Insights - Business Intelligence for Financial Services | GK3 Capital

State of Digital Marketing for Small-to-Mid-Size Asset Managers

Written by John Gulino | Jun 26, 2025 12:56:02 PM

The Digital Drought in Asset Management

I’ve had hundreds of conversations with asset managers—founders, distribution leads, and marketers alike. And the pattern is always the same: websites that haven’t been updated in years, content that never extends beyond fund sheets or market commentary, and a marketing strategy that feels more like an afterthought than a growth engine.

The pain is real. Firms know digital is important. Advisors and Investors—especially younger ones—expect educational content and online engagement. But most firms aren’t meeting that expectation.

At GK3 Capital, we work closely with firms trying to modernize their approach. I see firsthand how the right digital strategy can build trust, elevate brand perception, and drive measurable growth. So, I want to walk you through where the gaps are and how you can close them.

The Content Gap: Awareness vs. Action

78% of asset managers say digital marketing is critical, yet only 30% have dedicated content teams. Even worse, 70% admit they lack a formal content strategy.

Most websites I review are focused inward: product-centric, company-centric, or filled with boilerplate market commentary. Only 14% feature genuinely educational or trust-building content, and that’s a problem because most investors start their journey online.

"Asset managers sometimes focus on promotional content or 'market commentary' ... Only 14% of websites contain truly educational, varied content."

Educational content isn’t just a branding play. It drives engagement, builds authority, and nurtures future clients. When firms skip this step, they stay invisible.

Underused Tools and Channels

Even when content exists, it often doesn’t get distributed. Consider this:

  • 83% of top-30 institutional firms host video content
  • 76% offer webinars.
  • But only 40% of smaller firms offer podcasts or use influencers.

I’ve seen firms that embrace automation and content distribution drive up to $15M in incremental revenue—and collect 30+ new leads per week. Meanwhile, others sit on great content that never sees the light of day.

Case in Point: How a Leading CRE Fund Sponsor Cracked the RIA Market

One of our clients, a leading commercial real estate sponsor, needed to build traction with RIAs. We built a digital-first strategy anchored by a compelling education-focused funnel: content that answered advisors' questions, not just sold a product.

But the real power was in how it helped the sales team. Reps knew which advisors were reading, watching, or downloading—so they could reach out at the perfect moment with the right message. This shortened the sales cycle and boosted confidence across the team.

"Digital marketing wasn’t a standalone effort—it became an extension of our sales team."

Read the full case study

What's Holding Firms Back?

From my perspective, the biggest obstacles include:

  1. Lack of Strategy: Many firms still don't treat digital as a priority.
  2. Internal Resistance: Marketing is often viewed as an expense, not an investment.
  3. Compliance Fears: Regulations scare firms away from innovation.
  4. Team Limitations: Small teams can’t keep up with content demands.

What Leading Firms Are Doing Differently: Turning Websites into Sales Machines

Top-performing asset managers aren’t just building websites—they’re engineering them for growth and conversion. Here’s how they’re doing it:

1. Website as a Growth Hub

Forward-thinking firms design sites not as static brochures, but as digital hubs optimized for:

  • Traffic, via targeted SEO/SEM campaigns
  • Conversions, with gated content like whitepapers and calculators
  • Signals, through on-page analytics to understand user intent

2. Smart SEO & SEM Integration

Case studies show that firms investing in keyword strategy and optimized content experience real returns:

  • Lazard achieved nearly 100K monthly visitors and 10K+ backlinks through refined SEO
  • Moneta Group saw a 326% rise in organic keywords and a 23% boost in goal completions using local SEO and competitive analysis

3. Content Across Platforms

Leaders like Goldman Sachs and BlackRock push blog posts, videos, and podcasts daily. Short-form content fuels social channels while long-form assets drive SEO and email capture 

4. Social Media & Advisor Engagement

  • Nearly 70% of financial advisors use social media to discover investment products 
  • Krane Shares and Invesco run influencer-led content on YouTube, TikTok, and Instagram to reach next-gen advisors

5. Sales-Enabled Content Ecosystems

With sales enablement platforms like Seismic:

  • Reps know what’s resonating
  • Content becomes searchable, compliant, and on-demand
  • Firms like Alliance Bernstein reclaimed 23,000+ seller hours via integrated content distribution

These firms prove digital isn't a marketing function—it's a growth function.

Here’s the bottom line: if your digital presence doesn’t match how investors consume information, you’re already behind.

Let’s change that.

At GK3 Capital, we help asset managers modernize their marketing—from strategy to execution. If you’re unsure where to start, take our Digital Sales and Marketing Scorecard.

It’s a simple assessment that shows how you stack up, reveals the biggest gaps in your digital strategy and sales process, and gives you a roadmap to improve.

Take the Scorecard today and get clarity on your next best move.