eMoney Advisor expands digital marketing capabilities

Fidelity-owned financial planning technology eMoney Advisor is expanding further into marketing with a new tool that automates how advisers attract, nurture and convert leads into clients.

The latest update to eMoney’s Advisor Branded Marketing tool lets advisers schedule and launch premade content marketing campaigns targeted at specific investor demographics or niche markets. Advisers can browse content or launch and manage ad campaigns in a newly redesigned marketing dashboard.

The company says the automated lead generation features bring “fully automated workflows” for following up with new contacts and converting them into prospects, though eMoney didn’t specify what exactly those workflows look like. EMoney did not respond to a request for additional comment.

Jess Liberi, head of product at eMoney, sees marketing playing a role in helping advisers deliver a better client experience.

“Marketing to new clients is a massive undertaking for advisers, but this challenge is also a tremendous opportunity if they leverage the right resources,” Ms. Liberi said in a statement.

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Specifically, Ms. Liberi sees automated marketing tools helping advisers connect with next-generation investors. InvestmentNews research found 74% of new clients are self-directed investors accustomed to using online information to inform their decisions. Automated marketing campaigns can help get advisers’ names in front of people looking for help.

More than half of advisers who use eMoney’s Advisor Branded Marketing have increased client engagement, Ms. Liberi said.

“We’re excited to see the value it brings to the financial planning industry, especially as advisers face mounting pressure to tailor approaches to tech-savvy generations,” she added.

Following a recent leadership shakeup, eMoney CEO Ed O’Brien said the company would refocus its efforts this year on its core financial planning product, data aggregation and improving adviser service. Other areas of adviser fintech are either saturated or have entrenched providers, and eMoney would rather integrate with them than try to compete, Mr. O’Brien said.

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Yet digital marketing may be one of those saturated areas. The 2020 edition of the T3 Financial Advisor Software Study tracked nine different digital marketing tools and found FMG Suite to be the leader in terms of market share. Automated marketing startups like Snappy Kraken are also getting attention, according to the survey.

[More: Saving time, tech integration are themes at T3]

EMoney was not included as an option for marketing in the survey but was featured under financial planning, college planning and account aggregation.

Related Topics: eMoney Advisor, Marketing Strategies