Asset managers are responding with content marketing to build brand trust and differentiate their offerings with diverse investor target groups. The market environment now requires integrated marketing strategies with asset managers scrutinizing which digital platforms best deliver and localise their thought leadership content throughout Asia to actively engage clients. 

Be where your clients are online 

As a result, Asian asset managers are creating content specifically for digital platforms that closely align with regional user behaviour. For example YouTube dominates in markets like Singapore, where 90% of the population uses the platform daily.

Fidelity Investments Singapore has tapped this opportunity and generated more than 2.6 million views since 2021 through market update videos that blend macroeconomic analysis with actionable investor insights. These videos cater to financially sophisticated audiences seeking real-time investment guidance, positioning Fidelity as a trusted source amid market volatility.

Meanwhile at the entry-level of the investor scale, Instagram’s younger demographic (85% of Singaporean users are aged 16–24) has prompted Singaporean bank UOB Group to adopt visually driven, educational content. UOB’s “ASEAN story” campaign simplifies complex financial topics, targeting first-time investors with bite-sized tutorials. This strategy builds brand affinity and kickstarts long-term client relationships by addressing the financial literacy gap among younger audiences.

Let AI crunch the data to hyper-personalise client content

Generative AI is reshaping content marketing by enabling hyper-personalised client interactions. Accenture’s 2024 analysis highlights 50% of Asian investors seek tailored content such as AI analsyed client portfolios to generate customised reports. 

A great example of this is HSBC leveraging tokenization to create personalized investment strategies for high net-worth individuals (HNWIs) and show this with dynamic content that adapts to individual risk profiles.

Innovation like this better serves the client while reducing operational costs by automating routine communication.

Other advice for financial marketers can be found closer to home with Aberdeen Investments senior digital marketing manager in Singapore, Jave Lin, explaining how he has fused the power of AI with video marketing to become a marketing industry influencer in his own right while taking these key learnings back into his day job at Aberdeen.     

Lin says video marketing and AI are two of the hottest trends shaping the future of marketing. As these two powerful forces converge, marketers are exploring innovative ways to leverage AI to streamline and enhance their video marketing efforts. But he cautioned AI is not the universal problem solver.

“It’s crucial to remember AI should be seen as a powerful tool to augment human creativity and expertise, not as a complete replacement.” said Lin.

What makes good thought leadership and how to use it

Thought leadership is the process of creating and sharing expert insights via innovative content to build credibility and authority. In the finance industry providing in-depth research remains a cornerstone of thought leadership. 

As reported in Asia Asset Management, Principal Asset Management’s Greater China Equity Fund, which has outperformed its benchmark by 86% since 2007, attributes its success to “thought leadership through early identification of growth prospects”. 

The firm publishes quarterly whitepapers analyzing sectoral trends, such as the impact of China’s regulatory reforms on tech equities, to position itself as a market authority. 

An example of award-winning thought leadership comes from Aviva Investors with it’s annually released “Little Book of Data” which uses beautiful data visualisations and charts to illustrate the forces shaping the investment landscape.

Aviva states while it’s critical to have the data necessary to arrive at the right outcomes. “But data is not enough on its own. To be valuable, it must be organised and presented clearly and accurately. Good data visualisation can help with this by illustrating important themes and highlighting overlooked trends.” 

[Full disclosure: “Little Book Of Data” is made by the publisher of this industry blog and finance marketing group – The Dubs Agency, using Aviva Investors research and data.] 

Turning regulatory compliance into educational content

Asset management as an industry is inherently soaked in complex regulatory compliance issues. Added to this Asia has pain points from fragmented regional regulations and cross-border enforcement issues. 

Groups such as Waystone, which provide institutional governance and compliance services to the asset management industry, turn their industry knowledge into thought leadership content to showcase their expertise and be recognised as industry leaders. 

An example of this is how Waystone uses webinars to demystify complex issues such as AML/KYC best practices to educate asset managers on how to build trust with institutional clients navigating Asia’s regulatory regimes.

Leading investor conversation on investment innovations

Asset managers can show genuine competitive difference by leading industry conversations around cutting edge investment innovations. For example, HSBC’s 2025 whitepaper in partnership with Calastone, Marketnode and Northern Trust, on tokenized portfolios illustrates how blockchainfractional ownership appeals to Asia’s HNWIs, by giving them ready access to illiquid assets like private equity. 

Content marketing around tokenization educates investors on benefits such as enhanced liquidity and transparency, differentiating HSBC in the market by demonstrating the benefit of being an early adopter in a competitive market.

Building Asian and global investment brands

According to the Global Head of Marketing & Sales at Korea’s Mirae Asset Global Investments, Blair Abbott, successfully building an investment brand in the highly competitive and constantly shifting landscape where capturing investor attention is the prize requires crafting a powerful story and articulating its value proposition.

The challenge was to take Mirae’s position as the leading Korean ETF provider and build it into a recognised global ETF major player. Mirae is now the world’s 12th largest ETF provider with US$140 billion in assets under management (AUM)

Abbott points out that as the battle for investor attention has increasingly shifted online, digital engagement with investors has become the new frontier. 

He said that by leveraging cutting-edge digital tools such as data analytics, targeted content delivery, and AI, asset management brands can engage with investors in meaningful and memorable ways.

