By D. Bruce Johnston, President and Chief Executive Officer, Advisolocity

There is good news about social media for smaller fund managers and advisors ahead.

Smaller Fund Managers Can Stand Out with Financial Social Media Marketing: Johnston

The new media platform has enough history to prove its cost-efficiency and value over traditional methods.

According to SocialWare’s Guide to Embracing Social Technologies in Regulated Industries, “The Altimeter Group found that companies with the highest levels of social media engagement increased revenues by 18% in the last 12 months, while the least active declined by 6%.”

While this alone doesn’t prove that all social media strategies have delivered, it does remove one of the barriers to trying a social media effort: social media has been proven to increase business.

A number of investment service providers and publications have been tackling the implications of the growing realization that revenue growth likes social media.

On August 3, Huntington Asset Services, formerly known as Unified Fund Services, will sponsor its first webinar on the topic of Using Social Media to Build Investor Awareness.

Interested investment industry professionals are invited to participate in the webinar by registering here.

The business-building implications of social media for liquidity-pinched financial services firms are growing larger. For example, recent data from marketing firm LederMark Communications underscores the growing popularity of these tools among financial services professionals.

According to that survey, up to 40% of all users say that social media strategies are helping them build new business. Research from Spectrem Consulting Group last spring delivered similar findings:

• 63% of Twitter users read tweets that offer financial advice
• 46% of YouTube users and 41% of Facebook users seek information from social networking investment forums

In addition to offering some practical guidance on how to use social media, the August 3 webinar also intends to feature insights on regulatory trends and archiving solutions.

Huntington Asset Services will continue to expand its social media marketing focus during its annual client meeting to be held September 12-13 in Indianapolis.

By D. Bruce Johnston, President and Chief Executive Officer, Advisolocity

Confronted with the shock of the new, it’s only natural for large organizations to trust that yesterday’s strategies will continue to work a little longer.

Social media raises awareness cost-effectively

However, after FINRA-1006 was released last spring, the regulatory guidelines that govern social networking policy for the investment industry leveled the playing field for everyone. As a number of the nation’s leading firms adopt a slow, but steady approach to social media strategies, the time may right for other firms to take the initiative.

For example, recent data from marketing firm LederMark Communications underscores the growing popularity of these tools among financial services professionals:

• 85% of those under 50 use social media
• 50% of those over 50 use these cost-effective tools
• Up to 40% of all users say that social media strategies are helping them build new business

Research from Spectrem Consulting Group last spring delivered similar findings:

• 63% of Twitter users read tweets that offer financial advice
• 46% of YouTube users and 41% of Facebook users seek information from social networking investment forums

A number of investment service providers and publications have been tackling the implications of the social media question. Recently, Spectrem Group and Financial Advisor Magazine sponsored a conference that identified a wide range of issues affecting advisors and investors in the shifting wealth management landscape.

Unified Fund Services, Inc., a subsidiary of Huntington Bank, which is based in Columbus, OH, announced its sponsorship of a webinar for financial advisors and fund marketers on August 3, called Using Social Media.

In addition to offering some practical guidance on how to use social media, the webinar also intends to feature insights on regulatory trends and archiving solutions. Using Social Media is designed to alert up-and-coming money managers and financial advisors to the advantages of implementing low-cost social media marketing programs.

Interested investment industry professionals are invited to participate in the webinar by registering here. Unified will continue to expand its social media marketing focus during its annual client meeting to be held September 12-13.

Personally, I think firms providing timely and accurate portfolio information, articles of interest and thought leadership pieces versus market commentary will distinguish themselves from the rest.

There is a new research forum in town that is dedicated to investigating a method for predicting mutual fund performance.

According to Neil Anderson, of MutualFundWire.com, “Fundsters may repeat the required-by-law ‘past performance does not guarantee future results’ mantra, but a pair of Fidelity alumni are taking a stab at anticipating outperformance.”

Quadrant power: Can FundReveal make performance predictable?

The two ‘fundsters’ are Ani Chitaley and Anthony DuBon, co-developers of Fund Reveal, a  fund performance system.

The purpose of their blog, Mutual Fund Performance Forum, according to Mr. Chitaley, is to engage advisors and investors in a conversation about  mutual fund measurement best practices.

