Client-Centric vs. Investment-Centric Marketing at Asset Management Firms

Times are changing, and the modern consumer’s attention won’t be captured by old-school marketing tactics anymore. This is especially true for asset management firms. Good performance isn’t enough. With thousands of options, investors not only put more emphasis on what they are investing in, but they also want to feel like a priority; that their values, interests and goals are at the top-of-mind to their advisors. Firms that understand their clients do better in the marketplace. As the industry becomes more challenging, firms must move from investment-centric to client-centric messaging.Read More

September 9, 2019

Emilie Totten

Client Service, Investment Marketing, Marketing Operations, Marketing Strategy, Pitchbooks, Sales Enablement

For Asset Managers, The Profit Is In The Relationship

The economic pressure that has weighed down asset managers recently will continue to mount in 2019. We will especially see this as the tide of market-induced asset growth subsides. The established industry trends are rising passive inflows, fee compression, increased regulation, continuing platform rationalization. These are inescapable, threatening profit margins of the least prepared asset managers. In response, firms are intensifying their efforts to streamline distribution costs, improve their offerings, and invest in relationships. However, many still fall short of differentiating themselves among financial advisors. This could be the ultimate key to sustainable profits in this shifting landscape.

Key Takeaways From Our 2018 Factsheet Production Study

In 2018, we conducted a Mutual Fund Fact Sheet Production Study, where we analyzed 235 factsheets from 47 asset management firms of all shapes and sizes. A few factors observed included publish date, modification date and how the file was produced. The two most observed methods were using automation and producing factsheets manually. To find the firm’s production method, we turned to the metadata to show us what applications, software, or tools they were using to create the PDFs. After digging deeper into the metadata, we identified some key reasons why firms have longer production durations or later release dates. We were also able to make some observations about what drives efficiency, and the findings were pretty shocking. Read on to get the scoop!

7 Problems With Automating Factsheets In PowerPoint

Maintaining a strong and positive brand image is more important now than ever. Every contact with a client and every piece of material they see from your firm needs to be professional, timely and well produced. Even something as mundane as a poorly produced factsheet can be off-putting and give an investor pause to think about the overall quality of your operations. Yes, even in the digital age, quality design and typography in printed materials really matters. That’s why automating factsheets in PowerPoint is a bad idea.

A long-time head of marketing for a major asset manager once said to me: “If you look at the most successful companies in any industry, you’ll find that they share one thing in common; excellent branding.”