“In 2025 and beyond, a firm must navigate the digital landscape cleverly, analyzing investor behaviours through sophisticated data analytics to craft strategies that effectively capture attention in a crowded marketplace. AI-powered tools enhance marketing efforts efficiency and creativity, enabling more dynamic and responsive interactions with investors.” Abbott. 

 What this all means for asset managers

Asian asset managers face equally important and competing challenges. They must navigate a fragmented regulatory landscape and capture investor opportunities in the world’s fastest-growing wealth market. 

Content marketing has emerged as a vital tool for asset managers to promote thought leadership and foster client trust through data-driven research and harness digital innovations like AI hyper-personalisation and tokenization.

Partnering with finance marketing experts: The Dubs Agency

Navigating the complexities of financial digital marketing is daunting. At The Dubs Agency, we specialise in helping B2B finance brands unlock the full potential of strategic digital marketing. From data-driven campaigns to personalised lead-gen strategies, we deliver results you can measure. Ready to transform your marketing efforts? Contact The Dubs Agency today to learn how we can help.

The post How Asian asset managers are mastering thought leadership content marketing in volatile times appeared first on Financial Marketer.

This story is not just about growth and transformation but is deeply rooted in the brand’s ethos – a commitment to excellence, integrity, and the relentless pursuit of what is right for investors. 

It is a brand’s journey of evolving from a local pioneer to a global innovator and competitor, resonating with investors across continents.

A Vision for Global Expansion

Every great strategy is birthed from a vision. For Mirae Asset Global Investments, this vision was rooted in the ambition to expand beyond borders and become a trusted name internationally, known for providing investors with dynamic investment solutions across asset classes.

Within the strategic expansion roadmap, the firm identified and understood the importance that ETFs would have on the industry and for investors. The journey of building a global ETF platform started in 2011, launching its first ETFs outside of Korea on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange. 

That same year saw the acquisition of Horizons ETFs in Canada. In the coming years, we focused on identifying opportunities for organic growth, which were fueled by ingenuity and a deep understanding of emerging trends and investor needs, developing innovative products that catered to investors’ demands, establishing a strong foundation, and showcasing the brand’s commitment to meeting clients’ expectations.

Yet, to truly accelerate growth, additional strategic acquisitions and partnerships were essential. The coming years saw multiple key acquisitions and partnerships, with the company swiftly gaining a foothold in new markets. This included the acquisition of Global X in 2018 and a joint venture partnership with Daiwa to launch Global X Japan in 2019.

By adopting deep local market knowledge and strengths with our global framework, Mirae Asset transformed its ETF business and brand, making it locally relevant and globally consistent, aligning the various brands under a unified global identity — a critical milestone in its expansive journey.

By 2024, Mirae Asset’s ETF platform had expanded to more than 600 ETFs across 13 markets. What began as a leading Korean player into the world’s 12th largest ETF provider, with over $140 billion in AUM — an extraordinary 14x growth since early 2017. ETFs now account for approximately half of the firm’s $256 billion in asset management AUM.

The Challenge: Aligning Corporate Identity

As the brand’s portfolio of businesses grew, so did the complexity of maintaining a consistent identity within a layered brand architecture. This is where the benefits and impact of corporate endorsement become crucial. 

The challenge lies in aligning newly acquired entities with the overarching corporate brand without diluting the unique qualities that made them successful in their own right. ETF Securities is a recent example of this, where we shortly rebranded them to Global X while leveraging their strengths and past success as a strong foundation to launch the Global X brand in Australia.

It’s akin to bringing diverse characters in a story under one banner, ensuring each contributes to the broader ETF narrative while retaining individuality. Successfully navigating this alignment strengthens the brand’s global reputation and fosters a sense of unity and shared purpose across businesses and teams.

This process necessitates meticulous coordination between local and global teams. In each market, the brand must position itself not just as a local provider and leader but also as part of a franchise with a vast offering of products and solutions. Leveraging the local expertise of acquired companies while consistently upholding the global brand’s values and standards is paramount.

In recent years, we have focused on consolidating brands and streamlining our global ETF presence. Moving from four distinct ETF brands just a few years ago – including Global X, Horizons ETFs, TIGER ETF, and Mirae Asset to now three, with Global X,  TIGER ETF, and Mirae Asset, continuing to contribute uniquely to the brand’s global tapestry and identity.

Through this strategic rebranding, key markets like Australia, Brazil and Canada have been unified under the Global X brand, strengthening our global presence and investor recognition.

The Strategy: Integrating Growth across All Fronts

As the narrative unfolds, the brand’s journey is propelled by a holistic approach to growth, integrating product, marketing, distribution, and corporate development across all fronts. It is not enough to execute within each function; purposeful and strategic actions ensure that every move contributes to the larger goal of establishing a robust and resilient global presence.

Envision the brand as a well-oiled machine, where marketing campaigns are finely tuned to resonate with diverse audiences, distribution strategies are optimized to ensure products reach the right markets effectively, and corporate development initiatives that support and enhance both. This integrated strategy ensures that the brand does not just grow—it thrives, becoming a recognized and respected name in the global ETF market.

