Beating the Sort

Ah, spring is in the air. Overcoats slip into hibernation; the lone 3 trees in NYC start budding; subways emit that uncatogorifiable funk of the highest standard, but most importantly, attitudes change from winter gloom to spring perkiness (walking through Times Square, I actually got some smiles as opposed to the usual hand signals known as 'sweet urban charm').

It is a time of rejuvenation, which brings me to my point.

When I got home tonight, my mail, as usual, was shoe-horned into the box like Shakira in a dance outfit. Catalogs were abundant:

• International Auto Parts (good start)
• CB2 (ok, kinda cool)
• Harry and David (I need another Tower of Treats before beach season like I need higher taxes)
• Solutions (my wife loves this catalog and I have a closet full of the stuff to prove it)
• Winter Silks (ugh!!)
  
• Walter Drake (Bunion Remover? C’mon. Really?)

As I was flipping through the stacks of glossy pages, it occurred to me that between the printed pieces that come via Pony Express and the electronic messages that abound on my PC, I get the feeling that people might just be trying to take advantage of all the loveliness of the season and everyone’s good spirits to “reach out.”

For the marketing-inclined, it’s probably a good time to give all that material a thoughtful look to see what compels, what motivates the motor action of your delete button finger, or spiral hand-off to the rubbish bin:

• Is the information fresh, or yesterday’s news?
• Has the piece been personalized and does it speak to you, or do you scratch your head wondering how the heck they got your address?
  
• Is the contact information clear and concise or frustrating?
• Is there any information that’s actually useful?
  

Thank goodness for sharp Marketing Wizards that not only know how to reach out, but to actually touch someone and make a real difference. You might not think about it, but the wealth of knowledge at the fingertips of a quality Compliance and Marketing Document Solutions partner can be a solid source of all the hot solutions and communications marketing avenues your firm can take full advantage of. You might want to call them and pick their brain. Many times, it’s that one, small additional idea that can pole-vault a good campaign from silver, over the top to Olympic Gold.

Now I’m looking through the Dr. Leonard’s Healthcare catalog. Jumbo Bath-Handle Grip, Amazing 30-Second Hair Transplant, Miracle Magnetic Bracelet and Ultra Blue Foot cream are all looking pretty good to me…

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Tony Anzivino hails from the greatly misunderstood state of New Jersey. He's worked in Financial Shareholder Communications world from the age of 12, starting with Janitorial duties at his Father's firm. He likes biking, hiking and ketchup.

What to Print, (or not to Print): That is the Question

Print quantity forecasting can be much like the delicate art of applying one’s make-up in a moving vehicle.

Whereas I’ll have to defer to my lovely wife on face-paint in motion (was that a collective sigh of relief?), I’ve navigated the high-speed print highways a time or two.

Print too little, you find yourself scheduling a re-print, usually creating an uncomfortable phone exchange with a higher authority. Produce too many and redundant materials end up getting the highly unpopular heave-ho. In other words, a few rapid accelerations, some hard braking maneuvers, a quick left or right and you’re pretty much going to look like Coco The Clown…on a hot, humid day…in a monsoon. It’s not a good look. I’m just sayin’.

In compliance mailings, your guides will be Shareholder Lists, Marketing, Sales or maybe your friendly neighborhood Proxy Solicitor. This isn’t to say that they’ll all agree with one another. To make matters worse, with the SEC’s new Summary Prospectus rules, you’ll have to dig even deeper into your files to identify who is invested in what.

A Shareholder Communications service provider worth their salt should be able to work with you to learn your identifiers and assist you in making sure you’re getting an accurate picture of the numerical landscape.

In today’s marketing, you’ll also want to consider a digital Print-on-Demand platform – a great innovation for creating marketing pieces on the fly. Inventory issues disappear like that one-pound massive chocolate bar with almonds that you hid under some canned asparagus deep in the back of the pantry, but your wife found and savored with reckless abandon (obviously this hit me harder than I thought if I’m writing about it. I got like one bite out of that thing).

Affordable, high quality digital print, once considered a myth, with the right page counts and quantities, is giving a serious run to the long-standing king, four color process printing.
So … start with the foundation before your get into eye shadow and lipstick …

Better still, educated forecasting and clear communications with your working group, along with a helping hand from your Compliance Printing partner can go a long way to hitting your print quantities with accuracy and consistency .

And, don’t fear the unknown, become more familiar with the vast capabilities of Digital Print on Demand. It can only benefit you and your team.

Lastly, if you’ve found a real good hiding spot for chocolate, please let me know.

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Tony Anzivino hails from the greatly misunderstood state of New Jersey. He's worked in Financial Shareholder Communications world from the age of 12, starting with Janitorial duties at his Father's firm. He likes biking, hiking and ketchup.

Third-Party Marketers Getting a Second Life

The conflict between the SEC and third-party marketers has been snowballing over the past year, specifically on their role and ability to link investors with managers without needing to adhere to more stringent regulations that would protect from corruption.

The proposed rule, released this past summer from the SEC, would, “…prohibit an investment adviser from providing advisory services for compensation to a government client for two years after the adviser or certain of its executives or employees make a contribution to certain elected officials or candidates.”

An organization that obviously had problem with the SECs crackdown is 3PM, the third party marketers association. In a letter sent to the SEC, they outlined their role in the investment process, stating that the proposed rule is, "an unreasonable and unjustified response that
affects an entire industry segment as a result of the improper and illegal misconduct of a few"

At present, it appears that the SEC will compromise on their position by allowing third party marketers to resume their role with public pension funds, with some enhanced and expanded registering regulations with Financial Industry Regulatory Authority, something that third party marketers working with hedgefunds already have to do.

Additional transparency is seemingly the best solution, and in fact, some like Agecroft Partners executive Donald Steinbrugge suggest taking it a step further. However, with the financial services industry still on fragile ground in regards to trust and risk issues, it will take an organization with a long-standing, consistent level of success to properly communicate how this process can work.