Two audiences, two kinds of search
A mortgage broker and a financial adviser are often grouped together, but their clients search differently. A home loan searcher is usually in the middle of a purchase or a refinance. They want to know who can compare lenders for them, how quickly they can get an answer and what it will cost.
A person looking for a financial adviser is more often planning than reacting. They are thinking about super, retirement, insurance or investing. They search more slowly, read more and look closely for signs of trust.
Those two patterns need different pages, different tone and different calls to action. Treating them as one audience produces a website that suits neither.
Licence and authorisation, stated correctly
Showing the right credential in the right place is part of the page, not an afterthought. The table summarises what the regulator says. It is not advice on your own authorisation.
| Who you are | What the regulator says | What the website should show |
|---|---|---|
| Credit licensee | ASIC says engaging in credit activities generally needs an Australian credit licence | Your licence name and number, in a consistent place |
| Credit representative | Authorised to carry out specified credit activities for a credit licensee; a licensee must give written notice and tell ASIC | The licensee you act under and your own representative details |
| Financial adviser | The Financial Advisers Register lists people who give personal advice; if an adviser is not on it they cannot legally give personal advice on those products | Your adviser details so a client can find you on the register |
| Both roles | Different registers apply | Separate, clearly labelled sections, not blended wording |
What advertising rules ask of your pages
ASIC's Regulatory Guide 234, issued on 9 June 2026, covers advertising financial products and services, including credit. It is written for promoters of financial products, financial advice services, credit products and credit services, and for publishers of advertising. ASIC states the guide helps promoters meet their duty not to make false or misleading statements or engage in misleading or deceptive conduct.
ASIC's information sheet on discussing financial products online adds useful detail. Statements must be true, accurate and substantiable. Predictions, such as future returns, need reasonable grounds, and what matters is the overall impression on the people reached, not the intent. We apply those standards when we draft or review copy.
What clients can check about you before they call
Clients can look you up. Moneysmart says the Financial Advisers Register shows an adviser's qualifications, training, professional body memberships and the product types they can advise on. Moneysmart also says an adviser who is not on the register cannot legally give personal advice on investments, superannuation and life insurance.
The register is only as good as the data behind it. Licensees supply the information and must keep it true and correct, and ASIC does not review it before publication. Your website should therefore match your register entry exactly, and you should fix any difference at the source.
Pages that match real questions
Good pages answer a question the reader already has. These are the types we plan first.
Home loan comparison
Explains what a broker does, which lenders you can access in general terms and what the first conversation covers.
First home buyers
Walks through the stages from preparing documents to settlement, without implying approval is certain.
Refinancing
Describes when a review is worth doing and what you need to bring, with no promise of savings.
Advice for specific stages
For advisers: super, retirement, insurance or investing, each described as a service, with an honest statement of scope.
How you are paid
A plain page on fees and commissions, written with your compliance contact, because readers look for it.
Contact and next step
A clear route to a call or meeting, with response times you can actually meet.
Checklist before a broker or adviser page goes live
Your compliance contact has the final say. This list helps you bring them a cleaner draft.
- Credentials match the registers. Licence, representative and adviser details read exactly as they do on ASIC's records and the Financial Advisers Register.
- No guarantee or risk-free wording. ASIC gives guaranteed returns and risk-free profit as examples that are likely to mislead.
- Predictions have reasonable grounds. Statements about future returns or risk must be backed, and ASIC says they are judged on the overall impression.
- Risks sit beside benefits. ASIC says describing risks and benefits with similar prominence is unlikely to mislead.
- Fine print agrees with the headline. The ACCC says qualifications cannot contradict the central message of an advertisement.
- Dated items have an owner. Any rate, threshold, scheme name or date has a named person who reviews it.
The Canberra angle
Canberra buyers often search for ACT duty concessions by name. The ACT Revenue Office lists a Home Buyer Concession Scheme that reduces conveyance duty. It lists separate schemes for pensioners, people with a disability and some unit purchases, each with its own eligibility rules.
The same office states that First Home Owner Grant payments ceased in the ACT on 1 July 2019. A broker page that still mentions a grant is out of date and could mislead a first home buyer. We mark scheme names and dates for regular review, and we link to the Revenue Office for eligibility instead of restating it.
Home loan searchers also cross the border. Someone buying in Queanbeyan or Jerrabomberra is still often searching with Canberra terms, yet the ACT Revenue Office schemes above relate to ACT purchases. If you lend or advise across both sides, say so on the page. Our Queanbeyan region work covers that border effect in more detail.
How an engagement runs
We keep a compliance check inside each step.
- Review what is published nowWe read your site for statements that cannot be substantiated and for licence details that are missing or inconsistent. This is part of a free SEO audit.