This approach also acknowledges that markets are continually evolving—ETFs and their use are changing, portfolio construction methodologies are becoming more sophisticated, and access to private markets is expanding. Staying attuned to these developments enables the brand to adapt its strategies proactively, ensuring relevance and competitiveness in an ever-changing financial landscape.

The Digital Arena: Capturing Investor Attention and Advocacy

In today’s fast-paced world, technology evolves at a frantic pace, fundamentally transforming how businesses operate and interact with their audiences. For a global ETF franchise, embracing technology is not just advantageous—it’s essential.

The battle for investor attention has increasingly shifted online, making digital engagement the new frontier. Leveraging cutting-edge digital tools—such as data analytics, targeted content delivery, automation, and artificial intelligence—the brand can engage with investors in meaningful and memorable ways.

In 2025 and beyond, a firm must navigate the digital landscape cleverly, analyzing investor behaviours through sophisticated data analytics to craft strategies that effectively capture attention in a crowded marketplace. AI-powered tools enhance marketing efforts’ efficiency and creativity, enabling more dynamic and responsive interactions with investors.

In an industry where trust and expertise are paramount, becoming a thought leader is vital to differentiating the brand and building deeper relationships with investors. By utilizing AI and big data, investment managers can generate insightful market analysis, research & insights to position themselves as trusted authorities.

This digital acuity is a pivotal aspect of the brand’s journey, demonstrating its ability to evolve and remain relevant amidst technological advancements that impact not only the technical aspects of marketing and distribution but also the qualitative facets, such as storytelling and brand engagement. Through technology, the firm can amplify its voice in the industry, setting the agenda for future trends and becoming a go-to source for insights, thereby solidifying its status as a global thought leader in investment management.

The Identity: Building and Supporting Brand Personality and Consistency

As the brand grows and adapts, its personality becomes more defined and distinctive. Mirae Asset and Global X have evolved into a formidable competitor known for their innovation, boldness and unwavering commitment to their customers. 

However, with expansion comes the challenge of maintaining message consistency across diverse and dynamic markets.

Imagine a brand that speaks multiple languages yet maintains one cohesive voice. Whether in New York, Tokyo, or Sydney, the brand’s core message remains consistent, while its delivery is adapted to resonate with local cultures and investor behaviours. 

Recognizing that investors’ habits and behaviours are continually changing—influenced by how they search, research, and select products—the brand’s communication strategies must be flexible and insightful.

Achieving this balance between consistency and localization solidifies the brand’s identity on the global stage, ensuring it is recognizable and relatable, no matter where the story unfolds.

Streamlining Global Synergies and Asset Gathering

As the narrative progresses, the focus shifts to effective execution—streamlining asset-gathering processes and fostering global synergies. Here, the brand’s accumulated experience and insights are leveraged to ensure operations are as efficient as they are effective.

Visualize a brand that operates cohesively across regions, sharing best practices and success stories to enhance performance universally. 

The development and promotion of products become a global strategy rather than a regional effort, driving growth and building investor trust worldwide. This collaborative sharing of knowledge and strategy is crucial for sustaining momentum and maintaining a competitive edge in a rapidly evolving market landscape.

The Heart: Supporting Local Teams and Integrating Vision, Culture, and Image

At the heart of this journey are the people—the local teams who bring the brand to life in various markets. Supporting and empowering these teams is essential as they adapt global strategies to local contexts, ensuring effective and authentic implementation on the ground.

It’s also about cultivating a strong, unified culture. The brand’s vision, philosophy and image must be seamlessly integrated, creating a cohesive identity that resonates with internal and external stakeholders. This unified culture fosters collaboration, innovation, and shared purpose, underpinning the brand’s success and resilience.

The ability and willingness to evolve are fundamental, both at the organizational and individual levels. Encouraging a culture that embraces change and continuous learning ensures that the global teams and people can adapt proactively to emerging trends, challenges, and opportunities, sustaining long-term growth and relevance.

The whole is indeed greater than the sum of its parts. When local teams are supported and empowered, their insights and expertise enhance the global strategy, creating a more robust and dynamic brand presence. 

Each local market contributes its unique strengths and perspectives, which, when integrated with the global framework, produce results far greater than what could be achieved by isolated efforts. This synergy between global vision and local execution drives the brand’s success and builds a cohesive and unified identity that resonates with investors worldwide.

Establishing Global Brand Leadership and its Potential

As the journey matures and progresses, Mirae Asset and Global X stand as a well-integrated, globally recognized ETF provider, having adeptly navigated the complexities of expansion, digital transformation, and brand consistency. A strong global presence, robust investor trust, and a reputation for innovation and excellence mark this success.

Yet, this achievement is not a final destination but a noteworthy milestone. The brand must continue to adapt, innovate, and uphold its core values to maintain and enhance its position. This involves anticipating and responding to future market shifts, evolving investor behaviours, and rapid technological advancements. 

By staying preemptive and forward-thinking, Mirae Asset can continue to fuel its growth and solidify its position as a leading ETF provider in the global market, unlocking its full potential and expanding its influence across diverse regions.

The Ever-Evolving Story

The journey of building and honing a global ETF brand is an ongoing narrative of growth, adaptation, and relentless pursuit of excellence. By maintaining a clear vision, fostering a strong and adaptable corporate culture, and ensuring consistent and resonant global messaging, a brand improves its chances of securing its place amongst global leaders, earning enduring trust and loyalty from investors across continents.

