Author: Mike McLaughlin

4 Web Tips for Asset Managers from Gawker (Part 2)

Posted by Mike McLaughlin on Dec 06, 2010, in Thoughts , tagged with , , , ,

In a post last week, I suggested that pending design changes to Gawker’s popular blog family offer up 4 good ideas for asset managers and their Web sites.  The previous post covered two of those ideas; and without further ado here are two others:

  1. Appointment Viewing Works: Having experimented with pre-scheduled content and “theme” weeks, Gawker has found that they do well at attracting readers.  In the past I’ve advocated that asset managers too embrace programming practices from the media – preset publishing schedules that can be promoted in advance, serialized content that can stretch over time.  Gawker’s data validates that this works.

    2. Each week's Economic Calendar drives people to pay attention to information as it is released.

  2. Video is an Advertising Prerequisite, Too: The Web has gone way beyond static banner ads.  Gawker notes that 30-50% of potential sponsors have video ads to run online.  While asset managers have integrated more video into their Web sites, how fast can they start using video to support their online advertising as well?

Yes, Gawker is not an asset manager.  Content is their product.  But what they’ve learned in repeatedly trying to engage more people with their content parallels the similar challenges of asset management marketing and eBusiness teams.

4 Web Tips for Asset Managers from Gawker (Part 1)

Posted by Mike McLaughlin on Dec 03, 2010, in Thoughts , tagged with , , , ,

For those of you unfamiliar, Gawker operates a network of (generally popular) blogs.  You may not know the individual brands, but you probably know some of things they’ve written about, such as when Gizmodo found an iPhone 4 prototype in a bar earlier this year.

This week Gawker announced changes to the page layout of its blog network.  This 1-minute video gives an overview:

Clearly Gawker’s business model does not match that of an asset manager.  But I found the detailed reasoning behind the changes to have 4 good ideas for the Web sites of asset management firms.

The first two:

  1. All-Text Content is Toast: I know.  “No duh.”  But this point can’t be reinforced enough.  Gawker is embracing the fact that the Web is increasingly all about the visual.  The chance that great content can overcome subpar packaging is moving closer to zero.  While firms have improved the amount and quality of audiovisual material, the typical asset management site is still a PDF and text-rich environment.

  2. Recent Does Not Equal Best: The traditional blog format and traditional approach to content management means that the most recent item almost always appears first (*cough, our blog, cough*).  But Gawker notes that  older content sometimes has more appeal and deserves longer premium promotion.  Their new design enables dual management of what’s popular and what’s new.  Asset managers – who tend to showcase the most recent piece of commentary or the most recent practice management offering by default – can consider doing the same.

Two more thoughts to come on Monday…

Spend More Time with the Best Wholesalers

Posted by Mike McLaughlin on Nov 29, 2010, in Thoughts , tagged with , ,

Can sales managers get more out of their coaching efforts?  After reading Switch by Chip and Dan Heath, I think the answer is yes.

Switch makes the great point that human beings typically focus on identifying and analyzing things that go poorly as opposed to things that go well.  The authors propose that positive change and improvement is borne out of finding and maximizing bright spots instead of mulling over problems.

Now consider how sales managers coach and develop wholesalers.  At most firms there exists a very egalitarian approach.  For example, if an internal sales manager has 12 direct reports, he will spend 1 hour on the phones with each wholesaler each month.

I think there’s an argument to be made that sales managers should focus most of their coaching time and effort on their best wholesalers.  Two reasons why:

  1. Increased Development of the Best Wholesalers: The individuals with the most talent today have the greatest probability of growing and making a bigger impact on the firm moving forward.  Nurturing the best talent offers maximum long-term value for the firm.  Put another way:  are the worst wholesalers worth the same time/investment as the best?

  2. Better Ammunition for Improving Laggards: More time with top performers will yield more insight into what makes them so good.  Managers will gather more and better tactical ideas to improve development of lagging performers, even if they spend less time on them.

A change like this does not need to be obvious to the team, nor overly dramatic.  For the example cited earlier, the manager could spend 2 hours with the top 4 wholesalers and 30 minutes with the remaining 8 instead of 1 hour with each.  It’s not more time, but potentially more effective.

While the bright spots approach doesn’t guarantee better overall performance, the logic behind it makes it a worthwhile idea for sales managers to consider.

