At Schwab IMPACT in Denver earlier this month, thousands of financial advisers congregated to learn about the future of the industry and best practices through seminars, panels, and networking events among esteemed peers. One of the most impactful sessions delved into the logistics of an M&A transaction and was moderated by Francine Miltenberger, managing director at DeVoe & Company. The panelists included James Cahn, chief investments & business development officer at Wealth Enhancement Group; Scott Holsopple, chief growth officer at Hightower Advisors; and Eric Kittner, CEO & chairman of the board at Moneta.
They discussed navigating the moving parts throughout the life cycle of a transaction. As a public relations or marketing professional in an industry where M&A is so prevalent, it’s necessary to understand your integral role in the process. Below is a breakdown of key points from the panel and how marketing professionals can effectively support these initiatives.
Establish a valuable brand
Cahn dove into how market volatility could — or could not — impact a transaction. Instead of harping on lower valuations, he emphasized that he’s in the market to buy great businesses when they’re available to sell, despite volatility. The definition of a “great business” is fluid, but a strong marketing department can make or break that identifier.
It falls largely to the marketing and PR team to build a firm’s brand and tell its story in a compelling way. To reach all markets, it’s important to utilize a number of channels to develop a comprehensive and integrated campaign, including social media, media relations, content generation, digital marketing and more.
By building your brand awareness, even before a buyer or seller enters the picture, you’re helping to build a valuable business that is trusted in the marketplace, making it all the more desirable when the time comes for a transaction.
Tell a consistent story
Once a transaction is in motion, when is the right time to share the news? According to the expert panel at Schwab IMPACT, the logistics of how your firm is run will influence the best time and way to tell employees, as there’s no steadfast rule.
From a marketing perspective, regardless of timing, the messaging needs to be consistent across all markets and channels. There’s always a story to be told, whether it’s how the transaction will benefit clients or fuel employee opportunities within the firm. While the angle can vary between markets, the underlying story must be universal. How is this transaction lucrative for your business model and, in turn, the employees, clients, stakeholders, etc.?
Imagine if clients go to their trusted source, your employees, and receive a completely different story than what was told by the C-suite? It can create an unsteady feeling and impact your firm’s credibility. With complementary messaging across all markets, everyone will feel confident in the transaction and their future with your business.
Reinforce the cultural alignment
According to Kittner, culture can be defined as day-to-day actions. Looking at how a firm treats clients, team members and staff on a daily basis will reveal its true cultural values. Knowing a firm’s culture is imperative to ensuring the transaction is a good fit for all involved.
Once the papers have been signed and sealed, it’s the job of a marketing manager to project the cultural alignment to all internal and external parties that may not have had a role in the actual M&A process. What kind of multifaceted, integrated campaign will reach multiple markets to reinforce the common values of the firms involved, and further project both the reason for and benefits of the transaction?
This is another opportunity to leverage comprehensive marketing, including a social media strategy to reach clients, a press release for the media, thought-leadership content for the adviser audience, etc. Whatever the direction, it’s imperative to nail down how to reach your different audiences with a long-standing campaign to consistently reinforce the positive new partnership — which will also act as a driver for more M&A opportunities down the line.
M&A through the first three quarters of 2022 exceeded the same time period in 2021 by 23%, according to DeVoe & Company, with year-end figures forecasted to top last year by 12% to 20%. As industry consolidation continues to heat up, it’s important that all departments in a firm understand the role they play in making a transaction as smooth and efficient as possible.
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