In the ever-changing landscape of ETFs and asset management, your brand is not just a business asset; it’s the narrative that defines your place and impact in the market. It’s the sum of all interactions with your business – products, advertisements, client servicing, and thought leadership. It’s important to remember that every decision, every strategy, every message, and every interaction contributes to the enduring legacy of your brand.

[**Full disclosure: The views and opinions expressed in this publication are those of the author. They do not reflect the views or opinions of any organisation or entity.]

The post Creating a global ETF brand: Mirae Asset’s journey of growth and identity appeared first on Financial Marketer.

What is tentpole marketing?

Tentpole marketing, also known as big rock or blockbuster content revolves around creating an annual piece of content that becomes a cornerstone topic, defining your brand’s narrative and establishing its authority in the industry. This type of content is the bedrock of your brand’s annual marketing strategy, providing a focal point for campaigns and a consistent touchpoint for consumers.

The term ‘tentpole’ simply represents how this content holds up your brand’s overarching marketing ‘tent’ throughout the year.

Real examples of finance brands dominating tentpole marketing

1. Barclays Premier League Sponsorship
   Barclays’ long-standing sponsorship of the English Premier League serves as an excellent example of tentpole marketing. This yearly investment not only aligns the brand with a globally watched sports event but also allows Barclays to integrate its financial products seamlessly into the passion and excitement of football.
2. BlackRock: Global Investor Pulse
   BlackRock conducts the “Global Investor Pulse” survey, an extensive research initiative that explores individual investors’ attitudes, behaviors, and challenges. The findings are shared through reports and visually engaging, interactive online platforms, providing BlackRock with a tentpole content piece that enhances its thought leadership and client engagement.
3. ING and the Amsterdam Marathon
   ING’s sponsorship of the Amsterdam Marathon exemplifies the fusion of finance with a healthy and active lifestyle. By associating with a major running event, ING strengthens its brand’s connection with the community and underscores its commitment to wellbeing.
4. NatWest: Student Living Index
   NatWest in the UK publishes an annual “Student Living Index”, a research report that explores the financial behaviours and challenges of university students. Interactive tools designed for students to make informed decisions about their finances, university and student life. The index also breaks down student living costs through graphs, pull-out data and easy-to-understand explanations.
5. DBS Bank and Marina Bay Sands Light Show (Singapore)
   DBS Bank in Singapore collaborates with Marina Bay Sands to create a spectacular light and water show. The event, called “DBS Marina Regatta,” is part of the bank’s efforts to engage with the community and promote its brand through innovative and visually striking experiences.

The benefits of tentpole marketing

• Consistent brand visibility: Annual tentpole content provides a consistent platform for brand exposure, reinforcing messaging and values.
• Establishing authority: Owning a recurring topic positions a brand as an authority in the field, fostering trust and credibility among consumers.
• Cultivating audience anticipation: Successful tentpole content creates anticipation, with audiences eagerly awaiting each year’s release, driving engagement and loyalty.

Best practices for success

• Atomisation for year-round impact: Break down the tentpole content into bite-sized pieces for year-round distribution. This could include blog posts, social media snippets, and multimedia formats to keep the audience engaged throughout the year.
• Strategic distribution: Identify the channels most relevant to your audience and strategically distribute content across platforms. Leverage social media, email marketing and partnerships to maximise reach.

Case study

Working with The Dubs Agency, Aviva Investors’ ‘Little Book of Data’ stands as a shining example of tentpole marketing. Now in its sixth year, this publication has become a sought-after annual release in the finance industry. The success of the ‘Little Book of Data’ can be attributed to several key elements:

• Rich insights and data: The ‘Little Book of Data’ doesn’t just present data; it delivers meaningful insights and trends through storytelling.
• Engaging visuals: The content is visually appealing, making complex data accessible and digestible for a wide audience.
• Consistency and innovation: While maintaining a consistent annual release, Aviva Investors also introduces innovative elements like engaging maps, stunning visuals and exciting graphics to keep the content fresh.

Final thoughts

Tentpole marketing in the finance industry is not merely a strategy; it’s a mindset. Finance brands that embrace this approach, creating content that resonates, educates, and captivates their audience, will find themselves not just riding the waves of industry change but shaping them.

Aviva Investors’ ‘Little Book of Data’ serves as an inspiring example of the power of tentpole marketing—a power that, when harnessed effectively, can propel a brand to new heights year after year.

The post Mastering tentpole marketing for finance brands appeared first on Financial Marketer.

Nothing worthwhile is without risk

Social media and content marketing are one of the most effective ways for asset managers and finance brands to build brand awareness, trust and community. In fact, content marketing generates 3x as many leads as traditional outbound marketing but costs 62% less. Yet, like with everything, using social media comes with some risks.
Recently, Reuters explored the need for finance brands to have risk management strategies in place after Silicon Valley Bank tumbled as a result of reputational damage from a social media maelstrom.

