Clarity. Perspective. Direction.

Winter 2010

Time for a Spring Thaw

John Meunier & Christy White

Cogent Principals

What a winter! The storm of the century may have brought D.C. to its knees last month, but apparently even foul weather couldn’t prevent the U.S. economy from growing in Q4 of 2009 at its fastest pace in over five years. And while most days it feels like two steps forward and one step back; no matter how you slice it, that’s still progress.

As we turn the corner toward Spring 2010, let’s hope the bears keep hibernating, and that the economy (and job growth) get some positive traction. And if you’re out there looking for green shoots, take a look at some of the articles we’ve included in this edition of Cogent Thoughts. In one, we explore the up and coming Generation Y investor. In another we observe how last year’s mega mergers are finally starting to take root.

To learn more about all the new reports from Cogent Research this year, please click here.

As an evidence-based consultancy, Cogent Research is dedicated to delivering clarity, perspective and direction to leading organizations in the wealth management industry. Through a unique blend of syndicated and custom research, industry expertise, advanced analytics, and strategic consulting, we are redefining the role and function of marketing research in the areas of product development, brand equity, client experience, and revenue enhancement.

2009: A good year for Mega Firms

The distributor landscape was changed forever in late 2008 and early 2009 with the acquisition and merger activity of industry heavyweights including Merrill/Banc of America, Wells Fargo/Wachovia Securities, and Morgan Stanley/Smith Barney. Indeed, for industry followers, the mergers of traditional banks with Wall Street brokerage and wealth management firms are likely to cause the extinction of the “wirehouse” channel. While, the past 16 months has resulted in lots of shareholder meetings, lawsuits, and never ending correspondence to affected customers, the mega firms have performed well in our CoRe Score metrics, reflecting that clients and prospects alike see brighter days ahead for these key industry players.

Generation Y: Independent Thinkers

As competition continues to increase in the wealth management industry, discovering new sources of customers has become more important than ever. Moreover, as a sizeable portion of affluent Americans are on the cusp of moving into a de-accumulation phase, the motivation to attract younger investors is stronger than ever. Firms that are successful in attracting the new wave of affluent investors (those born after 1981) will be challenged to meet the needs of a generation that is vastly different from its elders.

Riding the Retirement Income Wave

As more of the nation’s baby boomers make the leap into retirement, it becomes critical for financial services firms to position themselves as trusted guides in the retirement space. Whether it be to retain relationships with customers transitioning into retirement, or to attract new customers making the move, meeting the income needs of retirees continues to gain in importance and priority for financial services leaders.

IN THIS ISSUE

2009: A good year for
Mega Firms

Generation Y:
Independent Thinkers

Riding the
Retirement Income Wave

THE BOTTOM LINE

According to Cogent’s upcoming Investor Rollover Assets in Motion™ report, affluent investors have completed fewer retirement preparation tasks in 2009 compared to 2008.

On average, in 2009 investors reported completing 2.4 tasks vs. 2.7 tasks in 2008. While at least two thirds of investors say they have calculated how much money they will need in order to retire comfortably, down from three quarters of investors in 2008, less than half have actually created a financial and/or retirement income plan.

The overall decline in preparedness appears to be driven by younger investors who report having completed significantly fewer retirement-related tasks in 2009.

Click here to learn more about Cogent’s Investor Rollover Assets in Motion™ report.

COGENT IN THE NEWS

Reuters, 2-16-2010
'ETFs attract self-directed U.S. investors'

Retirement Income Journal, 1-27-2010
'The Strongest Financial Brands Are…'

InvestmentNews, 1-24-2010
'MSSB tops among rich'

Mutual Fund Wire, 1-21-2010
'Vanguard Trumps Fidelity in a Brand Race'

Ignites, 1-21-2010
'Vanguard Tops Fidelity in Investor Loyalty: Study'

ETF Trends, 11-13-2009
'Advisors and ETFs: A Match Made In Heaven?'

CONFERENCES

2010 Mutual Funds and Investment Management Conference

Phoenix, AZ
March 14-17

Upcoming 2010:
Syndicated Discovery Research

In-Retirement Income^TM - March 2010
Building loyalty among the growing retiree population

Our latest Discovery report provides the necessary insight for establishing retirement leadership by reporting on retirees’ and pre-retirees’ plans for retirement income, as well as their appetite for retirement income products and evaluation of specific retirement income providers.
Click here to download fact sheet

Assets in Motion^TM - March 2010
The rollover IRA market opportunity

Gain valuable insights to the rollover IRA retirement income market, learn if (and where) investors are rolling over their ESRPs, firms' likelihood of capturing the rollover assets, and the drivers behind their decisions.
Click here to download fact sheet

For a complete list of our 2010 product lineup, Click here.

New hires

Roberta Chicos
Chief of Analytics

Roberta specializes in new product development, sales forecasting, product and pricing optimization, and the quantitative linkage of business policies to business performance. She has developed new analytic tools for pricing optimization, brand equity measurement, marketing mix analysis, product positioning, sales force deployment, and quantification of the link between emotions and decision making behavior. Roberta has held a number of strategic and leadership positions, including Partner at Mercer Management Consulting, Group Head of Research Design at the Monitor Group, and SVP of Research & Development at BrandIQ.

John Crosier
Business Development Manager

As Business Development Manager for Cogent’s Wealth Management practice, John’s role is to develop and maintain ongoing relationships with clients and prospects while working with them to leverage Cogent’s syndicated deliverables.

John brings 12 years of financial services and market research experience to Cogent. He started his career at Fidelity before moving to an account management role at a market research firm in New Hampshire. He has been successful assisting clients in the areas of market research, product development, and competitive intelligence.

Jørgen Nøvik
Marketing Manager

Previous to joining Cogent, Jørgen studied international business and communications in Norway, China and US, with the latest achievement being an MA from Boston’s Emerson College. His research experience includes a business development study for a Norwegian shipping company in China, and a study on the state of the US salmon market. After starting at Cogent as an intern last fall, he now serves as the marketing manager and is responsible for all communication activities.

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