To Channelize or Not to Channelize? You're Asking the Wrong Question.

Some asset management distribution professionals are struggling. Advisors and investors are not answering calls. Sales and marketing costs are rising. Fees are shrinking. Margins are squeezed.

However, other asset managers are ascending. They appear to have cracked the code. New clients. Inflows. Rising revenues. Who are they? What are they doing differently?

Asset managers and fund sponsors succeeding at fundraising have mastered a new approach. They have discovered the #1 channel that is revolutionizing asset management distribution.

Asking the Wrong Question

Much of the asset management industry and many fund sponsors are struggling with fundraising and looking for answers. Some distribution pros keep asking the same outdated questions:

• Should I channelize or not?
• Should I have separate BD and RIA sales teams?
• Should I overlay a regional or geographic grid?
• Should my wholesalers go virtual? Go hybrid?

The World and Investors Have Changed

Distribution pros of yesteryear must learn a key lesson: investors have fundamentally changed.

Investors today are digital explorers (all ages) or digital natives (younger), with the online world woven into the fabric of their daily lives. Their behaviors have transformed, and so must the approach to reach them. Investors are online, and so the journey to their portfolios is through their screens.

Distribution in the Digital-First Era

To succeed at distribution in the digital era, you must solve the underlying issue.

Today’s investor searches for investment solutions on one of their screens—desktop, phone, or tablet. They prefer to complete their research online before engaging a salesperson, if at all. Younger investors prefer a pure online engagement without salesperson interactions.

To succeed, asset managers must meet investors online. For today’s investor, most of their journey is online. Investors get through most of the sales process before they ever talk to salespeople.

You can’t sell the way you once did. Buyers control the process now. And you must meet the investors where they are: online.

Digital Transformation of Sales

The digital transformation of sales has huge implications on your strategy, your people, and the technology that you need. Old-school sales and marketing emphasized “outbound” approaches, one-way communications, intrusive selling, and ads that interrupted prospects’ lives.

In an “outbound” process, salespeople try to control the process. The new approach to digital distribution emphasizes “inbound” approaches:

• Two-way communications
• Natural engagement
• Content that educates and builds trust
• Websites that answer visitors’ questions
• Technology that unites sales and marketing to serve the client.

Buyers ultimately control this process. “Inbound” engagement is the key to the future.

The #1 Distribution Channel: Digital Mastery

Digital fluency is no longer optional—it's the core of successful asset management distribution. Digital has become the #1 Distribution Channel that’s revolutionizing fund and asset management sales.

The industry’s victors are those who wield digital tools not just with skill, but with mastery. Embrace digital transformation to ensure your place among the leaders.

Power of Digital

• 10% Targeted Revenue Lift from Digital
• 5% to 10% Reduction in Redemptions from Predictive Modelling
• 20% Increase in Cross-Selling Through Smart Targeting