In new business development efforts, B2B firms of all types are often challenged by prospective clients with this question: “Do you have any experience working for companies in my industry?” Very often, the answer to that question can be a deal-killer for B2B firms without an appropriate client list or some other means to demonstrate industry-specific credentials. Lacking the proper “just like me” credentials, some firms will argue that the skills and experience they currentl

There’s plenty of solid evidence to demonstrate that fund performance and fund size are not what’s most important to investors. But many asset managers stubbornly refuse to accept those new realities of asset accumulation. The longstanding skepticism of fund managers regarding the value of marketing has some merit, because most of the evidence to support investment in related activities is supplied by marketing firms. Last year, however, a small Connecticut-based investor rel