Targeted Support Is Live: What the Advice Guidance Boundary Review Means for Adviser Marketing

Before changing any marketing, it is worth being precise about the regime, because loose language about it in your own content will create compliance risk and confuse prospects.

Targeted support allows authorised firms to provide suggestions to consumers based on a limited set of characteristics they share with others. The firm defines consumer segments, designs a suggestion that is suitable for people in that segment, and then delivers it to customers who match. The consumer is told that the suggestion is designed for people like them, not for them specifically, and that it has not considered their wider circumstances.

The practical scope at launch covers pensions and investments. Typical use cases include customers who are holding too much in cash for their time horizon, customers approaching retirement who have not engaged with their options, customers withdrawing income at rates that may deplete their pot, and customers who have not reviewed default investment choices for a long time. The firms most likely to use it are those with large existing customer bases and good data: workplace and personal pension providers, investment platforms, banks and larger investment firms.

What targeted support is not matters just as much for your positioning:

• It is not a personal recommendation. There is no fact find covering the whole of someone's finances, and no suitability assessment of the kind an adviser carries out.
• It does not usually consider assets held elsewhere, a spouse's position, estate planning objectives or tax interactions across different wrappers.
• It is not the same as the free guidance available through government-backed services, which remains generic and impartial.
• It is not a replacement for ongoing advice relationships, though for some consumers with simple needs it may be all they want.

Data use is also a defined part of the regime. Providers must use customer data in line with UK GDPR and PECR, and the FCA and ICO published a joint statement on 11 December 2025 setting out how the two regimes fit together. That matters for advisers too, because any partnership where data or leads flow between a provider and an adviser firm will need to respect the same rules.

The most useful mental model is this. Targeted support makes the first nudge cheaper and more common. It does not make complex decisions simpler. Your marketing should treat it as a new layer of the market that raises awareness, rather than a competitor that removes the need for what you do. Firms that describe it accurately and generously will look more credible than those that dismiss it, and they will be better placed when consumers who have received a suggestion go looking for someone to help them go further.

The biggest change targeted support brings is not a new product. It is a change in how many consumers are prompted to think about their pensions and investments, and when.

Until now, most people only engaged with retirement decisions at a handful of trigger points: a wake-up pack before a selected retirement age, a redundancy, an inheritance, or a conversation with a friend. Providers were limited in what they could say without straying into advice, so most communications stayed generic. Many customers simply did nothing.

With targeted support, providers can send messages that feel far more relevant. A customer in their late fifties with several pension pots and a large cash holding might receive a suggestion about investment choices. A customer drawing heavily from a drawdown plan might receive a suggestion about sustainable withdrawal rates. Because the suggestions are tailored to a segment, response rates are likely to be higher than for generic mailings.

This has three effects on adviser demand.

First, awareness rises across the market. More people will be thinking about retirement income, consolidation and investment choices at any given time. Some of that attention will spill into search engines and social feeds. Expect more searches around terms such as pension cash holdings, drawdown withdrawal rate and whether to combine pensions, which is good news for firms that already rank or bid on those themes.

Second, the simplest cases may be absorbed. A consumer with one pot, no other significant assets and a straightforward question may be satisfied by a provider suggestion. Those people were often marginal prospects for advisers anyway, because the fee relative to the complexity was hard to justify. You may see some reduction in low-value enquiries, which can actually improve lead quality.

Third, complexity becomes more visible. A suggestion designed for a segment can prompt a consumer to realise that their own situation does not fit neatly. They may hold pensions with several providers, have a partner with different needs, own a business, or be worried about inheritance tax. That realisation is a strong buying signal for full advice.

The net effect for most adviser firms should be a market with more engaged prospects, a slightly different mix of enquiry types, and a clearer case for why personal advice is worth paying for. It is also a moment to review your funnel economics. If low-value enquiries fall and complex enquiries rise, your CPL may stay within the typical £50 to £150 range while your conversion to client and average case value both improve. Tracking that properly matters more than headline lead volume, a theme covered in our guide to compliance-aware creative and the wider measurement work it relies on.

Positioning alongside targeted support starts with being honest about where personal advice is genuinely needed. Consumers who have just received a provider suggestion are the audience, and they will respond to specific, credible explanations of what an adviser does differently, not to vague claims about expertise.

Four areas stand out.

