When a Financial Consulting Firm Wasn't What AI Thought It Was
How clearer positioning helped a financial consulting firm communicate its expertise more effectively to people, search engines and AI.
The business knew exactly who it helped.
Northstar Financial had been in business for 12 years and had built a strong referral-based client base.
The problem wasn't a lack of expertise.
It was that the company's website didn't communicate that expertise particularly well.
That wasn't inaccurate. It just wasn't very specific.
The company actually specialized in helping professional-services firms improve cash flow, financial forecasting, and profitability.
That specialization was largely buried in service pages and scattered throughout the website.
What did AI actually understand?
We asked ChatGPT several questions about Northstar using publicly available information.
What does Northstar Financial Advisory do?
AI correctly identified Northstar as a financial consulting firm.
Who is Northstar Financial Advisory best suited to help?
The response described a much broader audience that included startups, corporations, nonprofits and individual business owners.
What makes Northstar different from other financial consulting firms?
The answer referenced personalized financial strategies, experienced consultants and customized solutions.
All technically reasonable. None particularly useful.
The information existed. The connections didn't.
The website contained the information Northstar wanted AI to understand. The problem was how that information was presented and connected.
The homepage led with the broad category.
"Financial consulting" appeared prominently, while the company's actual specialty was difficult to find.
Services lacked enough context.
The site explained what Northstar did without consistently explaining who each service was designed for or what problem it solved.
The differentiators weren't differentiated.
Phrases such as "customized solutions" and "experienced professionals" could describe almost any consulting firm.
The website didn't connect the dots.
Relevant information existed throughout the site, but it wasn't organized in a way that made the company's positioning obvious.
We didn't change the business. We clarified the message.
We didn't set out to manufacture new positioning, i.e., make things up. Instead, we made the company's existing expertise easier to understand.
Homepage positioning
The primary message shifted from broad financial consulting to financial strategy specifically for professional-services firms.
Service pages
Each service was rewritten to answer three questions: What is it? Who is it for? What problem does it solve?
About page
The company's experience was connected directly to its specialization rather than presented as a generic credibility statement.
Supporting content
New content addressed specific questions professional-services firms were asking about cash flow, forecasting and profitability.
Same business. Clearer message.
Broad financial consulting
- Financial consulting for businesses
- Customized solutions
- Experienced professionals
- Improved efficiency
Financial strategy for professional-services firms
- Clear target audience
- Specific business problems
- Relevant expertise
- Clearer differentiation
We asked the same questions.
After the website updates were published and had time to be discovered, we repeated the original questions.
AI continued to identify Northstar as a financial consulting firm, but now consistently connected the company to professional-services businesses.
When asked who would benefit most from working with Northstar, the response identified the company's target audience much more accurately.
When asked what differentiated the company, the answer referenced its focus on financial strategy for professional-services firms rather than generic consulting language.
The business wasn't the problem.
The communication was.
Northstar didn't have an AI problem.
It had a communication problem that became visible when we asked AI to explain the business.
Don't wonder. Test it.
Start with the free AI Business Visibility Checklist, or learn how an AI Communication Audit can take the analysis further.