Wealth Management Firms Struggle with Building Unified Brands as They Grow
In an industry where thousands of Registered Investment Advisors (RIAs) operate, often under the name or last name of the entrepreneurial founders, there is a growing trend among these firms to adopt a unified brand. Ken Stern, president of Lido Advisors, which has been backed by three separate institutional investors, argues that having a strong brand is essential for RIAs looking to build wealth management businesses. For him, the brand is not just about creating a logo or advertising campaign; it’s about being a name that resonates with clients, prospects, and partners across multiple channels.
"The push for brand names in the RIA industry has moved past the cottage industry status," said Joe Anthony, president and CEO of Gregory, another large RIA aggregator. He noted that brand recognition can be just as important for recruiting advisors in a competitive market as it is for client recognition. "If the larger RIA invests in cultivating brand recognition and credibility for that brand, it makes it easier to use the opportunity to market better as a selling point with targeted advisor recruits."
However, Anthony also pointed out that other RIAs have chosen not to pursue a unified brand. They prefer an independent contractor model where firms retain their names but may tag the parent firm. This hybrid approach allows them to operate independently within their own ecosystem and choose when or if they want to join a fully captive RIA.
Some of the largest RIA aggregators, including Creative Planning, Captrust, Wealth Enhancement Group, and Wealthspire, have adopted full integrations and unified brands. They believe that a strong brand can attract more advisors, clients, and partners because it creates value and reinforces their culture, values, and expectations. According to Stern, many investment dollars are dedicated specifically for the brand strategy.
The question remains: should RIAs focus on building a unified brand or stick with their current models? For some firms, having a local or niche name still provides an advantage, especially if they’ve built strong relationships within that market or geography. However, Anthony suggests that for larger, national RIAs, there is a significant opportunity to capture broad recognition in the consumers’ minds.
"This is our North Star and our one source of truth," said Stern proudly about Lido’s unified brand. "It’s right for us and it’s the model that we obviously embrace." As Lido continues to grow, with client assets increasing from $24 billion to $38 billion since December, its president remains committed to strengthening its brand.
"We’ve had many conversations with firms who ask, ‘how would you feel if we kept our name?’ It’s not for us," Stern said about Lido’s approach. His vision is that every interaction with a client, regardless of the channel or touchpoint, reinforces the brand identity and creates value for stakeholders throughout every RIA acquisition.
For now, it seems unclear which model will ultimately prevail: building a unified brand or sticking to an existing identity. Anthony noted that this dilemma is not new but emphasizes how complex branding has become in the financial services industry: "There are good reasons to keep a smaller brand name, particularly when there is a sharp resonance with a particular niche or geography."
The stakes are higher for these large aggregators as they continue to push toward national recognition. Anthony reflected on what it will take for RIAs to represent their category like some of the more prominent household names.
"Who is going to represent the RIA?" Anthony asked during an interview with WealthManagement.com. "Lido and firms like it want to be the category identifiers."
In conclusion, building a unified brand can be particularly challenging for wealth management firms when individual founders are deeply invested in their own independent practices within these multi-partner organizations. As RIAs grow larger, it’s essential that they weigh the pros of introducing strong branding to guide each phase and investment that could come later when a stake is required by an investor.
Many factors contribute to why brand building can result in the overall increase in value as the stakeholders benefit more than just the founder. Building trust with clients becomes vital now, as firms are expected to deliver comprehensive support across multiple areas in which RIAs have grown.
The debate on RIAs and their unified branding continues, but for those looking to build their business and stand out from the crowd, adopting a strong brand may be an important strategy to consider in coming years.
The Push Towards Unification of Wealth Management Firms
Over time, RIAs have become significantly larger than they were years ago. As of today, it is true that wealth management firms now carry not only entrepreneurial founders’ names as many industry participants still use last name-based branding strategies even after RIA aggregators form an affiliation with them, in a majority of these cases the theory behind using individual founder names for branding purposes was and still is to rely heavily on relationship-building. This strategy relies primarily on direct networking within specific communities as most advisors are seen as the main point of contact for clients.
However, relationships alone were never enough when multiple interactions occurred with various departments within a firm such as client servicing, compliance, investment operations, marketing sales, wealth transfer and all else. This change made obvious once some RIAs reached an enormous size due to rapid consolidation as they began managing large customer bases through more than just direct referrals to advisors by the founder who has come across them.
In response to this growing complexity in reaching customers via different channels for which employees of each firm interact, an influx of new trends in branding that align with large-scale RIAs have brought forth several questions about building unification among such entities. These include not only establishing a centralized brand but incorporating strategies that would create stronger presence and higher recognition in multiple platforms that target diverse audiences as well for example on Facebook.