Complexity across wrappers and providers. Targeted support is delivered by a single firm about the products it holds. Many people near retirement have pensions with several former employers, ISAs on a platform, cash with a bank and perhaps a buy-to-let property. Decisions about which pot to draw from first, what to consolidate and how to balance risk across everything require a view of the whole picture. That is exactly what a fact find and suitability assessment provide.

Inheritance tax and estate planning. From 6 April 2027 most unused pension funds and death benefits will fall within the estate for inheritance tax purposes. A provider can suggest an investment approach for a pension, but it is not in a position to model how that pension interacts with property, gifts, trusts and the nil-rate bands of a married couple. For clients with estates above the thresholds, this is a strong reason to take advice, and we cover the marketing angle in detail in our piece on pensions and inheritance tax from April 2027.

Decumulation planning. Turning savings into a reliable income for potentially thirty years involves sequencing risk, tax bands, State Pension timing, annuity versus drawdown decisions and contingency for care costs. A suggestion about withdrawal rates is helpful, but a full retirement income plan built around someone's spending, health and family is a different service.

Multiple pots and transfers. Combining pensions can be sensible, but it can also mean losing valuable guarantees, protected tax-free cash or favourable charging structures. Where safeguarded benefits are involved, specific advice requirements apply. A provider suggesting consolidation into its own product cannot weigh these trade-offs across the market in the way an adviser can.

Beyond these four, advice adds value in situations with joint decision-making, vulnerability, business ownership and significant life events such as divorce or bereavement. These are the moments when consumers most need someone to take responsibility for a recommendation.

When you build content and landing pages around these themes, be specific. Instead of claiming that advice is better, describe the decisions a person in that situation faces and explain what an adviser looks at that a group-level suggestion would not. Use worked examples with clearly hypothetical figures. This approach is both more persuasive and easier to keep fair, clear and not misleading, because you are describing a service rather than criticising an alternative.

It also helps qualification. A landing page aimed at people with three or more pension pots and an estate above the nil-rate bands will attract fewer, better enquiries than one aimed at anyone thinking about retirement.

Targeted support will change the language consumers use when they search, and the questions they bring to a first meeting. Your keyword lists and ad copy should anticipate this rather than react months later.

New search intent to capture. Expect growth in queries from people who have received a provider message and want a second opinion or more depth. Themes worth testing include:

• Searches that reference a provider suggestion, such as asking whether to follow a pension provider recommendation or what to do after a pension review letter.
• Questions about whether advice is needed after receiving support, for example whether someone needs a financial adviser if their provider has already given suggestions.
• Complexity-led searches: combining several pensions, drawing income from multiple pots, pension and inheritance tax planning, retirement income for couples.
• Comparison searches around the difference between guidance, targeted support and financial advice.

Google Ads remains the main channel for this high-intent traffic. Budget for CPCs in the £8 to £25 range on the most competitive retirement and pension terms, with CPL typically landing between £60 and £130 when landing pages are well matched to intent. Use our keyword scanner to check volume and competition before committing budget to newer phrases.

Terms to treat carefully. Avoid bidding on provider brand names in ways that imply an affiliation you do not have. Be cautious with phrases such as free pension advice, because they may attract people looking for generic guidance and can mislead if your service is chargeable. If you use the phrase targeted support in ads, make sure the landing page explains it accurately.

Messaging shifts. The strongest messages over the next year will build on the provider nudge rather than compete with it. Examples of framing that tend to work:

• Received a suggestion from your pension provider? Find out how it fits with everything else you own.
• Your provider sees one pot. We look at the whole picture.
• Retirement income planning for people with more than one pension.
• Planning for pensions and inheritance tax from April 2027.

Each of these respects the provider suggestion, explains what advice adds and targets a qualifying characteristic. None of them makes claims about the provider being wrong.

Content to produce. A plain English explainer on guidance, targeted support and advice will attract search traffic and build trust. Follow it with situation-specific pieces, such as what to consider if your provider suggests moving out of cash, or what a sustainable withdrawal rate means for a couple with two pensions. Each piece should end with a clear, low-pressure next step, such as a short call to see whether advice is right for them.

Review performance monthly. Search behaviour around a new regime can shift quickly as providers roll out communications, and early movers often secure lower CPCs before competitors adjust.

One of the less discussed consequences of targeted support is that providers will meet customers who need more than a group-level suggestion. Some providers will have in-house advice arms. Many will not, or will find their own advice capacity limited. That creates room for adviser firms to become a trusted onward route.

