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Vanguard, Fidelity, TIAA-CREF Head Top 5 Social Leaders

By Lee Kowarski

Our latest study examines the "Top 5 Social Media Leaders in Asset Management". While working on this research, we found that what distinguishes the top firms is their willingness to listen to and engage with audiences, integrate social media sites, and develop novel, useful, and varied content. We now see that 80% of asset managers are active on social media (up from only 48% last year), but the quality of firms' social media efforts varies widely - clear leaders are emerging.

Based on kasina's proprietary Social Media Index, the "Top 5 Social Media Leaders in Asset Management" are:

While direct-distributed firms are heavily represented among social media leaders, nothing prevents any firm that distributes through intermediaries from leveraging the features that propelled these five to the top. Each of the Top 5 has unique qualities, but all include features that draw advisors as well as investors and strengthen their advocacy of the firms. As Julia wrote about last month when we released "Harnessing Social Media to Drive Business Results", more than three-fourths of advisors use social media and nearly one-fourth of advisors are on social media daily, yet most firms are underutilizing this valuable resource.

In the "Top 5 Social Media Leaders in Asset Management" report, we also include rankings of firms on each of the five major social sites:

• Blogs (with iShares as #1)


• Facebook (Fidelity Investments)


• LinkedIn (MFS Investment Management)


• Twitter (TIAA-CREF)


• YouTube (Vanguard)