For larger aggregators looking at having their own distinct labels, some believe adopting local or niche names can prove too challenging especially after hitting significant milestones so while many smaller RIAs remain with this approach as they have already enjoyed relative long-term success that can stem entirely from their personal reputations among clients as well, Lido Advisors under the leadership of president Ken Stern aims at building a single cohesive brand. They think it’s crucial to integrate all their various elements into one comprehensive vision or unified purpose which will provide consistency wherever firm officials do business.
A unification strategy like that proposed by Lido provides many advantages over smaller, more region-based or localized branding systems such as increased employee engagement, improved client communication across multiple touchpoints. Employees become empowered with a clear understanding of their roles within the greater ecosystem of their organization while they can focus more effectively on delivering quality support to consumers. Client expectations are addressed more concisely through consistent messaging that reinforces brand identity throughout all interactions with clients no matter how many various departments have contact.
To Brand or Not to Brand
In conclusion, a clear picture emerges as RIAs move into larger national roles in wealth management: developing unified branding strategies may come across as the best strategic decision for these aggregators. By choosing unification of names and messaging among partners while creating a cohesive approach among employees on ground-level, organizations will enjoy broader appeal not just within their community but nation-wide – where they get noticed more easily.
Lido Advisors and other similarly placed wealth management entities have adopted unified branding to establish strong recognition with both external parties such as clients or investors that come across these groups in diverse situations, also benefiting internal communication because having more than one clear voice at the forefront assists greatly when handling day-to-day tasks. While it remains disputed which course RIAs will eventually choose.
Investing and Integrating Brand Recognition into Wealth Management Organizations
Stern pointed out how some of the funds for integration were used to fuel research of industry leaders within their sector as they continue growing rapidly under aggressive acquisition strategies, expanding partnerships that span a variety of roles in client facing departments. A unified brand will also facilitate easier marketing efforts that ultimately boost employee morale since those people can become more confident about what their organization stands for.
"We had many discussions with business owners who proposed not giving up their names," Stern said about his company which encourages full integration into its framework including the name change. He explained how such a transformation brings numerous additional advantages like more effective networking opportunities among employees due to clear lines of communication set within that one common brand.
Unifying Under One Name: Lido Advisors’ Bold Bet on a Single Brand Identity Transforming Client Experience and Firm Valuation
Wealth Management Firms Struggle with Building Unified Brands as They Grow
In an industry where thousands of Registered Investment Advisors (RIAs) operate, often under the name or last name of the entrepreneurial founders, there is a growing trend among these firms to adopt a unified brand. Ken Stern, president of Lido Advisors, which has been backed by three separate institutional investors, argues that having a strong brand is essential for RIAs looking to build wealth management businesses. For him, the brand is not just about creating a logo or advertising campaign; it’s about being a name that resonates with clients, prospects, and partners across multiple channels.
"The push for brand names in the RIA industry has moved past the cottage industry status," said Joe Anthony, president and CEO of Gregory, another large RIA aggregator. He noted that brand recognition can be just as important for recruiting advisors in a competitive market as it is for client recognition. "If the larger RIA invests in cultivating brand recognition and credibility for that brand, it makes it easier to use the opportunity to market better as a selling point with targeted advisor recruits."
However, Anthony also pointed out that other RIAs have chosen not to pursue a unified brand. They prefer an independent contractor model where firms retain their names but may tag the parent firm. This hybrid approach allows them to operate independently within their own ecosystem and choose when or if they want to join a fully captive RIA.
Some of the largest RIA aggregators, including Creative Planning, Captrust, Wealth Enhancement Group, and Wealthspire, have adopted full integrations and unified brands. They believe that a strong brand can attract more advisors, clients, and partners because it creates value and reinforces their culture, values, and expectations. According to Stern, many investment dollars are dedicated specifically for the brand strategy.
The question remains: should RIAs focus on building a unified brand or stick with their current models? For some firms, having a local or niche name still provides an advantage, especially if they’ve built strong relationships within that market or geography. However, Anthony suggests that for larger, national RIAs, there is a significant opportunity to capture broad recognition in the consumers’ minds.
"This is our North Star and our one source of truth," said Stern proudly about Lido’s unified brand. "It’s right for us and it’s the model that we obviously embrace." As Lido continues to grow, with client assets increasing from $24 billion to $38 billion since December, its president remains committed to strengthening its brand.
"We’ve had many conversations with firms who ask, ‘how would you feel if we kept our name?’ It’s not for us," Stern said about Lido’s approach. His vision is that every interaction with a client, regardless of the channel or touchpoint, reinforces the brand identity and creates value for stakeholders throughout every RIA acquisition.