- Choose pages by audienceWe separate home loan pages from advice pages and agree which questions each should answer.
- Draft with your compliance contactDrafts go to the person responsible for your licence or authorisation before publication. We do not approve compliance ourselves.
- Align listings and profilesWe match your local SEO details to the website and make sure your representative details are the same everywhere.
- Report and refineYou see calls, enquiries and the pages behind them, with proposed next steps.
What we will and will not write
Financial services copy has more constraints than most. These are our working limits.
We will
- Explain processes in plain English and note where a reader should seek personal advice.
- Present your licence or representative details as you give them to us.
- Mark any page that mentions a rate, threshold or date for regular review.
- Help you request reviews from all clients in a consistent way.
We will not
- Promise returns, approvals or savings.
- Claim the best rates or best service without proof.
- Imply you can provide advice or credit assistance outside your authorisation.
- Run a paid influencer push, since ASIC says licensees may be liable for what influencers say on their behalf.
Cost and timing
Cost depends on how many services you promote, how much compliance review the pages need and how much of the existing site can be kept. Review time on your side affects the schedule as much as writing time on ours. Our SEO content page explains how drafting and approval fit together.
Expect months before enquiries change meaningfully. Google also gives extra weight to accuracy on topics that affect people's financial stability, which rewards pages your compliance contact has checked. Competition for general terms is heavy, so a narrower, clearer message often does better than a general one. See also how other professions approach this on our industries page.
Frequently asked questions
Does a mortgage broker need to show a credit licence number on their website?
ASIC's RG 234 notes that a credit licensee must include its credit licence number in any printed advertisement, citing section 52 of the National Consumer Credit Protection Act and regulation 13 of its regulations. The guide does not define printed advertisement or say how that applies to websites, so confirm the exact wording and placement with your licensee or compliance contact. We do not give legal advice.
How do I show that I am a registered financial adviser?
The Financial Advisers Register lists people who give personal advice on investments, superannuation and life insurance, and clients can search it by name, number or ABN. We recommend including your details exactly as they appear there, so a client can match you quickly.
Can our website give general guidance on super or investing?
Yes, if it stays general. Moneysmart explains that personal advice takes into account a person's own objectives, finances and needs, and for investments, superannuation and life insurance only advisers on the register can legally give it. A page can explain how something works and what to consider. Once it tells a reader what to do, it needs your compliance contact's review first.
Can my website compare my services with other brokers?
Comparisons must be accurate and substantiated, since ASIC expects advertising not to mislead. We avoid claims such as the lowest rates or the best service unless you can prove them. Describing what you actually do, in plain terms, is safer and usually more convincing.
Are client reviews allowed for brokers and advisers?
Reviews are widely used, but they must be genuine. The ACCC says creating fake reviews is against the law, and it advises against suppressing honest negative feedback. Check with your compliance contact on any rules specific to your licence before displaying client comments.
How long does SEO take for a broker or adviser website?
Usually several months, and longer in competitive home loan searches. Clear service pages and a correct local profile tend to help first. We cannot guarantee positions, enquiry numbers or loan outcomes.
Do you handle compliance sign-off?
No. We draft and organise content, and we apply ASIC's published standards as a guide. The person responsible for your licence or authorisation approves what goes live. If you have a compliance provider, we are happy to work through them.
Should our first home buyer page mention the First Home Owner Grant?
Only to say it has ended in the ACT. The ACT Revenue Office states that First Home Owner Grant payments ceased on 1 July 2019. The Home Buyer Concession Scheme and other duty concessions are separate, and each has its own conditions. We link to the Revenue Office for current rules and flag the page for regular review.
Sources and further reading
- ASIC: RG 234 Advertising financial products and services (including credit): Scope, date of issue and duty not to mislead; RG 234.41 note 2 on credit licence numbers in printed advertisements (also published as PDF: download.asic.gov.au rg234-published-09-june-2026)
- ASIC: Discussing financial products and services online (INFO 269): True, accurate and substantiable statements, predictions, risk-free claims, influencer liability
- ASIC: Do you need a credit licence?: Credit activities generally need a licence or authorisation
- ASIC: Credit representatives: Authorisation by a credit licensee
- Moneysmart: Financial Advisers Register: What the register shows, how to search, personal advice and the legal requirement to be listed, data supplied by licensees
- ACCC: Online reviews for products and services: Fake and suppressed reviews
- ACT Revenue Office: Home buyer assistance: Home Buyer Concession Scheme and other ACT duty schemes, each with its own eligibility
- ACT Revenue Office: First Home Owner Grant: Grant payments ceased in the ACT on 1 July 2019
- ACCC: False or misleading claims: Overall impression; fine print must not conflict with the main message
- Google Search Central: Creating helpful, reliable, people-first content: Extra weight on accuracy for topics affecting financial stability