How Can Funds Use A CRM To Raise And Retain Assets? Part Three
This is the third in a series of articles about how funds can use a CRM to raise and retain AuM.
We’ve looked at how digital marketing analytics within a CRM can supply sales teams with key information about prospects and clients in an easily accessible format.
But what about marketing? How can data analytics specifically help your marketing team?
This question comes down to demonstrating ROI.
It’s a sad truth that, when times are hard, there are considered to be three main expendables in business – corporate travel, biscuits in meetings, and the marketing department.
It’s ludicrous that a key business function is placed on the same level as needless plane trips and the odd packet of Rich Tea, but that is the case. So, it’s absolutely vital for marketing teams to be able to demonstrate ROI, as it can be the difference between life and death – and can also secure much needed resources.
But, how do you even define marketing ROI? And which metrics do you need to show?
At ProFundCom we’ve boiled this down to two main areas – prospects and content, with four metrics within each.
The four key prospect metrics are:
The number of new prospects you have on your list
The number of active prospects on your list who are engaging with your content
The number of highly engaged prospects on your list who are engaging regularly with content
The number of prospects you have recently emailed
For content, the key metrics are:
Is the distribution group growing?
Are the emails convincing and leading to positive action?
Is the wider content working?
What is the dropout rate from your mailing list?
Obviously, a snapshot of these metrics is pretty meaningless, so you must be able to demonstrate growth over a period of time for them to work in your favour.
And don’t worry if you have a small list, these stats are still relevant and collectible. In fact, smaller firms are probably more willing to react to what they represent than big firms with huge lists, as large funds – in my experience – are often less likely to follow up on what analytics reveal. (And there’s a wider point here – smaller funds can use analytics to boost performance and beat the big boys, who aren’t using data as effectively as they might.)
All this – and indeed everything I’ve spoken about in this series – underpins the ultimate aim of your digital marketing, which is behavioural analysis. You generate content and analyse the resultant data to understand who your potential investors and clients are, what they want from you, and how you can best give it to them.
Is this easy?
No – it involves complex systems, extensive coding and considered investment. You also need an understanding of data science (so you must either employ a data scientist, or train your staff in this area.)
But all the effort is worth it – as when you have an advanced CRM that can push vital data to your sales teams, and that supports the functions of the marketing department, then you will reap the rewards in terms of increased AuM.