There are several forms these arrangements might take, and each needs careful handling.

Informal signposting. A provider may simply point customers who need more help towards ways of finding an adviser, often through directories. Being well represented on reputable directories, with clear specialisms and transparent fees, is the baseline. Consider how your profile reads to someone who has just been told their situation may need personal advice.

Panel or introducer arrangements. Some providers, particularly smaller workplace schemes, platforms and employers, may prefer a defined panel of advice firms for customers who need full advice. Getting onto a panel usually requires evidence of capacity, service standards, complaint handling, fee transparency and good outcome monitoring. Your Consumer Duty evidence is directly relevant here.

Employer and workplace links. Workplace pension providers deliver targeted support to employees. Employers who want their staff to get more help may welcome an adviser firm that offers seminars, one-to-one sessions or discounted advice for complex cases. Approach HR and benefits teams with a clear, education-led offer rather than a sales pitch.

Whatever the arrangement, several compliance principles apply:

• Data flows. If customer details pass from a provider to you, the legal basis, transparency notices and consent need to be correct under UK GDPR, and any electronic marketing must respect PECR. The joint FCA and ICO statement on targeted support is a useful reference point for both parties.
• Inducements and conflicts. Any payments or benefits exchanged must be assessed against the rules on inducements and conflicts of interest, and disclosed where required.
• Independence and scope. Be clear with customers whether you are independent or restricted and whether you will consider the referring provider's products alongside others. Your status affects how you can describe the service in every promotion.
• Fair value. Referred customers must receive fair value. If you offer an initial consultation free of charge, be clear about what happens next and what it will cost.

Partnerships take time to build, so start conversations now. Identify providers, platforms and employers whose customers match your ideal client profile. Prepare a short document explaining your proposition, specialisms, capacity and service standards. Offer to help them understand which customer situations tend to need full advice. Even if a formal arrangement takes months, the relationship positions you as a constructive part of the new landscape rather than a firm complaining about it.

Track referred enquiries separately in your CRM so you can measure show rate, conversion and value against paid channels.

The most common compliance mistake firms will make around targeted support is in comparative messaging. It is tempting to tell prospects that provider suggestions are generic, conflicted or inferior. Some of that may even be partly true in a given case. But marketing that disparages another type of service, or overstates the limitations of targeted support, risks breaching the requirement for financial promotions to be fair, clear and not misleading, and sits uneasily with the consumer understanding outcome under the Consumer Duty.

A few principles keep comparative claims on the right side of the line.

Describe, do not denigrate. Explain what targeted support is designed to do and what personal advice does differently. A statement that targeted support gives suggestions for groups of customers with similar characteristics, while advice gives a recommendation based on your full circumstances, is accurate and balanced. A statement that provider suggestions are a sales tool is an opinion presented as fact.

Acknowledge where targeted support is enough. For some consumers, a provider suggestion will meet their needs. Saying so openly builds credibility and supports good outcomes. It also helps you avoid attracting prospects for whom advice would not represent fair value.

Be careful with absolutes. Avoid words such as always, never, only and guaranteed. Claims that advised clients achieve better outcomes need robust, balanced evidence and appropriate context. If you cannot substantiate a comparative claim, remove it.

Balance benefits with costs. If you promote the advantages of advice over targeted support, be clear that advice carries a cost, and give an indication of fees. Hiding cost while emphasising benefit is a classic way to make a promotion unbalanced.

Do not imply affiliation. Mentioning a provider by name in ads or content can suggest a relationship. Unless you have one, avoid naming specific firms, and never use their logos or brand assets.

Watch the emotional tone. Messages suggesting that people who follow a provider suggestion are putting their retirement at risk can create unnecessary fear, which is particularly problematic for customers with characteristics of vulnerability. Test tone with colleagues who were not involved in drafting.

It helps to build a short internal checklist for any promotion that mentions guidance, targeted support or providers. Does it describe both services accurately? Is any comparison substantiated? Are costs mentioned? Would a reasonable consumer come away understanding the difference rather than feeling pressured? Running copy through the FCA compliance precheck before formal sign-off can catch common issues early.

Remember that your approved persons are accountable for every promotion, including social posts, short-form video and AI-assisted drafts. Comparative claims are exactly the type of content that should go through full review rather than a quick check.

