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Deep channel analysis revealed misallocated budget and poor audience targeting, leading to dramatic improvements in lead quality and acquisition costs.
This established wealth management firm had been following the same media strategy for over five years, with 65% of their £8 million acquisition budget allocated to traditional channels including print, radio, and direct mail. While they were generating leads, the quality was declining, conversion rates were falling, and cost per client acquisition had risen 78% over three years.
Fuel Media conducted a detailed 6-week channel-specific audit with deep analysis of both traditional and digital media performance, including advanced attribution modelling for the lengthy financial services sales cycle.
Our comprehensive channel analysis revealed that the traditional media strategy was no longer effective for reaching the firm's target audience of high-net-worth individuals aged 45-65. Print advertising in financial publications had a median reader age of 62, but the firm's ideal client profile was 45-55 with significant wealth accumulation runway. Radio sponsorships generated awareness but almost no direct response, and attribution to downstream conversions was minimal. Direct mail had the best traditional channel performance but was reaching many households outside the target wealth bracket due to purchased lists with outdated data. In contrast, the digital channels showed significantly stronger performance when analysed with proper attribution. Paid search for specific wealth management queries (e.g., "inheritance tax planning London") had conversion rates 4x higher than traditional channels but received only 8% of total budget. LinkedIn advertising targeting senior executives in specific industries showed excellent lead quality but had been stopped after initial tests due to high CPL without considering lifetime value. Display retargeting was driving 31% of conversions despite being credited with only 2% in last-click attribution. The analysis revealed that the optimal channel mix should be 60% digital, 40% traditional—essentially inverting the current allocation. We recommended dramatically reducing broad print advertising, maintaining only the highest-performing direct mail segments, and reinvesting savings into intent-based search campaigns, LinkedIn targeting for high-net-worth professionals, content marketing for thought leadership, and retargeting to nurture the long consideration cycle.
"We'd been following the same media strategy for years because it had always worked. Fuel Media showed us that our target audience had fundamentally changed their media consumption, and we were investing heavily in channels that were no longer effective. The channel reallocation was significant, but the results speak for themselves. We're now acquiring better clients at less than half the previous cost. The detailed analysis gave us the confidence to make bold strategic changes."
Week 1-2: Data collection and baseline performance analysis
Week 3-4: Channel deep-dive and attribution modelling
Week 5-6: Recommendations and implementation roadmap
Month 2-7: Phased channel reallocation with continuous optimisation
Long-standing media strategies should be regularly reviewed as audience behaviour evolves
Last-click attribution significantly undervalues awareness and nurture channels in long sales cycles
Lead volume is meaningless without considering lead quality and conversion rates
Financial services audience targeting should focus on intent and life stage, not just demographics
Traditional media still has a role but must be precisely targeted and measured
Digital channels allow for more precise targeting and measurement, particularly valuable in regulated industries