The Power of the Quadrant

At the heart of the duo’s research efforts is a quadrant analysis that employs risk, return and persistence measures to offer a predictive approach to mutual fund performance.

When investors enter fund names or symbols, FundReveal charts each fund in comparison with the S&P 500.

“We aren’t looking for the funds that hit home runs last quarter or last year.  We’re looking for those that provide solid best quadrant performance quarter after quarter and year after year.”  Mr. DuBon concluded.

To develop their new blog and integrate it with their web site, Mr. Chitaley and Mr. Dubon turned to Advisolocity’s John Drachman and Zach Hedges to implement their digital content strategy.

There is a new research forum in town that is dedicated to investigating a method for predicting mutual fund performance.

According to Neil Anderson, of MutualFundWire.com, “Fundsters may repeat the required-by-law ‘past performance does not guarantee future results’ mantra, but a pair of Fidelity alumni are taking a stab at anticipating outperformance.”

Quadrant power: Can FundReveal make performance predictable?

The two ‘fundsters’ are Ani Chitaley and Anthony DuBon, co-developers of Fund Reveal, a  fund performance system.

The purpose of their blog, Mutual Fund Performance Forum, according to Mr. Chitaley, is to engage advisors and investors in a conversation about  mutual fund measurement best practices.

The Power of the Quadrant

At the heart of the duo’s research efforts is a quadrant analysis that employs risk, return and persistence measures to offer a predictive approach to mutual fund performance.

When investors enter fund names or symbols, FundReveal charts each fund in comparison with the S&P 500.

“We aren’t looking for the funds that hit home runs last quarter or last year.  We’re looking for those that provide solid best quadrant performance quarter after quarter and year after year.”  Mr. DuBon concluded.

To develop their new blog and integrate it with their web site, Mr. Chitaley and Mr. Dubon turned to Advisolocity’s John Drachman and Zach Hedges to implement their digital content strategy.

By John C. Drachman, Advisolocity

Will low budgets prevent marketers from taking advantage of  the Internet’s free bandwidth?

Taking advantage of free bandwidth

“Not likely,” says Advisolocity’s D. Bruce Johnston in his his recent post on Blackberry Blogosphere.

Social media types are taking heart from a study quoted by Marketing Pilgrim that while 40% of marketers report budgets down for the year, 70% plan to redeploy their resources from traditional print and advertising to Twitter and Facebook marketing.

“This resource shift is sure to accelerate as marketers and compliance officers now find common agreement,” Mr. Johnston said.

The release of FINRA’s 10-06 ruling has removed the last impediment to utilizing the cost-efficiencies and creativity of social media programs, he added.

Download your copy of FINRA 10-06 at the Advisolocity Resource Center

Can we expect a new social media marketing compliance lore to come into existence? Mr. Johnston thinks so: “Responsible, spontaneous, transparent communication can do a lot to put back the heart in this troubled (securities) industry.”

He pointed out three simple steps any marketer can take to heart as she undertakes a social media effort:

Archiving makes it easier to network.

1. Build a social media policy and follow it. If FINRA comes knocking hand them a copy
2. File product-related postings as usual
3. Treat blog and web site as connected, yet independent; with the blog focusing on thought leadership themes and the site offering products and services

“Simultaneously FINRA 10-06 has managed to strike a blow for common sense, fiduciary responsibility and freedom of speech,” he added.

While compliance officers  and investment marketers decode FINRA 10-06, financial advisors are embracing the new regulatory clarification.  According  to a Rydex AdvisorBenchmarking survey, advisors are looking to primarily use social media tools for “securing new clients (46%), enhancing communication with current clients (35%), and advertising or promoting their firms (30%).”

Over at financial research firm Nemertes, the social media cat is happily out of the compliance bag. “The new guidelines bring clarity,” a recent report stated, “but remove excuses for delay.”

Without delay, full speed ahead is required: Nemertes cautions the tidal wave of consultants, archivists, communications specialists, compliance firms and social media strategists, however, to get busy carefully: “Plan to converge or add social media features and capabilities with security solutions for communications media like email and IM.”