Where Consumers
Seek Financial Content—
And How to Engage Them

Interest in money topics reveals both knowledge gaps and financial priorities—key insights that content creators and marketers can use to refine their acquisition and engagement strategies. By aligning targeted marketing with relevant financial content, they can attract the right audiences, address their needs proactively, and drive higher engagement and conversion rates.

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Among all financial topics, “investing” is the top area people want to learn about, cutting across income levels and generations. It ranks as the highest priority for 42% of low-income earners, 53% of high-income earners, 57% of Gen Z, and 39% of Boomers.

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Beyond investing, financial priorities begin to diverge:

• Low-income earners focus on “savings,” while high-income earners prioritize “retirement planning.”
• Younger generations are also “savings”-focused, with 60% of Gen Z and 51% of Millennials listing it as a key concern.

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For third place, priorities vary further by generation and income:

• “Retirement planning” ranks highest for Millennials (39%) and Gen X (47%).
• “Tax planning” is a top concern for Boomers (30%) and high-income earners.
• “Credit scores” are a major focus for Gen Z (56%) and low-income earners (39%).
• Medium-income earners prioritize “retirement planning” (37%).

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Which financial topics would you want to learn more about?

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While most responses show little regional variation, two topics stand out:

• “Credit scores” rank lower among Northeasterners (20%) than other regions.
• “Insurance” also ranks lower among Northeasterners (15%).

The survey results highlight the growing influence of digital trends on how consumers seek financial guidance, with financial apps and online platforms ranking among the top three sources across all segments. While digital channels offer the advantage of 24/7 content delivery at minimal cost, the constant stream of information can also lead to content fatigue. To maximize impact, marketers must carefully balance content frequency and channel selection. More importantly, delivering personalized, timely content at pivotal moments in a consumer’s financial journey can drive the greatest engagement and impact.

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Where do you get financial guidance and financial information?

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However, digital content alone isn’t enough—personalized human support remains essential. While it’s unsurprising that 49% of high earners use financial advisors, their adoption is also notable among middle-income consumers (27%). Even among the ‘digital generation,’ 24% of Gen Z and 30% of Millennials turn to financial advisors for guidance.

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In fact, Gen Z’s use of live advisors and digital tools is nearly identical:

• Financial advisors: 24%
• Bank representatives: 24%
• Financial apps: 25%
• Online platforms: 22%

From a regional perspective, Northeasterners rely on financial advisors significantly more than other regions—44% use them, compared to 29%–33% elsewhere. Although scaling human support can be costly, companies can leverage technology to provide personalized assistance efficiently. AI-powered product search, curated content libraries, chatbots, and social forums offer scalable ways to enhance engagement while maintaining a personal touch.

Beyond delivery channels, the format of financial content plays a crucial role in engagement. Across all consumer segments, online courses and short videos are the two most preferred formats for learning personal finance topics, receiving anywhere from one-third to half of the votes.

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Where do you get financial guidance and financial information?

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Interestingly, short videos consistently rank higher than long videos by 10 to 20 percentage points. Yet, despite their length, online courses are rated even higher than short videos. What’s driving this preference? Is it the engaging nature of online courses, or simply how they’re marketed? That’s something worth considering.

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An effective content marketing strategy requires careful consideration of both delivery channels and formats. It’s not just about volume—one piece of content can be repurposed across multiple formats and channels to maximize reach and reinforce messaging. Additionally, creative use of content formats can help reduce the need for direct human interaction while still fostering meaningful engagement.

Consumers across all segments show strong engagement with mobile banking apps for financial content, with usage ranging from 40% to 64%. In contrast, savings and budgeting apps see significantly lower adoption—lagging by an average of 30 percentage points. This widespread reliance on mobile banking apps presents financial services companies with a golden opportunity to deepen customer engagement and drive monetization through targeted in-app marketing.

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Beyond enhancing app experiences with rich financial content, many institutions are capitalizing on the growing app adoption by embracing marketplace strategies. By transforming their apps into one-stop financial hubs, they offer a seamless ecosystem of products and services. Consumers are already familiar with marketplace models from platforms like Amazon and Walmart+, which have set the standard for integrated, personalized experiences. By meeting these evolving expectations, financial institutions can strengthen customer relationships, boost acquisition, and drive long-term loyalty.

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Credit monitoring usage varies significantly by income, with much lower adoption among low-income earners (25%) compared to mid-income (36%) and high-income (39%) users. Shouldn’t it be the other way around, given that low-income individuals often face barriers to financial products due to low credit scores? Could it be a sense of resignation—why monitor if it’s already low? This highlights the importance of credit-building education with content creation.

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Where do you get financial guidance and financial information?

With rising digital and mobile adoption, financial institutions have a prime opportunity to enhance their apps with personalized experiences, broader product offerings, and impactful financial content.Investing in financial education is more than a service—it’s a strategic advantage. Financial services companies that prioritize education can drive monetization, strengthen retention, and empower customers. Success depends not just on creating content but on delivering it effectively. A strong distribution strategy ensures content reaches the right audience in the right format at the right time.

The research was conducted online in the United States by The Harris Poll on behalf of MoneyLion among 1,009 US residents, aged 18+; half the sample (n=503) were non-Hispanic, and the other half (n=506) were Hispanic. The survey was conducted August 9 – 14, 2024. Data are statistically weighted where necessary by age by gender, race/ethnicity, region, education, marital status, household size, employment, household income, and political party to bring them in line with their actual proportions in the population. Respondents for this survey were selected from among those who have agreed to participate in our surveys. The sampling precision of Harris online polls is measured by using a Bayesian credible interval. For this study, the sample data is accurate to within ± 4.5 percentage points using a 95% confidence level. This credible interval will be wider among subsets of the surveyed population of interest. All sample surveys and polls, whether or not they use probability sampling, are subject to other multiple sources of error which are most often not possible to quantify or estimate, including, but not limited to coverage error, error associated with nonresponse, error associated with question wording and response options, and post-survey weighting and adjustments.