4 White Paper Ideas for Professional Services Firms

Feb 4, 2019 | White Papers

If you’re a financial services marketer, 2019 should provide no shortage of opportunities for you to show your expertise and weigh in on topics that your clients are curious about. As we head into what should be a pivotal year for financial markets and the U.S. economy, our latest e-book features 19 ideas for topics that will be ripe for white papers, bylined articles, and other forms of thought leadership in 2019. In a series of blog posts, I’ve written about different white paper and other forms of thought leadership ideas for different segments of the investment management industry. Screen Shot 2019-01-09 at 12.46.52 PM

First, we wrote about ideas for the institutional asset management industry; then, we wrote about ideas for private wealth management and investment banking and private equity. Finally, here in our last post, we feature ideas for thought leaders working in professional services. Of course, if you want to read all 19 of my ideas for financial marketers in 2019, you can download our e-book at the end of this post.

Here are four white paper ideas for financial marketers in professional services for 2019.

1. Continuing Regulatory Reform 

The Trump Administration claimed in October 2018 that the regulations it had cut in the past year were costing the United States about $1.6 billion annually. As the administration looks for further opportunities to cut red tape and reduce government oversight of industries, accountants, auditors, and consultants will need to be on top of how such reforms will influence their clients’ businesses. It will also mean that professional services firms will have plenty of opportunity to write about continuing deregulation as part of their thought-leadership efforts. Furthermore, it will be interesting to see whether the Democrats’ gains in the 2018 mid-term elections affect the pace of regulatory reform coming out of the executive branch.
 

2. Dealing With a Tight Labor Market

How low can unemployment in the United States go? As of this writing, the unemployment rate stands at 4%, meaning the U.S. labor market is the tightest it has been since 1969. Needless to say, companies are having a tough time hiring, especially those looking for highly in-demand, knowledge-based workers. This means professional services firms will have the opportunity to add value for clients by providing creative solutions for navigating today’s labor market. But companies don’t just have to worry about hiring workers; companies need to focus on keeping their current workers happy, too. With the tight labor market, employees are demanding more than ever out of their employers, and employers are turning to professional services firms for guidance.
 

3. Raising the Cybersecurity Bar

Massive data breaches in recent years have highlighted the growing importance of corporate cybersecurity. Put simply, staying at the cutting edge of cybersecurity best practices is no longer a luxury but a cost of doing business. As hackers and other cyber criminals continue to evolve their tactics, it’s increasingly important for professional services firms and advisors to show clients that they have the expertise to step in and help. Writing about the growing importance of cybersecurity should be a major priority for professional services firms in 2019.

 

4. Revenue Growth Moving to Advisory Services

The Big Four accounting firms—PwC, KPMG, Deloitte, and Ernst & Young—saw their revenue collectively rise 10.4% in 2018, the strongest growth in years, according to The Wall Street Journal. But buried beneath the top-line growth is a significant trend that accounting and auditing firms need to pay attention to: most of that revenue growth is coming from consulting and other services, not core auditing and accounting businesses. As technology makes basic accounting and auditing services less differentiated, it will be important that professional services firms write about how their consulting and other advisory capabilities allow the firm to provide strategic advice to clients that goes beyond the core services of accounting and auditing.
 

That’s a wrap on our 19 for 19 blog series. For a complete list of all 19 ideas, download our free e-book that covers all 19 white paper ideas for financial marketers in 2019.

Download Your Free E-Book of 19 White Paper Ideas for 2019

About the Author Scott -About AuthorScott Wentworth is the CEO at Wentworth Financial Communications. He collaborates with a team of writers and editors at Wentworth to help professionals across the financial services industry build their brands by creating investment-grade white papers, bylined articles, newsletters, blogs, social media posts, and other forms of content marketing.

Subscribe to our newsletter 

Share This