Blog

Best Blogs of the Week

Posted by Anu Heda on Jul 09, 2012, in Best Blogs of the Week , tagged with , , ,

Four posts that cover four different topics.

  • BlackRock – This post covers three reasons to increase high yield bond exposure. Agree or not, yield is on the mind of many and this supports a healthy dialogue between FA and investor.
  • MFS – Jim Swanson in Spain and futbol on the radio; what could be better? This post covers the Spanish banking crisis in a small, digestible format (always helpful for FAs).
  • Russell – This post had me at mean variance optimization. More specifically, the author relates investing to the typical life situations many investors live through.
  • Wells Fargo – It’s rare to find investment commentary, market insights, or blog posts favoring health care investing. This post makes a reasonable case in a few paragraphs (and then delves into the energy sector).

Improve Your Blog (3 of 5)

Posted by Anu Heda on Jul 06, 2012, in Thoughts , tagged with , ,

In the last year, industry blogs have improved dramatically. We’ve seen firms inject personality (our first part in this series) and increase the frequency of posts (our second part in this series). This post covers including graphics (not stock photography).

Most blog posts topics cover (or begin with) macroeconomic issues. That makes sense for a few reasons. First, macroeconomic issues don’t worry compliance too much. An analysis of Greek debt has no inherent product push or firm advertisement. Second, investment teams are (often) analyzing big themes for investment opportunities, so the blog post can be a natural output from the analysis.

Yet, many of these macroeconomic blog posts are solely prose. We think that’s a mistake. One or two straightforward graphics enable the viewer to understand the author’s perspective and quickly decide to read (or not) the prose. A well-placed graphic increases the likelihood a blog post is read (especially when the post is more than 1 – 2 paragraphs).

 … [read more]

Consider the Cost of Feeding a Campaign First

Posted by Anu Heda on Jul 03, 2012, in Thoughts , tagged with ,

One of modern business’s most cliche ideas is “if you build it, they will come.” That iconic line from Kevin Costner’s last good movie gets abused in all contexts. So it was refreshing to hear the opposite sentiment during the MFEA Distribution Summit.

There’s an uptick in new marketing campaigns. Some campaigns are product-focused (Global Funds and Oppenheimer). Some are channel-focused (New World, BlackRock, & Retail). Some are pricing-focused (5x and VG). In most cases, the campaigns drive people to learn more via a comprehensive Web site and hopefully campaign-related interactions with Sales.

Marketing organizations need to drive people to investigate the concepts behind the campaign. Build a campaign with a microsite and they will NOT come. You need to compel “they” to come. Those resources, such as television, print media, radio and social media, are not trivial. Actually, they can be very expensive.

Before thinking about ROI or other financial metrics, ask one crucial question: how much is the organization willing to spend in order to compel the desired prospects to listen? Take that number to the PR and Media groups and ask for an estimated sizing: for that amount of spend, how much media can the organization purchase.

Designing a campaign and building the creative executions is the first step. In our industry, a few firms advertise often and effectively. These firms have processes (not dissimilar to a consumer products company) that begin with those questions. For some mid-sized or small but growing firms, those processes may not exist, so analyzing the full cost, time, and resources first is a good approach to advertising.

If the estimate doesn’t seem sufficient to compel prospects and clients, then using those dollars for something else may be more effective.

Best Blogs of the Week

Posted by Anu Heda on Jul 02, 2012, in Best Blogs of the Week , tagged with , ,

By Friday morning, only 1 asset manager addressed the Affordable Care Act – Wells Fargo. That’s impressive and deserves top-billing. Additionally, we found two compelling posts that would be immediately beneficial for most FAs.

Top Billing – Wells Fargo – This post adds an economic lens to the Affordable Care Act’s political battle. Dr. Jacobsen fixates a bit on 49-person versus 50-person, nonetheless, the content is highly valuable.

 

  • BlackRock – This post provides 3 reasons to expect higher volatility in the 2nd half of 2012.
  • Putnam – This post includes a visual that quickly clarifies the massive differences in government bond yields.

 

Improve Your Blog (2 of 5)

Posted by Anu Heda on Jun 29, 2012, in Thoughts

In the end of 2011, tThe industry welcomed new blogs (Columbia Management, AllianceBernstein, and Jim Swanson of MFS) as well as second edition blogs from a few firms (e.g., Franklin Templeton’s Beyond Bulls & Bears). Our best series has never had so much selection. Our first idea to improving your blog was obvious: inject personality.

The second idea is also pretty straightforward: blog frequently enough. What’s enough? That will be different for every firm but here are some guidelines.

  • More than five per week is too much.
  • Less than once per week is too little.

1 to 5 is the right range because it keeps your investment team top of mind without being overbearing. There’s a relationship between frequency and length. And we’ll explore length in the next edition.