For now, it seems unclear which model will ultimately prevail: building a unified brand or sticking to an existing identity. Anthony noted that this dilemma is not new but emphasizes how complex branding has become in the financial services industry: "There are good reasons to keep a smaller brand name, particularly when there is a sharp resonance with a particular niche or geography."
The stakes are higher for these large aggregators as they continue to push toward national recognition. Anthony reflected on what it will take for RIAs to represent their category like some of the more prominent household names.
"Who is going to represent the RIA?" Anthony asked during an interview with WealthManagement.com. "Lido and firms like it want to be the category identifiers."
In conclusion, building a unified brand can be particularly challenging for wealth management firms when individual founders are deeply invested in their own independent practices within these multi-partner organizations. As RIAs grow larger, it’s essential that they weigh the pros of introducing strong branding to guide each phase and investment that could come later when a stake is required by an investor.
Many factors contribute to why brand building can result in the overall increase in value as the stakeholders benefit more than just the founder. Building trust with clients becomes vital now, as firms are expected to deliver comprehensive support across multiple areas in which RIAs have grown.
The debate on RIAs and their unified branding continues, but for those looking to build their business and stand out from the crowd, adopting a strong brand may be an important strategy to consider in coming years.
The Push Towards Unification of Wealth Management Firms
Over time, RIAs have become significantly larger than they were years ago. As of today, it is true that wealth management firms now carry not only entrepreneurial founders’ names as many industry participants still use last name-based branding strategies even after RIA aggregators form an affiliation with them, in a majority of these cases the theory behind using individual founder names for branding purposes was and still is to rely heavily on relationship-building. This strategy relies primarily on direct networking within specific communities as most advisors are seen as the main point of contact for clients.
However, relationships alone were never enough when multiple interactions occurred with various departments within a firm such as client servicing, compliance, investment operations, marketing sales, wealth transfer and all else. This change made obvious once some RIAs reached an enormous size due to rapid consolidation as they began managing large customer bases through more than just direct referrals to advisors by the founder who has come across them.
In response to this growing complexity in reaching customers via different channels for which employees of each firm interact, an influx of new trends in branding that align with large-scale RIAs have brought forth several questions about building unification among such entities. These include not only establishing a centralized brand but incorporating strategies that would create stronger presence and higher recognition in multiple platforms that target diverse audiences as well for example on Facebook.
For larger aggregators looking at having their own distinct labels, some believe adopting local or niche names can prove too challenging especially after hitting significant milestones so while many smaller RIAs remain with this approach as they have already enjoyed relative long-term success that can stem entirely from their personal reputations among clients as well, Lido Advisors under the leadership of president Ken Stern aims at building a single cohesive brand. They think it’s crucial to integrate all their various elements into one comprehensive vision or unified purpose which will provide consistency wherever firm officials do business.
A unification strategy like that proposed by Lido provides many advantages over smaller, more region-based or localized branding systems such as increased employee engagement, improved client communication across multiple touchpoints. Employees become empowered with a clear understanding of their roles within the greater ecosystem of their organization while they can focus more effectively on delivering quality support to consumers. Client expectations are addressed more concisely through consistent messaging that reinforces brand identity throughout all interactions with clients no matter how many various departments have contact.
To Brand or Not to Brand
In conclusion, a clear picture emerges as RIAs move into larger national roles in wealth management: developing unified branding strategies may come across as the best strategic decision for these aggregators. By choosing unification of names and messaging among partners while creating a cohesive approach among employees on ground-level, organizations will enjoy broader appeal not just within their community but nation-wide – where they get noticed more easily.
Lido Advisors and other similarly placed wealth management entities have adopted unified branding to establish strong recognition with both external parties such as clients or investors that come across these groups in diverse situations, also benefiting internal communication because having more than one clear voice at the forefront assists greatly when handling day-to-day tasks. While it remains disputed which course RIAs will eventually choose.
Investing and Integrating Brand Recognition into Wealth Management Organizations
Stern pointed out how some of the funds for integration were used to fuel research of industry leaders within their sector as they continue growing rapidly under aggressive acquisition strategies, expanding partnerships that span a variety of roles in client facing departments. A unified brand will also facilitate easier marketing efforts that ultimately boost employee morale since those people can become more confident about what their organization stands for.
"We had many discussions with business owners who proposed not giving up their names," Stern said about his company which encourages full integration into its framework including the name change. He explained how such a transformation brings numerous additional advantages like more effective networking opportunities among employees due to clear lines of communication set within that one common brand.