When I first heard the suggestion that President-elect Barack Obama give up his Blackberry, I couldn’t help but mutter “damn you, Compliance.” That’s because it reminded me of the approach the financial industry has followed in policing new web-based communications. Their answer? “Put it away!”

To pretend like these tools don’t exist (or that they’ll somehow go away altogether) is no way to deal with communications opportunities that offer such immense benefit.

In the case of Obama, much of his campaign’s success in raising funds and building brand “fandom” grew from his use of new media to establish a conversation with his constituents and broaden his reach. His campaign was the first of its kind, a modern age integrated marketing effort that leaned successfully on every available communications opportunity, from e-mail to social networking to mobile. The quest to mitigate the risk involved in Obama using a Blackberry feels a bit like wishing our way backwards. (For even more views on Obama’s command of digital media, read our partner’s blog at Rock The Boat Marketing.)

In the case of investment management, the same risk-averse thinking holds true. Rather than recognizing the benefits of these new communications, most companies and their compliance areas are giving them the stiff arm. I’m not a practicing idiot—I understand the rationale. I just don’t think that it’s smart business in the long run.

So, when it comes to compliance and new media, we really do think it’s time for a change.

On Sunday, I saw aging media visionary Ted Turner whipping up book sales at a local college near my home. When asked about the future of newspapers, Turner quickly answered, “They’re obsolete.” When pressed why, his answer was that “There are better, more efficient ways to distribute information available to us.”

Financial CEOs and marketers—there are better ways of communicating with advisors and investors. And they are not going away. It’s time to tell your compliance organizations that their job is to figure it out.

Marketer, prepare thyself.

First came the tortuous decline in the market. Next up, a corresponding decrease in year-end compensation.

To anyone paying attention, it should come as little surprise that year-end will be leaner than a Jenny Craig pot roast. In spite of the imminent frustration, this is no time to give up on financials as an employer. Come what may, compensation for financial marketers continues to exceed nearly every alternative. And there aren’t many of those “alternatives” to be found these days.

So what can you as a marketer be doing today to make sure there’s no repeat in ‘09? Get your ’09 budget prepared for the worst. The steep decline of the past six weeks won’t be fully reflected in asset manager revenues for months. However, it makes sense to take stock now of what’s essential and what belongs on the wish list. Do you really need common support across all products or can you cherry pick? Is there a technology solution available? Do you really need a whole suite of value-added offerings? A new product? Seriously.

By getting in front of the curve, you’ll score some points for demonstrating your ability to think like a business-person. Moreover, you’ll be taking action when you have the time to really think through your cuts strategically, rather than taking everything down unilaterally.

Review your use and depth of metrics. Are you measuring your marketing output? More importantly, are you validating your contribution to firm growth? If you expect to get yourself and your team paid, you need to demonstrate that you can make something happen. Start by getting the team together to determine what should be measured and how to get at the data. From there, put together a marketing dashboard and make time each month to review it with firm management. As the story goes…if that doesn’t work, make out three envelopes.

Continue to build your professional portfolio. This is an opportunity to grow yourself professionally. That means training. Take a minute to identify those areas where you think you could use some tuning up and get at it. At most firms, tuition reimbursement is still available. Also, as staff cuts are made, the specialist model gives way to one that favors the generalist. That means you’ll likely have the opportunity to work on a broader array of projects with more “face time” with management. By proving your mettle now, you’ll likely position yourself on an accelerated career plane as the environment improves.

As always, remember that difficult environments produce huge opportunity. Someday, you’ll be the grey hair who says, “I remember 2008.”

Just when it seemed impossible for the financial crisis to get worse, along comes year-end and the mutual fund industry’s capital gains announcement season. Ugh.

While many funds have managed to avoid gains, there remain many that will be forced—unless the federal government moves to provide relief—to explain a taxable event in a deeply down market. So how are you preparing to respond to your clients (both financial advisors and investors)?

When it comes to making these announcements, our position is to get it done “sooner rather than later.” By getting word out now, you’ll give advisors sufficient time to harvest losses for their clients. While you certainly don’t want to encourage redemptions, maintaining relationships is key. Further, for many, it makes a lot of sense.

Guard against following a business-as-usual routine for this year’s capital gains communications. Accelerate the timing of the announcement and review every word of your statement from the vantage point of financial advisors and shareholders who have survived the worst financial crisis in decades—and yet are still invested with your firm. Your communications need a deft touch and a lot of empathy.

For more, download SwanDog’s five recommendations for how financial services marketing can respond to the financial crisis.

It’s the start of second quarter and I know exactly what you and your marketing team are doing right now—updating sales literature!

We all know the drill. You put any chance of proactive marketing efforts on hold for 30 days while you circle the wagons, burn the midnight oil and update fact sheets, fact cards and brochures that require that current investment performance and portfolio information. At least the printers are happy!

But dude–why bother?

First, there’s little in those sales materials anymore that isn’t available right now 5 days into the month on Morningstar, Bloomberg or a half dozen other data providers have already posted. Performance? April 1. Holdings? April 15. Morningstar ratings? Now.
What’s worse is that most asset managers actually receive their data directly from these services and pipeline it into their data repository. Hmmm? In an industry where time to market is everything and all information commoditized by transparency, do we believe the numbers will look better in three weeks?

Second, over 1/3 of the stuff you are creating will be discarded anyway…after the sales team tells you that it’s crap and is too late.

One of my favorite stories involves a wholesaler friend who used to have his sales literature drop shipped for Tuesday arrival. When I asked him why he insisted on Tuesday, he noted that the UPS delivery guy knew to put the literature box on the curb next to his garbage can as pick up was on Tuesday. The benefit–he didn’t have to haul it out of the garage. OUCH!!!! More time to sell I presume.

Finally, back to the time to market theme. The web is a perfect vehicle for disseminating information that demands timeliness quickly, automatically and efficiently.

So lift your head up from the computer keyboard and stop playing the April Fool. Instead focus your marketing efforts on things that people can’t get everywhere—like your firm’s view of the markets.

Am I wrong? I don’t think so…what do you think?

Don’t look now, but somebody in mutual fund land (and investment management) better sit down at a typewriter (figuratively) and start to make the case for active management. A staple of the 80s and 90s, the “benefits of active management” story hasn’t been told very successfully since the great Y2K scare. And under the bed somewhere, there are lots of bogeymen waiting to pounce!

More and more, active managers are taking a beating in the press, with some suggesting that as few as 1 in 4 are able to beat their index. Even Legg Mason’s iconic Bill Miller stubbed his tootsie in 2006—albeit for the first time in 16 years (Now that’s one stud you’d like in your starting rotation!).

With sales of ETFs, indexing and top down allocations all “en fuego” as Everett would say, mutual funds may be quietly slipping into the “disintermediation crosshairs.” Unless somebody in marketing starts to make a case for all those expensive PMs, they both may find themselves going the way of the open outcry trading floor.

Do you still believe in active management?
Is anybody telling that story successfully?
Will the stranglehold that funds have held on retirement plans give way to ETFs and other “passive” investments?

Or is that blob under my bed just a giant dust bunny?

What do you think?