Creating a Business Continuity Plan for Wholesaling

Posted by Mike McLaughlin on Nov 15, 2010, in Thoughts , tagged with , , ,

A few weeks ago I met with a sales exec from a fast-growing fund firm.  The wholesaling organization has been extremely successful and close-knit over the last few years with almost no voluntary turnover among externals.

As the conversation moved toward planning for 2011, the exec said, “I suspect next year might be the first time we see some people leave.”  This struck a chord with me and got me wondering:  how well do wholesaling teams plan for discontinuity and turnover?

I think the answer is not very well, primarily because things are managed reactively.  Consider the questions that need to be addressed if an external wholesaler leaves:

  • Do we need to replace the wholesaler?
  • How fast can we get a replacement in place?
  • Should we replace the wholesaler from inside the firm?  From another territory?  From the internal sales team?
  • Should we replace the wholesaler from outside the firm?  Who are good candidates?
  • How should the internal wholesaler’s job change in the short-term?
  • How does this impact our territory sales projections?  Our national projections?  Profits?
  • How do we communicate the changes to our clients?
  • How do we communicate the changes to the rest of the team and firm?

Basically, the importance of each field wholesaler makes a transition very complicated.  And concrete answers to all of the above questions are rarely defined in advance.

I’d argue you can and need to plan for turnover.  Three straightforward steps we advocate:

  1. Devise a Tiered Action Plan. The impact of and reaction to a top wholesaler leaving is different than when a rookie external washes out.  Identifying a roadmap for what will happen when various types of wholesalers leave unexpectedly makes the change that much easier to handle.

  2. Continuously Recruit. Hiring is hard.  It takes time, and there are so many variables to consider before an offer can be extended.  Sales managers should not just be meeting potential wholesalers but formally interviewing them even when there is not a clear open position.

  3. Incorporate Turnover into Annual Planning. While sales plans often model good/bad/expected scenarios, rarely are organizational setbacks included into those models.  “Well, our results really suffered when we lost Jim and Pam” is an explanation for underperformance that should be accounted for in advance.

With many firms in the midst of 2011 planning, the time is right to bring business continuity plans to wholesaling teams.

How Wholesalers Can Improve Prospecting e-Mails

Posted by Mike McLaughlin on Nov 11, 2010, in Thoughts , tagged with , , ,

Over the last few months we’ve been collecting e-mails from asset managers to financial advisors.  Most interesting to me are the prospecting e-mails sent by wholesalers.  Why? Because they can be so much better.

These e-mails represent wholesalers’ attempts to get that all-important first meeting with an advisor.  And they almost always have the same two elements:

  • A (usually) short introduction to specific products and/or the firm as a whole
  • A meeting request, typically framed in drive-by fashion (i.e., “I’ll be in the office next Tuesday…”)

I take no issue with either.  The intro and meeting request are necessary.  The problem is that these messages bring nothing else to the table.  Specifically, the e-mails lack a personal element that shows the wholesaler’s done some research and has genuine interest in the advisor.  Without this personal touch, every introductory wholesaler e-mail looks generic.

So how can wholesalers do a better job fostering a connection with advisors via e-mail?  Here are four simple ways:

  • Check LinkedIn. Roughly 40% of advisors are on LinkedIn today.  A brief look at a LinkedIn profile gives insight into schools, interests, common connections, previous employers, and more.  These details can be used to add a personal touch that is more likely to resonate with advisors.  (And, of course, there’s the indispensable Google search.)
  • Cite People the Advisor Knows. Referrals are the best introduction.  But even without a direct referral, wholesalers can indirectly use existing relationships to open doors with new advisors.  The drive-by meeting request has more meaning with specificity:  “I’ll be in the office next Tuesday to meet with your colleague Mike McLaughlin…”.
  • Work with Assistants. Wholesalers can make things very easy for the advisor by offering to schedule a meeting via his/her assistant.  Assistant’s names are frequently readily available; for example, the personal Web sites for Merrill Lynch advisors always include assistants’ names and phone numbers.  And using a familiar first name – “I can coordinate with Bridget” – again adds a personal touch.
  • Avoid Requests from Internals. In some instances internal wholesalers will send initial e-mails on behalf of their external partners.  This signals to the advisor that the external wholesaler is too important to ask himself.  Not good.  To get an introductory meeting, a personal request from the external is a must.

Desirable advisor targets get solicitations for meetings every day.  Investing extra time and effort to send a personalized e-mail can make a difference.