10 years building marketing & creative materials for asset managers – Lessons learned
This will end up being the 100th article I have published. I have spent the last 10 years opining on marketing for asset managers. Here are a few things I have learned. The words marketing and placement are not interchangeable. The words marketing and placement are not interchangeable.The former has to do with building awareness…
10 tips to building a good marketing deck
Use a striking image on the cover page. You want your marketing deck to be immediately memorable. Page two, yes, even before the executive summary, should feature a bold, profound, single statement designed to engage. Professional investors review a huge number of decks. You want to say something that gets their attention. This will ensure…
Brand matters. But not for the reason you think it does… Part II
Where things tend to go wrong can almost always be categorized in one of two ways – a misalignment of expectations, or the failure to deliver on that promise. As discussed in Part I, brand refers to the firm’s “DNA” and values. Brand goes to your reputation and the expectations that people have when interacting…
CRM systems: Market like it matters
Every venture firm or private equity firm should be using a CRM system and an email system capable of compiling lead score. Here are 10 less obvious reasons why this is important. Raising capital is a numbers game, the more people you touch the greater chance you have in raising capital. Building audience is critical….
Building referral-quality relationships without the referral
My neighbor called me the other day looking for an electrician to install some fixtures. I gave him the number to ‘my guy’ along with some color on the high quality of his work. Even with lower bids from two other qualified companies he found online, he gave the job to the contractor I had…
Build brand, don’t Sell
Good marketing is nothing more than executing a brand plan that allows an allocator to feel that they know you well, without having to invest a great deal of personal time in the endeavor. Like any other vocation, doing this well, takes a great deal of skill and commitment. Allocators can’t feel they are being…
Be relevant, progressive and impressive
Marketing is about generating interest across the right audience. Assuming you have the audience nailed down, you won’t generate much interest unless you are perceived as relevant, progressive, and impressive. After that, the product or service you are marketing needs to meet expectations. Nowhere is this more prevalent than in marketing alternative investments. Being perceived…
The marketing continuum
Marketing doesn’t need to be overwhelming. Although the subtleties and intricacies of each stage of the continuum below can become involved, the general path to follow is straightforward. First, you strategize and determine what you want to say. Second, you need to build tools that clearly represent your value proposition. Lastly, you need to implement…
Audience and asset management
Generalizing, everyone wants 10 investors to allocate $20 million into their fund. I am not saying that it is impossible, however, the chances of selectively identifying 50 prospective LPs, directly reaching out to those prospects, and closing 10 allocations are extremely low. The industry is too competitive, there are too many funds and LPs can…
Ten “do’s” and “don’ts” to using your marketing deck more effectively
As my colleague, Kyle Dunn, always says, “there’s a reason you don’t see paragraphs on freeway signs.” It’s too much information for anyone to read and retain when they’re zipping by at 75mph. Hence, the need to sequence your message throughout your marketing deck and process at a pace that aligns with the actual process…