Kasina: financial advisors refer to online industry news over asset manager websites

Asset managers have enormous opportunities to reach advisors on news, industry and social sites, as well as on mobile devices.

New York (Oct. 09, 2012) – In the new, 2012 edition of kasina’s annual study of What Advisors Do Online, researchers found that a majority of financial advisors are obtaining asset managers’ content online, but most prefer sources other than those firms’ websites. Among advisors polled for the study, 62.4% of them said they go to news and industry sites such as Bloomberg, Yahoo! Finance and WSJ.com for information on asset managers. To engage effectively with advisors and win their business, asset managers must package and deliver valuable, branded content – beyond their own website – where, when and how advisors want it.

The new kasina study confirms that the majority of advisors are researching online, with 61% of them preferring to look online for information rather than contacting a wholesaler. But the majority of advisors (62%) do not use asset managers’ sites to get information on their offerings because they find the information they need elsewhere online. Nearly all advisors polled (91%) said they share information online, especially news, commentary and material for client education. One in six advisors in the study also reported that they are using social media to acquire and communicate with clients. Despite advisors’ enthusiasm for online resources, kasina’s survey data showed that most online tools on asset manager sites are used by advisors infrequently or not at all.

“Our research shows that the majority of financial advisors are using news and industry sites, often with mobile devices, that aggregate much of the news, product and performance information they need,” said Julia Binder, Director of e-Business Research at kasina and the report’s principal author. “To connect with advisors, asset managers need to go where they are – on news and social sites – with branded, shareable content that builds awareness and leads them back to asset manager sites where interactive, relevant experiences await them.”

Elements of Effective Online Strategies for Advisors

The study also includes recommendations by kasina’s analysts for specific steps asset managers can take to begin marketing their content online in more advisor-centric ways. Examples include:

  • Generating awareness with content marketing
  • Boosting consideration with relevant experiences
  • Making it easy for advisors to do business
  • Nurturing advisor loyalty and advocacy

In addition to those online initiatives, firms must meet advisors’ expectations when they do come to their sites. Using the data they capture about advisors’ behaviors and preferences, firms must deliver the personalized, interactive user experiences advisors expect.

Methodology

kasina’s study of What Advisors Do Online is based on the company’s FA Vision survey research conducted in July 2012 in partnership with Horsemouth, an online community of financial advisors.Findings are based on responses from 603 U.S. financial advisors representing 100 firms.

About kasina

kasina’s commitment to innovating distribution in the financial services industry 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% of the total assets under management in the US. An overview of services offered by kasina is available at www.kasina.com.