Are financial industry bloggers important?

There’s a huge amount of people blogging about the financial industry. And why not? There’s a lot to say! Whether the subject matter is expert (or not-so-expert) analysis of the latest issues in business, the financial markets, the economy and policy, opinion-based offerings and debates, or insights into daily routines and conferences, financial industry bloggers can certainly help you to expand your commercial awareness and knowledge.

Where are the go-to financial industry blogs?

Needless to say, some blogs will be better than others. Yet dipping into a variety of them can spark an interest in something you weren’t aware of previously. Here are a few ideas for places to search…

Corporate blogs

A number of the big professional services firms, accountancy firms, consultancies and banks run blogs, often written by associates, partners and directors. There’s a wide-spanning variety of current topics and specialist areas covered, easily accessible through their websites.

Cruising corporate blogs can be extremely useful when you’re developing your commercial awareness and doing employer research. As you pick up more jargon and increase your knowledge of how businesses and the economy works, you’ll start to gain even more from reading these insights as well. You may not understand every topic (and you won’t necessarily be expected to at this stage!), but look out for the things that most interest you and start from there.

These blogs are insights into how the firm presents itself to the public and reflective of its ethos, so drink it up! If you have a name for a senior member of staff who might be interviewing you, search to see if they’ve written any blogs themselves! Familiarise yourself with the kind of points they discuss, and it might well be worth referring to in the interview if the right moment comes up.

Blogs in the national press

The Financial Times and the majority of the big broadsheet nationals have their own blogs on business news. These are fab resources for tapping into differing opinions surrounding current affairs and business issues. Keeping up to date with wide-raging thoughts on stories is perhaps just as important as knowing about the story itself! It’ll help you to gain a stronger understanding of reactions in the industry and why they’re occurring, and help you better formulate your own opinions.

Individual blogs

These will vary in quality! Blogs set up by individuals to express their own thoughts on the business world are floating around on the internet too.

Take a look at forums as well and see what kinds of questions are being asked. However, don’t believe everything you read! Not everything will be wholly accurate; still, this is a good way of finding out what’s going on in the heads of those you’re competing against for a position, and it could highlight something you hadn’t thought of previously and would like to find out more about!

Your own blog

If you’ve got some opinions on the stories you engage with as you develop your commercial awareness, then why not have a bash at your own blog? Try linking your blog to your LinkedIn page—it could be a head turner for recruiters as they search for suitable candidates for their roles.