How do you target 33,000 independent investment advisors?

An interesting trend that is emerging is the growth of the independent investment advisor also known as a Registered Investment Adviser (RIA). According to Boston-based Cerulli Associates, a research firm, the number of brokers serving individual clients at major firms dropped 14% to less than 55,000 in the three years ending in December 2008, while the number of independent financial advisers rose 29% to 33,000. The trend was in large part fueled by the collapse of various firms such as Lehman Bros. over the recent past as well as the public%u2019s basic mistrust of major financial services firms in the wake of the recent market turmoil.

Unshackled by the dictates of a major firm, independent investment advisors have the freedom to invest client money as they see fit. They no longer have to stick to the stocks on the recommended list or push products that they are not comfortable with. They can discover interesting investment ideas on their own. Herein is where the opportunity lies. IROs would be well-advised to seek out this market.

The above is part of a thought-provoking post by Gene Marbach. I recommend you read the entire thing. (http://www.infocomgroup.net/irthereforeiam/?p=181)

As IR pros, we should be thinking:

1.) How do I reach out to this audience of influencers?

2.) What can I do to make their jobs easier and my company more “recommendable” to their clients?

This is where an effective web-based IR program is going to be strategically important to companies of all sizes.

There’s as big difference between targeting 30 beholden sell-side analysts versus 33,000 independent-minded advisors.

And not just in the number of people you’ll need to cover, but in the tone of your communications, too.