How Financial Planners Should Market to Clients Facing Redundancy

03 September 2026·5 min read

Quick answer: Redundancy is a sudden trigger event where people urgently need guidance on their payout, insurance and next move — but they're also emotionally raw and wary of being upsold. Marketing here isn't a hard sell, it's showing up with calm, practical, empathetic first contact before someone has decided what to do next. A short, warm, no-agenda outreach email beats any ad campaign in this moment. ✨

Redundancy conversations mostly happen without financial planners in the room. HR runs the process, an outplacement coach handles the CV and the next-job search, and the planner — if there's a referral at all — usually gets pulled in weeks later, once the payout has already been spent down or the insurance question has already gone unanswered. We think that's backwards. This is exactly the kind of moment a good planner exists for, and treating it as a marketing opportunity isn't cynical — it's showing up when it actually matters 💖, as long as the tone is right.

What most financial planners get wrong

The instinct in a stressful, high-value moment like this is to move fast and lead with the product. That's precisely the wrong instinct.

Waiting for the referral instead of building direct-to-community redundancy support content, so the firm only ever meets people after the moment of urgency has passed.
Leading with product — 'did you know your income protection lapses' — instead of leading with orientation, calm, and genuine listening.
Sending generic 'we can help with redundancy' messaging broadly, which can read as opportunistic rather than caring, especially if it appears to target people from a specific known layoff.

The firms that do this well treat the first contact as triage, not sales. The sale, if there is one, follows naturally a few weeks later once trust has been established.

First-contact email template for someone who's just been made redundant

Subject: No agenda here — just checking in

Body:

Hi [Name],

I heard your role at [Company] has come to an end, and I wanted to reach out — not to sell you anything, but because this is a big, disorienting moment and I know it's easy to feel like you have to make big decisions immediately. You don't.

A few things worth thinking about before you sign anything or move money around: how your payout is structured and when it lands, whether the timing affects your position for this financial year, and what happens to any insurance you've had through your old employer's super.

If it's useful, I'm happy to have a no-obligation chat — genuinely no pressure, and no cost for that first conversation. If now isn't the right time, that's completely fine too — just reply and let me know, or reach out whenever you're ready.

Take care of yourself first,
[Adviser name]

Existing client, mid-career corporate role: A long-standing client is made redundant unexpectedly. The planner already knows their full picture, so the outreach can be warmer and more specific — checking in on how they're doing personally before any mention of the payout at all.

Prospect referred by an outplacement coach: After a known local employer runs a restructure, an outplacement coach the firm has a standing relationship with passes along names of people open to a chat. The planner uses the exact template above, adjusted to reference the referral so it doesn't feel cold.

An existing client's spouse: The client mentions their partner has just been let go. The planner offers, gently, to include the spouse in the next scheduled review rather than pushing a separate sales conversation — recognising the household impact without making it transactional.

How to build this into an actual service

Start with referral partnerships — outplacement coaches, redundancy lawyers, and HR consultants are the people who see this moment before you do, and a warm handoff from them lands very differently to a cold approach. Build a dedicated, low-key landing page for redundancy support that explains what the first conversation covers, without pretending to give advice on the page itself.

Create general community content around redundancy season — end of financial year, or after well-publicised local restructures — that offers useful orientation (what to think about before signing an exit agreement, how payout timing can matter) without targeting or naming individuals from a specific event. Train whoever answers the phone or email first to lead with empathy, not intake forms — the first interaction sets the tone for everything after.

💡 The first call is triage, not a sales call. Resist the urge to quote fees or pitch a full financial plan in the first conversation. People in this moment can tell the difference between someone who wants to help and someone who wants to close — and the trust you build by not selling immediately is what makes the eventual engagement stick.

Mistakes to avoid

Don't run ads or outreach that appears to target identifiable individuals from a specific, named layoff event — it reads as predatory even when the intent is good.
Don't lead with insurance or investment products in the first message — lead with the person.
Don't rush someone into a decision about their payout — part of the value you offer is giving them permission to slow down.
Don't forget the household context — a redundancy affects partners and dependants too, and content that only addresses the individual misses half the picture.

Please note: general information only, not personal financial or tax advice — check current official guidance (ASIC MoneySmart, ATO) or speak with a licensed adviser before acting.

Frequently asked questions

Is it appropriate to run paid ads targeting people affected by a specific company's layoffs?

Be very cautious here — genuinely, this is a real limit worth naming. Directly targeting identifiable individuals from a named redundancy event can come across as opportunistic or predatory, even with good intentions. Referral partnerships and general community content perform better and carry far less reputational risk.

How soon after redundancy should the first outreach happen?

There's no fixed rule, but sooner is generally kinder than later, provided the tone is right — people often make avoidable mistakes with payout timing or insurance continuity in the first few weeks. A same-week message that offers space rather than pressure tends to land well.

Should the first email mention fees at all?

No. Save the fee conversation for after the first proper meeting, once you understand their situation and they understand what you can actually offer. Mentioning cost too early in a message meant to feel supportive undercuts the tone entirely.

What if the person doesn't respond?

Leave it. One respectful follow-up a few weeks later is reasonable; repeated messages start to feel like pursuit rather than support, especially to someone already feeling vulnerable.