A fiduciary blog works when it answers the questions business owners google before they call: what does a year end financial statement cost, when does VAT need to be filed, how is a salary correctly processed, what's needed to set up a limited company, which deadlines apply in the canton. This page provides 25 such topics in five groups, a seasonal plan aligned with the tax year, and the point at which a post would cross into impermissible individual advice.
Fiduciary firms win clients through referrals, and that won't change. What has changed: before the referred business owner calls, they google. They want to know roughly what a year end financial statement costs, whether they can file VAT themselves, and what's involved in setting up their limited company. If they find these answers on your website, they call with confidence. If they find them at the firm two streets over, they call there instead. A fiduciary blog is simply a collection of these answers.
25 topics in five groups
Each topic is phrased as a question, because that's how people search. Each question carries a post of 600 to 1,000 words, with a clear answer in the first few sentences and an example from everyday office practice.
Year end financial statements and bookkeeping
- What does a year end financial statement cost for an SME, and what determines the price?
- Which documents do I need to provide for the year end financial statement?
- By when must the year end financial statement be finalised, and what happens if it's late?
- Doing your own bookkeeping or outsourcing it: at what size does hiring a fiduciary pay off?
- How do I switch fiduciary providers mid financial year without losing anything?
VAT
- From what turnover do I need to register for VAT?
- Effective method or net tax rate: which suits my business?
- How often does VAT need to be filed, and what deadlines apply?
- Which input tax can I deduct, and which can't I?
- What should I do if I've submitted a VAT return incorrectly?
Salary and social insurance
- What does an employee really cost me, beyond the gross salary?
- How do I read a payslip, and what must it show?
- Which social insurances do I need to register for as an employer?
- How does withholding tax work for foreign employees?
- What changes for payroll when I take on my first apprentice?
Setting up a business and choosing a legal form
- Sole proprietorship, limited company or corporation: which legal form suits my plans?
- What does setting up a limited company cost, including notary, commercial register and capital?
- What steps are needed from the initial idea to the entry in the commercial register?
- What do I need to consider when converting a sole proprietorship into a limited company?
- Which insurances do I need as a newly founded business?
Taxes and the canton
- Which deadlines apply for the tax return in the canton, and how do I extend them?
- What can I deduct from my taxes as a self employed person?
- How are dividends and salary treated differently for tax purposes in a limited company?
- What does changing your tax domicile to another canton mean for your business?
- How does a tax audit proceed, and how do I prepare for it?
Each of these questions is one that ChatGPT and Perplexity are also asked. Whoever answers them on their own website, with name, qualifications and location, becomes the source. What this means for service providers in general is described in AEO for service providers.
The seasonal plan aligned with the tax year
A fiduciary blog has one advantage over other industries: the year follows a fixed rhythm, and the same questions come up at the same time each year. Plan your topics so that the post is online before the question is asked.
| Period | What clients are thinking about | Topics from the list |
|---|---|---|
| January to February | Documents for the accounts, salary certificates | 2, 3, 12 |
| March to April | Tax return, extension of deadline, deductions | 21, 22, 23 |
| May to June | Accounts finished, VAT return, review of mistakes | 8, 10, 1 |
| July to August | Quiet period: setting up a business, changing legal form, new hires | 16 to 20, 15 |
| September to October | Budget for next year, change of fiduciary at year end | 4, 5, 11 |
| November to December | Preparing the accounts, tax audit, year end questions | 24, 25, 13 |
The quiet months in summer are when you produce in advance. If you write, or have written, eight posts in July for the accounts season, you won't need to do anything in February. How to set this out in a quarterly plan is shown in Editorial plan for the company blog.
The form of address: you, almost always
Fiduciary clients are business owners, landlords, heirs, board members. They expect the same form of address as in the engagement letter, and in Switzerland that's the formal "Sie". The exception is firms that deliberately target startups and sole traders under thirty and use the informal "you" in conversation too. What matters is that the blog, website and email correspondence use the same form of address; a post in informal language next to a services page in formal language looks like two different companies. The detailed considerations are covered in Formal or informal address in the company blog.
What's not allowed: the line to individual advice
A fiduciary blog explains rules and procedures. It doesn't answer individual cases. The line runs like this:
- Allowed: "What deadlines apply for the tax return in the canton of Thurgau, and how do you apply for an extension?" with a date and reference to the cantonal source.
- Not allowed: "Should you transfer your property into the limited company?" as a general recommendation. That depends on the individual case, and a blanket answer could harm clients.
- Allowed: Example calculations, clearly labelled as such, using made-up but plausible figures for a sample business.
- Not allowed: Figures from real clients, even anonymised, if they can be traced back.
- Allowed: "Dividend or salary: these five factors decide."
- Not allowed: "Pay yourself a salary of CHF 80,000 and the rest as a dividend."
Every post with tax or legal statements gets a line at the end noting that the individual case needs to be checked, plus a date. Legal requirements for your professional title and advertising are best checked with your association or a specialist; this post doesn't replace that.
Who writes all this?
25 posts is half a year's work if you produce one a week. Writing them yourself takes two to three hours per post, time you don't have during the accounts season. The alternative is a system that derives the questions from real search queries in your industry and region, writes the post with subheadings and FAQs, and submits it for approval; BlogPilot works this way, and the professional review stays with the firm. How often it's worth publishing is answered in How often should you publish a blog post?. The topic list above is the starting point either way.
Frequently asked questions
Doesn't a blog give away knowledge that clients would otherwise pay for?
No. Clients don't pay for the knowledge that a VAT return has deadlines, but for someone getting it right and on time for their business. A post explaining the rule shows that you've mastered it. Anyone who then files their own return was never going to become a client anyway.
How often should a fiduciary firm publish a post?
One post a week is enough to cover all 25 topics and their neighbours in a year. More important than frequency is consistency, because Google and readers rate a blog with a steady rhythm as well maintained. If you don't have time during the accounts season, produce content in advance over summer.
Can I mention cantonal tax rates or deadlines in a post?
Yes, with a date, source, and a note that figures change and the individual case needs checking. Posts with concrete figures are read and cited more often. But plan for an annual update, otherwise the advantage turns into a liability risk.
What's the difference between a fiduciary blog and the tax authority's fact sheets?
Fact sheets say what the rules are. Your blog says what that means for a painting business with four employees in your region, what mistakes you see in practice, and what a client needs to prepare. This translation into everyday terms is what people are searching for, and what an authority doesn't provide.