Every writer knows about “timeless” articles. This type of articles discusses the same topic, and it is published at a certain time every year. A good example of a “timeless” seasonal article could be an article about taxes. Every year in March you can always read something like “Ten most overlooked write-offs for this tax year.” Does it sound familiar? A good writer can write about this topic year after year by using the same catchy headline. After five-six “timeless” articles all writers can call themselves “experts”. Instead of learning from the “experts” let’s take a closer look at three top secrets of writing a timeless article.
Not the same title, but the whole article could be rewritten year after year with minor adjustments. Do you find it hard to believe? It is understandable. Tax code is changed on the regular basis. What was a sound advice for the previous year, it isn’t necessary working today. Don’t know what to do? Find the right topic! Take a good look into articles about retirement preparation strategies. Even though this field feeds armies of financial advisors, there are still plenty of opportunities for a freelance writer.
The whole idea of a timeless article about retirement is based on one very important assumption, which is the following: people don’t change, statistics do. Make this statement a corner stone of your writing philosophy. And with that in mind let’s take a closer look at three top secrets of writing a timeless article.
1. Many people don’t have a retirement strategy.
Many working Americans don’t want to think about their retirement. They don’t have a retirement strategy. It means they don’t know how to set aside enough money necessary for their comfortable retirement. According to the Transamerica Center for Retirement Studies statistics published in 2005 71% of American workers admitted that they don’t know enough about retirement investing. Things have slightly improved in 2011. Today only 44% of the American workforce acknowledges that they don’t have a retirement strategy in place.
An increase in the number of people making a statement that they have a retirement strategy doesn’t mean it is true. The reason to question that statement is very simple. More than 80% of the workers, who said that they have a plan, never took time to write it down. Hopefully they have a very good memory. But what does it mean for you? It means, when you write that many Americans don’t have a retirement strategy, it is still as true today as it was six years ago. As you can see people do not change. You need only to change numbers according to the most recent statistics.
2. The majority of people don’t want to perform any calculations at all.
The average person thinks that savings of $500,000 would be enough for an annual retirement income of $60,000. Katie Libbe, vice president of Consumer Insights for Allianz Life is upset with this answer, “They said $500,000 when, if you just apply a 4% withdrawal to that portfolio, they would really need $1.5 million. They don’t know how to do even this basic calculation.”
Let’s be careful now. It doesn’t mean that people cannot calculate. They don’t want to be upset even thinking about retirement. Calculating could be even more upsetting experience. So it isn’t about mathematics, this is about the human nature. Do you think this situation will change within the next year or two, really? How about five years? I don’t think so.
3. Not everybody takes a full advantage of 401(k).
For decades financial advisers have being preaching about 401(k) match. For years they have said the same things. Participate in your 401(k) plan at work. Take the full advantage of your employer contribution match. If your employer matches 2%, put 2% in your 401(k). If your employer matches 4%, then put 4% too. No more, no less. Participate and always match the maximum of your employer contribution.
As we have done it before, let’s add some numbers to support this statement. According to the Transamerica Center for Retirement Studies the participation in a 401(k) plan increased among American workers by only 4% from 74% in 2005 to 78% in 2011. Still Americans don’t maximize their possible match. The independent investment adviser Financial Engines points out that 39% of participants are not saving enough to get their full employer match, up from 33% in 2008. For participants under age forty this number is even higher. 47% of them failed to save enough to get the full employer match.
After you have learned the three top secrets of writing a timeless article, you must be ready to write it by yourself. Mix and match three sound statements that you have learned. Add statistics from the Transamerica Center for Retirement Studies, which is published annually. Look for some additional sources of statistics. And you are ready to publish your timeless article in Yahoo! Finances or The Wall Street Journal.
The best thing is that you can publish the same article with minor changes year after year. Don’t hesitate to join the club of timeless financial writers. Only remember to refresh some numbers from time to time. Good luck!
Sources:
1. The Transamerica Center for Retirement Studies. The New Retirement: Working. May 2011. 2. The Transamerica Center for Retirement Studies. Seventh Annual Transamerica Retirement Survey October 2005. 3. 5 Retirement Mistakes That Will Haunt You by Joe Mont.