• Reputational Damage: Posting without a strategic approach could harm your image and detract from your brand’s values. Social media isn’t a scary place, but instead should be viewed as an opportunity to expand your reach and connect with investors.
• Compliance Violations: Social media for asset managers is about striking the balance between creative ideas and compliance. Consider who your target audience is and what they want to see. Posting educational content, brand updates and timely investment insights can all help to build brand awareness, improve financial education and form strong connections with investors.
• Cybersecurity Attacks: Hackers often set their sights on social media platforms, making it crucial to fortify your defences and protect your valuable data. Bolster your security measures by employing strong passwords, enabling two-factor authentication, and being mindful of the information shared by you and your social media managers online.
  

  “ One of the best ways for asset managers to mitigate the risks associated with social media is to be transparent. ”

So, should your asset management firm be dissuaded from using social media? No, not at all. Social media can be a powerful tool for you, but you need to be aware of the risks and take steps to mitigate them.

Risk management strategies for your socials

By putting in place risk management strategies you can feel confident utilising social media to safely and significantly extend your brand’s reach. Here are some risk management strategies you can put into place for your social media channels:

• Create a social media policy: Lay down clear guidelines that outline the purpose and parameters for posting on social media.
• Train employees on social media etiquette: Empower your team with knowledge on how to avoid mistakes, safeguard confidential information, and respond professionally to negative feedback.
• Utilise a social media management tool: Leverage specialised tools to monitor your social media presence, identify potential risks, and maintain timely engagement with comments and messages.
• Have a crisis management plan: Prepare for the unexpected by developing a plan that outlines how you will respond if faced with a social media crisis.

The importance of transparency on socials

One of the best ways for asset managers to mitigate the risks associated with social media is to be transparent. This means being open about investment insights, strategies and financial performance.
Transparency builds trust with investors at all levels and only serves to further solidify expertise.

Beyond transparency

In addition to being transparent, asset managers can also take proactive steps to mitigate the risks associated with social media. This includes:

• Moderating comments and message: You should monitor your social media accounts and remove any comments or messages that are offensive, inappropriate, or misleading. Responding to comments is also an opportunity to respond to soft leads and build a community.
• Responding to negative feedback: When you receive negative feedback, you should respond in a timely and professional manner. You should acknowledge the feedback, apologise if necessary, and explain how you’re addressing the issue.
• Being more ‘human’: Content marketing is a great way of connecting with investors through showing a more ‘human’ side to your brand. Through your tone of voice, the content you produce and the access followers get to behind-the-scenes content you can build a loyal following that recognises who your brand is and what you stand for.

Don’t get caught out

Social media holds immense potential for asset managers, and with the right risk management strategies in place, you can seize the benefits while safeguarding your reputation.

The post Risk-proof Your Socials: Asset Managers’ Guide appeared first on Financial Marketer.

Definitely – but you need to be aware of a few ground rules.

Being where people live

Influencers have a role in many worlds, from fashion to finance. The position of influencer has the advantage of being where people live – on social media. And that’s not just younger people.

Sophisticated financial decision makers of all ages are getting their news and information from digital sources, including through their social feeds. Institutional and wholesale investors – previously known for their uber-traditional attitudes, have been forced to embrace the digital age. Covid and volatile market conditions have seen to that.

In fact, with reduced face-to-face interaction between asset managers and their institutional clients, “asset managers must make a conscious effort to provide the personal touch that many institutional investors expect,” according to a LinkedIn report.

Social media is one way to meet that expectation.

How clients research now

The 2023 Brunswick Digital Investor Survey reported that 94% of institutional investors surveyed systemically harvest data from social and digital sources. 88% said they have made a recommendation or decision based on information from digital or social media.

According to the Brunswick study, LinkedIn is the preferred business social media platform, rated just under corporate investor relations websites as the most important source of information. YouTube, Instagram and Facebook are next most popular, above X, in the research. This is apparently how investors “keep a pulse on the conversation”.

And who do they want to see communicating the information? The LinkedIn research reveals that 44% of institutional investors consume content based on the individual who produced it, and 24% connect with leading voices to help shape their views.

The influencer is welcome here, if you get your approach right.

Some tips to bear in mind

In a survey of people who follow financial influencers, credibility stood out as the most important factor in creating trust as an influencer. Meanwhile, content and referrals are seen to be more important than the number of people following you. So, if you want to establish yourself as an influencer, credibility and trustworthiness trump popularity.

You’re not there to spruik a product or service. You need to maintain a personal focus and stand apart from sales. Your role is to educate, humanise concepts, even entertain. Within that, there is scope to tailor an approach that suits your own style and outlook. There is also scope to convey your firm’s values and purpose to inspire further trust.

It helps if you’re a person who enjoys writing and communicating with an audience. Ideally, an influencer would live and breathe social platforms, understand the nuances of subject matter and audience, and be able to put their own unique and entertaining spin on news and data.

Influencers also need time to strategically develop quality, topical content, working with their firm’s marketers and supported by other social media-savvy employees – perhaps even by third-party content writers and agencies. Getting other employees to share the content with their networks is important too.

One last thought

With an audience that is small and specialised, like institutional and wholesale investors, the influencer may find a more targeted approach is effective. Make it feel like you’re sharing on-point personal nuggets of advice rather than being part of a vanilla content marketing campaign.

As the LinkedIn research shows, customised content is key, shared using the formats and the channels your audience prefers. This of course requires an understanding of audience needs and priorities.

