built into the platform.
Make a plan
It doesn't have to be an elaborate content calendar on Trello or Notion. It can be a simple list of topics and success stories you want to share. Writing your ideas down frees up more brain space and means you’re more likley to stick to what you’ve laid out.
Try to plan for 1-3 months so you can get some momentum and consistency with what you're saying. The key is having direction, not perfection.
Be realistic about your resources
If creating images, videos, and captions for 5 posts each week is too much, then there’s no rule that says you have to. Create 2-3 per week instead. It's a marathon, not a sprint.
Your results will compound over time, so you're aiming for consistency, not burnout. Better to post twice a week consistently than five times sporadically.
Use the 3S framework
I see founders fall into the trap of just sharing educational content. But that's not enough. If it was, you'd already be seeing the results.
You need a mix of content that focuses on:
Solve - Address your potential clients' problems
Shine - Highlight the transformation you provide (testimonials, success stories)
Sell - Promote your services directly
Aim for a rough split across your content. Not every post needs to sell, but some definitely should.
Create a conversion event
Building your email list is vital. When social media sites or websites go down, you've lost your connection to potential customers. But if you have their email, that's yours.
Focus on one conversion event or freebie each quarter that gives engaged customers who maybe aren't ready for your service a way to connect with you. It could be a financial health check, a simple guide to setting your books up, or a webinar.
This is the key to developing a pipeline of warm prospects.
Use templates for consistency
Templates make creating content easier for you and help your potential customers spot you in the crowded online space.
Have a template for single images, carousels, and reels. If you don't have dedicated branding for your business, just make sure you're using the same fonts and colours to make recognising you easier.
Template benefits:
Faster content creation
Consistent brand recognition
Less decision fatigue
Professional appearance
Repurpose, Reuse, Recycle
This is what will make the biggest difference in your planning and content creation process.
Stop thinking you need to say something new every week, and keep saying the same thing. No one but you sees 100% of your marketing. Devastating as a marketer, liberating as a business owner.
If you created a talking head last month, recycle it so it becomes:
A voiceover reel
A text-over-B-roll reel
A carousel
A single image post with caption
A long-form blog post
An email newsletter
That's 7 pieces of content from one video. If you could do that with every current piece of marketing you had, how long could you schedule your content before you'd need a new idea?
Your audience will not get bored. But they will receive your best messages, engage with the format they prefer, and get a consistent, authentic, and authoritative picture of who you are.
The bottom line
Marketing as a busy founder isn't about doing more. It's about doing the right things consistently.
Start with foundations, pick one platform, create a simple plan, and then systematically repurpose everything. This approach will give you maximum results without chaining you to your computer. Isn’t the point of running your business to have more freedom?
Remember: Your expertise is valuable. Your time is precious. Your marketing should work as hard as you do, but it shouldn't become another full-time job.
If you want help to build your marketing foundations, check out my free Marketing Blueprint workbook that expertly guides you through each step and show you how to organise the insights you uncover so you can transform your marketing. This isn't just information. This is your competitive advantage.
