Recently, I wrote an article about why automating within desktop publishing environments can be a bad idea. When I talk about desktop publishing environments, I’m referring to programs like InDesign, PowerPoint, or Quark for content automation. If you’re looking for a way to effectively scale your literature production, you simply must say goodbye to your desktop defaults. And, I’ll tell you why.

This topic is front-of-mind for me today, following a meeting with a prospective client last week.  This client described their frustration with their current automation solution. They told me a story about how their automation provider is currently supporting their suite of about 50 documents using about 50 InDesign templates.  Even the client recognizes that this is a problem and knows that if the templates were being shared properly as shared entities then there should be, at most, eight of them for this catalog of documents. Fewer templates allow changes to be made centrally, without needing to apply a change 50 different times.

I smiled in sympathy as they told me about this problem. This is precisely the issue with automation solutions that are based on desktop publishing applications.  This client articulated the issue even more simply and perfectly than I have in my past musings on the topic.

If a Microsoft or Adobe desktop publishing application is being used as the foundation of the automation solution, that system is then dependent on that desktop publishing tool, as well as the people who use the tool.  It’s easy to overlook or dismiss this reality. People really love these programs, and understandably so. They are familiar, intuitive and your collateral is probably already designed in one of these formats. But, the hard truth is that almost always leads to bad long-term results in a commercial document production environment. This is due to what we call the “Save As Phenomenon”.Read More

Last year, we published a blog on what to expect in asset management marketing in 2016. The post is based on an interview I conducted with Andrew Corn, CEO of E5A Integrated Marketing. During the interview, Andrew and I discussed how 2016 would be the year of transparency and immediacy; the year for asset managers to leverage data to improve segmentation and personalization, create more transparency in the sales process, and provide timely information to every audience, on every channel. At Synthesis Technology, we saw these predictions hold true. Many of our clients made significant improvements to their content delivery methods through strategic data and content automation.

So, what will be the new trends in 2017? How will firms embrace data and technology to be even more competitive? 

Once again, I called upon Andrew to mine his brain for insights. He is the former CIO of Beacon Trust and Clear Asset Management, where he led the development of a multi-factor model to manage long-only equities. He has also designed ETFs and managed two hedge funds. Today, he helps firms leverage digital media and technology to grow sales through marketing and advertising, while adhering to industry regulations.

Here is part 1 (of 2) of our discussion on what to expect in asset management marketing in 2017. Read More

You probably see the term “account-based marketing” (ABM) pretty frequently of late. The hype has grown over the past 12 months, with hundreds of articles, blogs, webinars, podcasts, videos and events devoted to the topic. At least a few dozen new vendors have sprung up with solutions focused on ABM, adding to the noise.

Even with all that noise, most organizations are unclear about whether and how to implement these strategies. So this post will give you a high-level sense of what ABM is all about, give you concrete criteria on whether you should consider it for your organization, help you decide what type of ABM would be appropriate, and give you a couple of practical steps to get started.

By Candyce Edelen

This post originally appeared on the Propel Growth blog.

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It is universally understood in the marketing community that sales and marketing alignment is crucial to hitting revenue goals. Alignment around shared goals, technologies and processes allows you to monitor and optimize every stage of the buying cycle. Reports like this one from Marketing Advisory Network suggest that sales and marketing misalignment is not just a buzzword: companies are truly struggling with this reality.

But how aligned are sales and marketing teams at investment management firms, specifically?

We were curious. 

We hosted a private Marketing Roundtable discussion with sales and marketing leaders from top investment management firms. We wanted to learn more about the state of sales and marketing alignment at investment management firms. Here are a few notable takeaways we’d like to share:Read More