With that under your belt, go forth and be influential!

The post The pros of becoming an asset manager influencer appeared first on Financial Marketer.

Where asset managers are going wrong

While asset managers have recognised the need for greater focus on ESG and promotion, many aren’t getting it right. Often, when asset managers create content around ESG that’s niche and focused on what investors want its focus is on promoting its own new products or services creating a tone of inauthenticity. This lack of engaging content, alongside an alarming amount of information gaps, reveals ESG is one area asset managers can improve.

Currently, ESG content remains generic with most topics widely over-indexed. To make your content truly shine it’s important to not repeat the same ideas, information and content everyone else is putting out. Overarching topics like climate change and energy are oversaturated whereas specialist topics like deforestation are often overlooked.

These specialised topics and niche areas of interest are where the opportunity lies for financial marketers. Investors want to be educated and gain timely information from a reliable source. Providing an investment angle on ESG topics can help secure your place as an authority in the area and help generate and nurture leads.

What to ask yourself when creating content that hits:

• Is your ESG content reiterating information from broad subject areas or providing specialised information on niche topics?
• Does your content provide unique insights from an asset management perspective?
• Is the information relevant, timely and accurate?

Why ESG content is important

Supplying engaging, relevant and informative ESG content should be a part of every asset manager’s marketing strategy. At the end of the day, consumers are demanding it.

Here are three reasons why it remains important:

• Output in specialist ESG and sustainability media outlets has increased by 76%
• In the last 12 months, there has been a 63% increase in searches globally for ESG-related content
• Additionally, there has been a 36% increase in social media engagement globally around ESG issues

To gain traction, nurture leads and capture an engaged audience, asset managers must prioritise marketing ESG insights.

Remove the disconnect

This disconnect between what content asset managers are supplying versus what investors are demanding (niche topics) offers a unique opportunity for financial marketers. At the end of the day, an information gap is also an opportunity gap.

Identifying the areas where your asset management firm is underdelivering content your audience wants is the first step to removing this disconnect. Utilising analytics, research and first-party data can help in this area.

By creating content on underdelivered topics you can capture an interested audience by demonstrating thought leadership and becoming an authoritative figure within the industry. This can help generate meaningful leads and enable your brand to effectively nurture web visitors.

To ensure you outperform your competitors and stand out from the crowd, your asset management firm needs to reallocate resources and restructure its content calendar to reflect these growth opportunities.

Asset managers getting ESG content right

What does success look like, you ask? These three asset managers produced quality ESG content about specialist topics while remaining authentic and true to its brand’s messaging.

BNP Paribas Asset Managers

BNP Paribas Asset Managers regularly create ESG marketing content on diverse topics, often fulfilling investor demand for underdelivered subjects.

What it’s doing right
BNP Paribas consistently publishes content and offers both critiques on international ESG topics alongside more personal thought leadership such as interviews with its CEO and corporate insights into its sustainability initiatives.

In addition, this content is shared in a variety of formats such as a podcast and short-form videos making it more accessible and fostering engagement.

Robeco
ESG content is a core tenet of Robeco’s content strategy. It’s spread across its social channels and housed on its website, with education being a key component that sets its content apart.

What it’s doing right
Robeco’s ESG marketing content is focused on educating investors on complex topics in a diverse array of areas. Unlike BNP Paribas, Robeco has a strong social media presence in which it shares its ESG content regularly. Focusing on timely topics and newsworthy events, Robeco has adopted a strong always-on content strategy.

Offering video content, podcasts, webinars and educational materials, Robeco ensures its content remains fresh and engaging helping to nurture leads and capture an invested audience.

Schroders
For Schroders, it regularly posts content that directly fills the ESG information gaps Peregrine has identified.

What it’s doing right
Schroders has a diverse range of ESG content, much of which directly fulfills these ‘white spaces’. Presented in a variety of formats, from podcasts to Q&As to videos enables more interest and engagement. Additionally, it provides both a global perspective and a more micro perspective on many topics, offering content that’s more tailored to certain investors.

Like Robeco, it also has a strong social media presence where this content often features. This can help boost engagement and reach a broader audience.

ESG content is not a ‘nice to have’

At the end of the day, investors want ESG insights but many asset managers are continuing to supply the same content without much thought to what its audience wants. Consider what’s newsworthy, what investors are interested in and educational materials that can help.

Rather than looking at the white spaces as areas of failure, view them as opportunities to gain a competitive advantage. Make the most of them and ensure you fulfil investors’ content demands to help build a captured and loyal audience.

The post How to create ESG content that hits target appeared first on Financial Marketer.

In either case, a sophisticated program of content marketing can help manage change by reassuring clients and investors, educating and inspiring them.

Downward pressure to lower costs

When clients are shopping around for better rates, and rates are expected to correlate with market performance, margins naturally come under pressure. The response is often to find ways to cut operating costs. But differentiation is also key here, primarily in the quality and relevance of advice, and in the value proposition overall.

Content can support this. A combination of blogs, video content and social, even podcasts, can make clients feel like they’re in good hands, that they have a special advantage. Content can reinforce the human face of the firm, spotlight the personalities involved and help create personal connections that are harder to break than pure investor/firm relationships.

