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Marketing to RIAs

by Lauren

We recently released a study regarding distribution to the RIA market, Independent Thinking: Winning in the RIA Market. Given all the press about their growing numbers and assets, 70 percent of interviewed firms are trying to figure out how to garner a greater share of this advisor segment.

The problem is that most firms today treat RIAs just like any other advisor group. For example, RIA marketing today typically relies upon the same materials and types of media that firms are using across advisor segments, with no customization or acknowledgement of RIAs specifically.

If asset managers understand that RIAs are different and a present unique opportunity, they should start treating them that way. For example, firms should consider:

• Attending RIA conferences
• Creating RIA Web sites
• Putting an RIA-focused spin on existing marketing materials

This is just the start of what firms need to do to better service RIAs through marketing. The point is, though, that until firms starting acknowledging RIAs as a key advisor segment, they will continue to wonder about the opportunity.