Welcome to our asset management marketing roundup
Asset managers are increasingly looking to embrace digital, offering innovative ways to engage with investors who are looking to trust those that are up to speed. From marketing funds on new look websites and social media accounts, to video marketing and written blogs, we here at Kurtosys scour the web to find the very best industry-specific examples of fund marketing and industry movers and shakers to save you the hard work.
This week’s round up brings you the latest movers within the asset management industry, 2017’s investment trends, updates on the DOL fiduciary rule and ‘Neymar funds’.
Adam Brown
Is now ➜ Global Head of Marketing at GAM
Was: Head of Marketing EMEA and Asia Pacific at Columbia Threadneedle Investments
Adam Brown, effective in July, has started his new position as the global head of marketing at GAM Group. Having worked in various marketing roles for firms such as Columbia Threadneedle Investments, Blackrock and Fidelity, Adam is an experienced marketing professional within the investments industry, and his latest role will require his skillset to spearhead a brand awareness campaign for the flagship brand of GAM, as well as support the group’s sales efforts and the product and distribution teams.
Further information: CityWire Wealth Manager | Investment Week
Adam Watson
Is now ➜ Vice President, Digital EMEA at Neuberger Berman
Was: Head of Digital Marketing at Columbia Threadneedle Investments
Website Spotlight: Virtus ETFs
Slightly different to a regular asset management website, this ETF-focused site from Virtus ETF Solutions (a New York-based affiliate of Virtus Investment Partners) is more of a landing page/gallery showcasing the asset managers’ products.
That’s not to say, however, that this site isn’t a treat. Taking centre stage is its main attraction: the ETF carousel. Users can toggle through Virtus’ portfolio, with each fund matched with a brief description about what it seeks to achieve. These widgets then link to each products’ more expansive summaries on Virtus’ main site.
Although a sister-site to the Virtus mainpage, it has clearly had a thoughtful and thorough design process. It is a nifty, one-page wonder with vivid graphics that all scale down perfectly for mobile. It has recently earned a place in our coveted 50 Best Asset Management Websites gallery.
Insightful Industry Reports
2017 Investment Management Outlook
Offering a fresh perspective on the current trends in investment management is financial services behemoth Deloitte. The major focus for this edition is investigating how short-term factors will have a broader impact on the investment industry.
Presented in a linear infographic format, the hoard of information is certainly digestible and hits such prolific topics as:
- Economic outlook, featuring a prediction of the GDP growth rate
- Active vs passive investing behaviour becoming active AND passive
- The rising popularity of low-cost funds, including ETFs
- Addressing the needs of different investor types, such as (pesky) Millennials
There are also more heavy-duty and all-important regulatory matters highlighted, such as the following of the SEC’s ‘final rules’ (as outlined last year), as well as the Dodd-Frank Act (May 2016) and the DOL’s Conflict-of Interest Rule, which demands compliance to changing fiduciary statuses and disclosure procedures for documentation.
Plenty to absorb here, and a fitting summary of 2017’s current investment landscape as we accelerate towards summer’s end.
Asset Managers: We analysed 695 articles to reveal what your clients love to read, by Vered Zimmerman
The title says it all really.
In this collection of content marketing related surveys (with results from the Content Marketing Institute to IMS Wealth Manager Monitor), author Vered Zimmerman from Copylab seeks to find out exactly what those in the asset management industry want to read, and where they want to read it from.
Popular publications such as CityWire and TrustNet prevail, but this deep dive into all things content goes straight to the seabed, discovering what the most-liked titles comprise of, whether market news is all the rage, and how more offbeat articles fare against top-notch research papers.
It’s an interesting insight for any marketing professional in the financial industry with plenty of stats, so get reading.
DOL Fiduciary Rule News
Financial advisors in the US: take note. The fiduciary rule that had been issued by the US Department of Labor (DOL) on April 6 2016, is now hoping to delay its applicability date of January 1 2018 to July 1 2019, as reported by Think Advisor.
Just as we in Europe have seen a push-back in the compliance date for MiFID II regulation, seemingly the US rule which will affect investors is looking to do the same, hoping to give the agency time to review its implementations.
As is always the case with supporters and opponents to any rule, there is a divide following the unveiling of this news. Initial supporters of the DOL fiduciary rule are saying delays are causing confusion in the markets, as firms will stall their compliance efforts, whereas others feel more time to review the rule, and gaining the SEC’s involvement, would be beneficial.
Plenty of compliance news to take in from both sides of the Atlantic, it seems.
Further information: InvestmentNews
Social Media Masterclass: Raymond James
We’ve been on the lookout for asset managers going the extra mile to craft successful social media campaigns.
This week’s spotlight comes courtesy of UK-based Raymond James Investment Services and, in particular, their campaign around its retirement planning services through Twitter.
Tweets containing infographics are proving to be a popular trend among asset managers. They are certainly worthwhile, blending striking graphics with appealing, outside-of-the-box monetary stats, such as this example comparing overseas retirement rates to the cost of a Big Mac in those countries…
If retiring overseas appeals to you, you’re in luck: options for retiring abroad are expanding. #TravelTuesday https://t.co/eB0IWsLSHw pic.twitter.com/lEHxykJxEn
— Raymond James (@RaymondJames) July 25, 2017
…as well as discovering what their investors would identify themselves as using the Twitter polls application.
What kind of #investor are you? Not sure? Find out: https://t.co/mWixHpto64
— Raymond James (@RaymondJames) July 24, 2017
The retirement angle makes up Raymond James’ current campaign, and select tweets such as the one below feature portions from their ‘myths debunked’ series, each portion posted at regular intervals.
#SocialSecurity myths debunked: https://t.co/z0JrjNaoIC pic.twitter.com/qSYL0UV4Sd
— Raymond James (@RaymondJames) August 5, 2017
This series is usefully displayed in a compact infographic format on their website, outlining 7 misconceptions regarding getting the most out of your earnings. It’s a thorough social media campaign which we at Kurtosys like to see; asset managers displaying creativity through social media.
AM Marketing Insights
This week, our very own Courtney McQuade had the pleasure of interviewing Samantha Hurditch, Managing Director at Wellsmarketing Consultancy Ltd.
Having worked in the investment management industry as a marketing professional for 25 years, Samantha has some great insights into the industry’s most significant changes, most importantly its embracing of digital disruption.
Samantha also advises how firms could advance their usage of automation, and what the implications of emerging technology and financial data are for sales and marketing teams: how should they best align?
All of this, and much more, from a marketing strategist who truly knows the industry back-to-front. You can read the whole interview here.
Off-piste Fund Marketing
Following on from the aforementioned ‘favourite content’ report, here’s one example of culturally relevant fund news courtesy of CityWire, who are always on hand with more entertaining investment based articles.
Football fans, or even those that try to avoid the sport at all costs, will certainly be aware of Paris St-Germain’s recent acquisition of ex-Barcelona player and Brazilian wonder-kid Neymar Jr. for a whopping €222 million – the highest transfer in the sport’s history by a huge margin.
As football supporters await to see if PSG’s large investment will make a worthy return, here are five fund managers outlining their ‘Neymars’; funds whose large price-tag delivered the goods. A bit of fund-related fun as us footy fans await the new Premier League season (today! Although, QPR have got off to a flying start, right?)
That’s all for this week, but be sure to check back soon for more asset management marketing highlights and fintech snippets from Kurtosys.