Calls for greater transparency

In turbulent times, many investors become anxious about how secure their investments are. They want greater transparency into where their money is being invested, how it’s performing and what the risks are. Asset managers are responding with automated reporting, data analytics tools and data visualisations.

In times of high anxiety, content marketing plays a critical role. Use it to specifically address pain points causing anxiety, to give an extra layer of reassurance, beyond the data.

Even more diversification, requiring more education

Investors are looking to rebalance their portfolios with more investments in private markets. While these carry higher risks, they can also deliver higher returns with longer investment horizons.

Investors need to understand these asset classes and products better. This is another opportunity for differentiation – being a reliable provider of quality information on these asset classes. And with the mass affluent a growing segment, there’s more demand for content that speaks to them in plain language, rather than jargon.

Younger investors expecting different things

With many trillions of dollars expected to be transferred to heirs globally over coming decades, we’ll see serious multi-generational wealth transfer benefiting Generations Y and Z. These younger investors will switch wealth managers if their high expectations for tech tools and personalised client experience aren’t met.

Next-gen investors also want information distributed on the platforms they already use and presented in formats they prefer. When creating content marketing strategies, firms should re-consider the traditional ‘expert-in-a-suit-talking’ videos and remember that future generations have grown up with TikTok.

The ESG imperative

Younger investors are helping push up the demand for environmental, social and governance investing (as are women – see below). The US is on track to have one-third of all investments in ESG within the next couple of years. See our recent blog for more information on creating ESG content that investors want.

Inclusivity on everyone’s radar

Today, women represent a much greater share of high-net-worth individuals globally, as HNW husbands and baby boomer parents die out, as cultural attitudes to women participating in society change, and more women head up businesses. Finally the AWN sector is seeing the potential for revenue growth and looking at how they can attract and retain women as clients.

Women’s goals often differ from men’s, and women aren’t a homogenous segment – there’s no one-size-fits-all solution. To reach the many microsegments of women, we need digital platforms that offer relevant content and personalised CX.

Content must address women’s need for connection, and target life stages and goals intelligently. Information must be delivered in an empathetic way, focusing on pain points, to help earn trust. If a firm doesn’t have the knowledge and diversity inhouse, consider a third-party content provider.

Telling the mergers & acquisitions story

One continuing trend is M&A – firms looking to gain competitive advantage by scaling products, services and systems and re-orienting business models.

Targeted storytelling can help support a business and its salespeople if they’re looking to sell. Content marketing can also support your ‘Announcement Day’ to help shape how investors and employees respond over the weeks and months that follow the initial comms campaign. Content marketing can help you round out that story ongoing and continue to give certainty.

Digital assets not going away

Clients are still interested in the potential of cryptocurrencies and indirect crypto to help diversify their portfolios. In fact, the global cryptocurrency asset management market is expected to reach $9.36 billion by 2030 according to market research.

However, falls in prices have undermined trust in this asset class. Firms can use content marketing to educate their clients about the intricacies and risks of these digital assets and ecosystems, will full transparency, to help restore confidence.

The post Asset management: the role of content marketing appeared first on Financial Marketer.

Benefits for asset managers

Research and the publishing of whitepapers are vital parts of every asset manager’s content strategy. In fact, 63% of B2B companies identify white papers as one of the most effective forms of content they use in their organisation’s marketing collateral.

Today, a study by Accenture found that B2B customers are 57% through the buying process before the first meeting with a company representative. This means the information you provide clients needs to be high-quality, educational and assert your authority within the industry.

However, simply publishing your investment research via a downloadable PDF lacks foresight and limits your reach. Time, effort and money play a large part in producing valuable research. To make the most out of it, your finance brand should repurpose it into HTML articles or other mixed-media formats.

Overall, repurposing research for content marketing can help your asset management firm improve:

• Content distribution
• Content frequency
• Organic reach and online following
• Search engine performance

Investment research tips and tricks

Taking key pieces of information from your investment research and reworking it into easily-digestible HTML articles is the most effective means of increasing your SEO performance.

As well as this, considering other media formats such as video and podcast is a way to engage audiences in new places. Your asset management firm should consider how your research can fit throughout your entire content marketing strategy. Posting a variety of content in different mediums helps to ensure your marketing strategy remains fresh, engaging and appealing to a broader range of clients.

The Dubs weighs in

As Sadiye Booker from The Dubs explains, “Repurposing investment research for content marketing purposes can help your brand reach new audiences”.

“By repurposing content, there is a huge benefit to scale at a faster rate,” she adds.

Rather than feeling like you have to reinvent the wheel every time you produce new content, keep it simple. Use your quality and valuable research to optimise your strategy and ensure it reaches a wider audience.

The post How to repurpose investment research for content marketing appeared first on Financial Marketer.

Why video content?

It’s no secret that video content is becoming increasingly popular every day. The rise of TikTok proves just that. Video content is easy to digest and offers a method of content that enables clients to stay engaged while also gaining valuable information.

When done right, video content is one of the best methods of delivering content. This is because it’s one of the most powerful and memorable ways of delivering information with research identifying that people understand and retain 95% of a message conveyed through a video versus only 10% when the same message is in text form.

