The "Estate planning – why is it important" experience was developed to address a critical gap in the Merrill Edge financial wellness curriculum. Wealth transfer and estate planning were identified as key financial priorities among our "Preferred" audience—particularly those in their mid-40s and older. Our goal was to provide foundational education explaining exactly what estate planning is, why it is important regardless of a client’s wealth level or age, and how to get started. We aimed to create a learning experience that transitioned clients from basic education to taking the first step of scheduling an appointment.
What began as a traditional article was later turned into a landing page experience that allowed us to tap into a range of interactive functionality and more interesting layout options to accommodate a great deal of content. This landing page has been optimized for SEO, particularly through the “Additional estate planning resources” page footer, which provides links to our full collection of content and tools on this topic.
When the landing page experience launched, we supported it with five underlying new pieces of content focused on: talking to your parents about estate planning, trusts, reviewing and updating your estate plan, having family conversations about estate planning, and beneficiary designations.
To bring the project to life internally, the landing page was promoted in a CI Weekly Advisor Update email. In this update, our voice-of-FSA partners commended the experience and expressed excitement about sharing it with advisors. The execution focuses on moving the user from education to action; the primary call to action encourages visitors to set up a meeting, which takes them directly to the appointment interface. This unique approach allowed us to present a large volume of complex information in a more engaging format than a standard article.
Since launch, we have seen moderate page visits without any real promotion behind it. We have also seen a very low bounce rate from the page, which reinforces the message that the content is valuable and engaging to our Preferred audience. The fact that our voice-of-FSA partners commended the experience further proves the success of the project in meeting its goal of providing essential education. The low bounce rate specifically confirms that the interactive landing page layout successfully holds the attention of clients on this important topic.