New kasina Study Finds That Hybrid Wholesaler Productivity is Comparable to Field Wholesalers at Half the Cost

Research shows hybrids enable firms to profitably expand reach

New York, (June 23, 2011) – Firms without hybrid wholesalers lack a means of pursuing additional business opportunities affordably and profitably, according to kasina’s latest study on Excellence in Distribution: Hybrid Wholesaling. Yet hybrid wholesalers are an untapped resource at 42% of asset management and insurance firms.

“Hybrids – wholesalers that are a blend of traditional internal and external wholesalers – help firms extend reach with flexible deployment at lower cost,” says Lee Kowarski, Principal and co-Founder of kasina. “Our research shows that, when integrated into the firm’s distribution strategy, hybrids produce 82% of an average field wholesaler’s annual gross sales for compensation averaging 40% of an external wholesaler.”

Knowledgeable about products and competitors, skilled at selling and providing service over the phone, hybrid wholesalers are still only used by 58% of firms. While hybrid wholesalers are not used in the same way by every asset manager, hybrids typically:

  • Work from the firm’s main or satellite office
  • Communicate primarily via phone and computer
  • Sell to and service advisors
  • Travel an average 42% of the time

“Firms that have used hybrids for a few years have moved from isolating them in Opportunistic and Spinoff models to integrating hybrids in Team or even sophisticated Flex models, where wholesaling resources are matched to specific opportunities,” Kowarski added. “For these firms, the success of hybrids has been well established. In fact, 77% of firms with hybrids plan to increase the size of their hybrid wholesaling team.”

Analysis of data garnered from a 48-question survey and interviews with executives from 23 firms provides benchmarks against which asset managers and insurance firms can measure their practices. The 39-page report details best practices and recommendations for evaluating opportunities to use hybrids, models for hybrid integration, staffing, territory management and compensation.

For more information on the full report, Excellence in Distribution: Hybrid Wholesaling 2011, or to learn about kasina’s other studies, visit www.kasina.com/reports.

About kasina

kasina’s commitment to innovating distribution in the financial services and insurance industries has made it one of the most influential strategy consulting firms in its sector. kasina works with a wide variety of clients from five continents, including firms representing 90% ofร‚ total assets under management in the US. An overview of services offered by kasina is available at www.kasina.com.