Prospects arriving after a provider nudge are often better informed than typical enquirers, but they may also be uncertain about whether they need advice at all. Your landing pages and first conversation need to reflect that.

Landing page structure. A page designed for this audience should answer three questions quickly: what is the difference between what my provider told me and what an adviser does, is my situation the kind that benefits from advice, and what will it cost to find out. A suggested structure:

• A headline that speaks to the situation, such as planning retirement income across more than one pension.
• A short, balanced explanation of guidance, targeted support and advice.
• A list of situations where advice tends to add value: several pots, estates above the nil-rate bands, couples planning together, business owners, or anyone considering giving up guarantees.
• Transparent information on fees, including any initial consultation terms.
• A short form with qualifying questions, such as approximate pension value, number of pots and main objective.
• Regulatory information and clear risk wording.

Well-matched pages in this sector typically convert between 2% and 6% of visitors. Pages that try to speak to everyone tend to sit at the lower end. Our guide to landing pages that convert has detailed layout and testing advice.

Qualification questions. Add one or two fields that capture whether the prospect has already received a provider suggestion, and what it was about. This is valuable intelligence. It tells your adviser what prompted the enquiry, it helps you segment reporting, and it lets you measure over time whether targeted support is driving new demand.

Speed and tone of follow-up. These prospects are often mid-decision. Contacting them quickly, ideally within minutes during working hours, makes a significant difference to whether a meeting is booked. The first call should be exploratory rather than sales-led: understand what the provider suggested, ask about other assets and objectives, and help the prospect decide whether advice is worthwhile.

When advice is not right. Some prospects will not need full advice. Treat them well. Explain why, point them back to their provider's support or to free guidance services, and invite them to come back if their situation changes. This is good practice under the Consumer Duty and builds goodwill that can pay off years later.

Measurement. Track enquiries mentioning targeted support as a distinct segment in your CRM. Monitor show rate, conversion to client, average initial fee and ongoing revenue. Compare these with other enquiry sources so you can decide whether to invest more in content and campaigns aimed at this audience. Over the first year the data will tell you whether provider nudges are creating demand for your firm or simply moving it around.

Targeted support is now part of the landscape, and it will grow as more providers build segments and refine their suggestions. Firms that adapt early will benefit from higher consumer awareness and a clearer case for advice. Here is a practical sequence for the next ninety days.

Weeks one and two: audit your current messaging.

• Review your website, ads, social profiles and brochures for any statements about guidance, robo-advice or providers. Update them to describe targeted support accurately.
• Remove or substantiate any comparative claims that could be read as disparaging.
• Check that fees are clearly explained wherever you promote the benefits of advice.

Weeks three and four: define your complexity niches.

• Choose two or three situations where your firm genuinely adds value beyond a group-level suggestion: multiple pots, pensions and inheritance tax, retirement income for couples, business owners approaching exit.
• Write a short proposition statement for each, including who it is for, what you do and what it costs.

Weeks five to eight: build content and campaigns.

• Publish a balanced explainer on guidance, targeted support and advice.
• Create one landing page per complexity niche, with qualifying questions that include whether the prospect has received a provider suggestion.
• Launch small Google Ads campaigns around complexity-led and post-nudge search terms, with budgets sized to produce enough data to judge CPL and conversion within a month or two.
• Run every new promotion through your compliance process, with particular care for comparative wording.

Weeks nine to twelve: open partnership conversations.

• List providers, platforms and employers whose customers match your ideal client profile.
• Prepare a concise partnership pack covering proposition, capacity, service standards, Consumer Duty outcome monitoring and data handling.
• Agree in principle how any data sharing would meet UK GDPR and PECR before any customer details move.

Ongoing: measure and refine.

• Tag enquiries that mention targeted support and report on them monthly.
• Compare show rate, conversion and case value against your other sources.
• Adjust keyword lists as provider communications evolve and new search patterns emerge.

The overall goal is simple. When a consumer receives a provider suggestion and realises their situation needs more, your firm should be the obvious, trustworthy next step. That means accurate descriptions of the regime, specific explanations of what advice adds, transparent costs and a fast, helpful first conversation.

If you would like help building compliant campaigns and landing pages aimed at post-nudge prospects, or want to understand what lead volumes and costs to expect in your area, talk to our team. We work on a performance basis with adviser firms across the UK and can help you turn the targeted support era into a steady flow of qualified enquiries.