Choose the publishing arrangement before the build.
A financial advisor should be able to publish an approved article using the editor and access agreed for the website. Decide who writes, who reviews, who authorizes publication, and who maintains the publishing system. Those responsibilities should be clear before choosing a website provider.
Your team may need an editor for articles while the site's layout stays fixed. That is different from redesigning pages, creating new templates, scheduling automatic publication, or maintaining a formal review and recordkeeping system.
| Arrangement | What to confirm |
|---|---|
| Client-owned CMS | Your team edits agreed content types within the website. Confirm account access, fields, handoff materials, required services, and who maintains the setup. |
| Managed publishing service | Your team uses a maintained editor. Confirm the monthly scope, software ownership, support, export terms, and what happens when the service ends. |
| Provider publishes for you | Your team supplies the final approved item. Confirm the per-item fee or allowance, format, lead time, and correction process. |
For TMN, a client-owned CMS for agreed content is included when needed with Full Site Rebuild from $3,750 and Custom Studio Build from $5,000. There is no monthly CMS fee. The separate Managed Publishing Portal starts at $100/month. Base RIA managed hosting and care is separately billed at $100/month from the agreed launch.
Walk through 1 real article from draft to live.
Prepare the article and its source material.
Identify the writer, title, byline, intended audience, images, links, and supporting files. Confirm permission to reuse any licensed article, chart, photograph, or third-party material.
Send it through your firm's review.
Use the process your designated reviewer requires. Keep the draft unpublished until the firm authorizes release. Decide where approval and required records live. The website editor is not your compliance approver.
Enter the approved version.
Check headings, paragraph breaks, author, publication date, page title, description, image text, and article address. Confirm that any required firm-supplied disclosure appears in the correct place.
Preview the complete page.
Read the actual draft on desktop and mobile, including links, images, downloads, navigation, and disclosures. Check the version intended for publication rather than approving a separate document and assuming the website matches.
Publish and check the public result.
Open the final URL while signed out. Confirm the correct article appears in the library, the address works, and any agreed author or topic links work. A saved draft or successful build is not proof that the intended public version is live.
Keep corrections and records traceable.
Agree who handles a correction, when it needs another review, and where the firm's records are kept. A website backup, publication log, and formal archive can serve different purposes. Have your reviewer specify what the firm needs.
This is a practical publication sequence. It does not mean a CMS or portal includes a built-in compliance review system. TMN's CMS and portal are publishing tools. The firm's designated professionals determine review, approval, and recordkeeping requirements.
Test the editor with the work your team does.
Before hiring, ask the provider to demonstrate creating a draft, previewing it, publishing an authorized version, correcting a link, and exporting the content. Ask which steps your staff can perform independently and which depend on the provider.
| Question | Decision to record |
|---|---|
| What can we edit? | Name the article, bio, location, or other content fields. Layout changes and new content types need separate scope. |
| Who can publish? | List access, sign-in arrangements, and publication responsibilities. Confirm any requested permission controls rather than assuming they exist. |
| Can we schedule posts? | Distinguish saved drafts from automatic timed publication. TMN's client-owned CMS publishes on command. Scheduling is an additional scoped requirement. |
| Who keeps it working? | Identify hosting, authentication, repository, build, and editor administration. No monthly CMS license does not mean there are no operating costs. |
| What can we take with us? | Confirm content export, image rights, account access, application ownership, and the handoff process in the agreement. |
Bring the existing article library into the plan.
Inventory current article URLs, titles, dates, authors, images, downloads, and categories. Identify firm-owned content separately from licensed material. Keep useful addresses when practical and plan relevant redirects for those that change.
The Hilpan Moxie case study documents 29 articles migrated at their original addresses. Its founder published an update through the portal on September 1, 2026, the day after launch. The firm's compliance consultant supplied disclosures and the firm retained final approval.
That is evidence of a completed migration and publishing workflow. It is not a promise of identical timing, search rankings, or a particular inquiry volume for another firm. Use the advisor platform migration guide for the broader move.
Separate publishing access, care, and records.
RIA Site Care covers the agreed hosting, maintenance, routine changes, and direct support. A client-owned CMS has its own access and maintenance arrangement. The maintained portal is a separate monthly service. Additional content production, new templates, and new functionality are quoted before work starts.
TMN's portal application remains TMN's software while the service is active. Previously published pages remain available at their existing addresses while the website stays hosted there. Its terms provide a portable export of portal content, unpublished drafts, and available publication records within 5 business days of written cancellation. The export excludes the portal application and source code.
If your firm needs dated website snapshots and change records, discuss the separate Compliance Site Care add-on. Confirm the required records with your reviewer. Publishing, review approval, website maintenance, and archiving should each have an assigned owner.
Questions before choosing a provider.
Can a financial advisor publish without asking the designer?
Yes, when the website includes an editor and access for the agreed content. Your team can publish approved articles through that setup. New layouts, templates, functionality, and unconfigured content types may still need a developer.
Does the CMS provide compliance approval?
No. TMN's CMS and portal are publishing tools. The firm remains responsible for legal, regulatory, advertising, and compliance review and approval. Have your designated reviewer specify approval and recordkeeping requirements.
What is the difference between the CMS and the portal?
The client-owned CMS is included for agreed content when needed with Full Site Rebuild and Custom Studio Build and has no monthly CMS fee. The Managed Publishing Portal is TMN-maintained software starting at $100/month, with scope and final price confirmed before activation. Base RIA care is separate.
Can our articles stay at the same addresses when we move?
Keep useful existing URLs when practical and map changed URLs to relevant destinations. Confirm content rights, export availability, publication dates, and the article inventory before ending the old service. No provider can guarantee unchanged search rankings.
Does publishing an article guarantee Google or AI discovery?
No. A live, accessible article can be considered by search services, but publication does not guarantee crawling, indexing, ranking, AI citation, or inquiries. Check the public page and measure the outcomes separately.