Over half of institutional investors say thought leadership shapes the way they select their investment managers, according to a survey by consultancy CoreData Research.
The findings suggest that market commentary produced by asset managers is an important tool to differentiate themselves from intensifying competition, and to attract and maintain their client base.
The survey, which was carried out in the second quarter of this year, assessed 132 global institutional investors and 22 institutional consultants, who collectively oversee more than $4.9tn (£3.6tn) in assets. Respondents included public and private pensions, insurers, foundations, endowments, family offices, and institutional investment consultants.
Read more: UK investors turn to asset-based finance amid geopolitical tensions
“The challenge is producing content that drives behaviour,” said Michael Morley, CoreData’s US research head. “Finding that sweet spot is crucial for resource allocation, especially as asset managers continue to see their margins squeezed,” he added.
The study also claims that investors crave more actionable investment ideas from their managers, including insights into geopolitics, macroeconomic trends and asset allocation.
Read more: Nearly half of US pension savers would invest in private assets
Meanwhile, 56 per cent of respondents said they actively look back to see which asset managers had been most accurate in their past insights and predictions.
Nearly one in four (23 per cent) said thought leadership had led them to a firm they had never heard of before.
According to CoreData, thought leadership which advances industry dialogue or goes deeper on a trend can be as effective as going against the consensus.
“Getting predictions wrong, publishing ‘me too’ content that doesn’t add anything new to the discourse, failing to provide clear evidence or actionable investment implications is where thought leadership often goes astray,” concluded Morley.
Read more: Geopolitical risk a ‘top challenge’ for portfolio companies in H2