A peek behind the curtain of great financial video content

Video production in the financial services industry is steadily growing year on year, with brands spending $1.8 billion on video in 2018, an increase of 13.1% from the year before. Two finance brands producing great financial video content are Aviva Investors and Pictet.

Aviva Investors’ ESG video mini-series showcases the ability to create effective and high-quality content in bite-sized chunks. Well-produced, each video is created by a financial expert as they explain different aspects of ESG content in an easy-to-understand way. Produced alongside editorial content, Aviva has perfectly blended video content with other mediums to deliver fresh and insightful perspectives that remain engaging for clients.

Additionally, Pictet showcases how asset managers can, and should, produce financial video content that’s not directly related to investments. Its recent GrowNYC x Pictet Group Foundation video features Pictet’s charitable impact where employees have partnered with GrowNYC to help plan and construct urban gardens. This, combined with its ‘Found in Conversation’ series, highlights how more ‘human’ content can help improve brand awareness and foster trust amongst clients. It’s this out-of-the-box thinking and video content that enables Pictet to remain engaging and provide value to clients while continuing to produce and deliver regular investment-style information.

Both Aviva and Pictet have perfectly integrated video content as a part of their overall content strategy and continue to produce high-quality content that’s reflective of their target audience’s wants and needs.

The making of great financial video content

Good financial video content has a clear goal and audience in mind. As with all content, if you set out to create a video without understanding what your clients want, it will fall flat.

Great video content speaks to your client’s needs and interests. It should either deliver educational material, solutions to your client’s problems, entertainment or investment insights. Video, like any content you produce, should be purpose-driven and provide value.

Here are some tips and tricks to ensure you create great video content:

• Capture audiences quickly – For your video to be truly effective, it needs to capture the attention of audiences quickly. Offer a hook from the get-go and ensure the length of your video is just right to keep people interested in your content.
• High-quality production – With the rise of YouTube and content creators globally, clients’ access to great, well-produced content is rife on the internet. To ensure people watch what you produce, ensure it’s reflective of a high-value production. This means deploying professional videographers and editors.
• Optimise for search – SEO doesn’t stop at your website. Ensure your video titles, description and metadata are tailored to the correct keywords. At the end of the day, producing videos is useless if no one sees them.

The post The ins and outs of creating outstanding financial video content appeared first on Financial Marketer.

Best Podcast: UTI International

Podcasts are an ideal platform to distill complex information in an easy-to-understand format. The best podcast produced by an asset management firm in 2022 was the Inside India podcast by UTI International.

What did it do right?

Hosted by Ben Hayward, Inside India is a podcast that explores the new and modern India through conversations with global economic and business leaders. With each episode around 30 minutes long, this podcast provides expert insights into the growth opportunity that is India.

Here’s why this podcast won the top spot:

• Delivered insightful information from experts in the industry
• A well-produced and highly professional podcast production
• A charismatic and intelligent host that audiences can connect with
• Provide easy-to-understand educational content on complex subject matters
• Released on a consistent schedule that enabled audiences to look forward to each new episode released each month

Best Blog: Momentum Global Investment Management

Momentum Global Investment Management delivers a diverse range of editorial content for every type of investor and client. It offers a specialised section of materials designed for professional investors, that covers the more complex side of investment management. Conversely, it also offers a diverse range of editorial, video and audio content tailored towards the everyday investor.

Overall, Momentum Global Investment Management’s blog series is so successful because of the well-produced and insightful content that’s published weekly. The wide variety of topics, expert economists and business leaders, and diversity of content make its blog series one of the best out there. By dividing its content between the different type of investors it caters to a broader client base and ensures content remains relevant to everyone.

Here are the top five reasons why Momentum Global Investment Management’s blog series is so successful:

• Its site is easy to navigate and content is clearly divided between more experienced investors and the everyday investor, making it user-friendly and accessible
• Prioritises educational and timely content that’s easy to understand for all types of clients and investors
• Provides a diverse variety of content ensuring information is always presented in a fresh and innovative manner
• A mixture of long-form and short-form content is incorporated (alongside audio and visual content) to cater to all types of users
• Each piece of content is written and produced by a team of industry experts

Best Website: AXA Investment Managers

This year, AXA Investment Managers won the best website in the asset managers’ marketing campaigns awards. With accessibility at the forefront, AXA Investment Managers has created a dynamic and innovative website that helps nurture and convert leads.

What did it do right?

Utilising stunning visuals and an easy navigation bar, AXA Investment Managers’ website enables a simple user journey that pushes investors down the customer acquisition funnel.

Here are the top five reasons why this website won the top spot:

• Visually appealing with strong branding across the site
• Optimised for mobile use
• A strong SEO strategy across the site that prioritises critical keywords
• Incorporates a mixture of content mediums, from video to editorial content, catering to a wide variety of investors and clients
• Information is easy to find with a functional design and clear call to action throughout

What the top three asset managers’ marketing campaigns got right

Overall, what these top three asset managers’ marketing campaigns got right was prioritising highly professional and well-produced educational content. All marketing materials were easy-to-understand and catered for a variety of investors and clients.

Simple-to-navigate designs alongside fresh and interesting content, made these campaigns stand out from the crowd and win the top spot in the 2022 Investment Marketing Innovation Awards.

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