John Drachman

By John Drachman, Social Media Memo Q: Can agents and advisors use social media for actual client acquisition; and, if so, how? Amy McIlwain: There is an ongoing debate within the financial industry as to whether social media marketing has a measurable return on investment (ROI).  While there are multiple ways to measure the benefits of social media, it’s just not as simple as looking for a direct sales return on the consumer end, with a social media effort being made on the business marketing end.  Social media is so much more than a marketing tool. Social media encompasses public relations, customer support, thought leadership, community relations, and much more.  Companies that are making progress in their social activities are seeing comments, interactions, responses and the like. As a result, they are also seeing business metrics moving: downloads, email regi... (more)

Is there common ground between financial printing and social media marketing?

As the printing industry continues to reach for the oxygen mask, one of South Boston's print production mainstays is feeling pretty good. Why? If the world's love affair with electronic media is pulling the plug on printing presses everywhere, how come Alliance Print's Kitty St. Sauveur is smiling? "Printing is about publishing -- whether it is on paper or online," Ms. St. Sauveur said recently. "The cost-efficiencies of adapting content to both online and printing requirements are hard not to admire and support to be truly customer service oriented." Today, many firms no longer... (more)

Independent advisors proving early adapters to FINRA 10-06 social media reg

"Attracting new clients has suddenly gotten easier,"  D. Bruce Johnston of  DBJ Associates said recently. "Low-cost and creative, social media strategies are like free money to underfunded marketing departments." Having to do more with less, smaller firms with low marketing budgets may be be taking the lead in adapting marketing strategies to FINRA 10-06's more permissible stance on social media. Larger organizations, on the other hand, may trust that yesterday's strategies will continue to work a little longer. Such is the case with the pace of change at Bank of America Corp.'... (more)

RIA Steege Turned to Social Media “To Do opposite of What Everyone Else Was Doing”

Personal Branding on Ulitzer Following the success of a social media campaign last summer in raising assets under management, Chuck Steege, a Registered Investment Advisor from Bucks County, Pennsylvania, recently explained what motivated him to experiment with the Internet’s newest marketing tools. Mr. Steege’s sense of experimentation, in fact, flew in the face of a recently released report from Equation Research that stated that ”not knowing enough about social media” was given as the #1 reason for not trying it. Mr. Steege readily admitted he knew little about keywords and th... (more)

Introducing Financial Social Media Marketing

Economics for Investors on Ulitzer Separating the facts from the hype of social media’s promise has never been more important. Is social media new and different — or a repackaging of traditional communications techniques? Transformational distribution consultant, D. Bruce Johnston has termed the impact of financial social media as “nothing less than the reinvention of how investment products will be packaged and distributed.” Still, many investors have moved to the investment sidelines and are waiting for market conditions to improve. Yet, with the average money market fund yiel... (more)