Brian Stewart: Can Asset Management Firms be Data-Focused and Customer-Centric at the Same Time?

AXA Investment Managers Global Head of Customer Insight, Web
Experience and Analytics Brian Stewart argues that the time has
come for asset management firms to innovate their customer
experiences

The asset management industry is not famous for its innovative
customer experiences.


However, in a competitive market even asset management firms
can’t be complacent about fast-changing customer expectations,
argues AXA Investment Managers Global Head of Customer Insight,
Web Experience and Analytics Brian Stewart in this week’s episode
of the Business of Data Podcast.


Helping AXA Investment Managers to understand not only what their
customers buy, but why they buy it is at the core of Stewart’s
mission, and data is the key.


“[The industry is] now really starting to understand the
importance of this customer data, because [customer] interests
are probably changing much faster than the industry can change,
traditionally,” Stewart says.


“It’s leading to a transformation within our industry to become
more agile and to really start to try to understand the things
that people want to invest in,” he continues.


Like many organizations, AXA Investment Managers accelerated
their digital transformation initiatives because of the pandemic.
As customers began to interact with the firm more online, it gave
them access to richer and more plentiful customer data.


“We've been able to collect an awful lot of information and data
which we never had pre-pandemic,” Stewart notes. “Whether that be
through webinars or online events, through our websites, our fund
center, and so forth.”


Previously, data from different sources had been siloed in
different systems and deployed in various models. Stewart’s team
centralized their datasets and linked their marketing automation
tools to a new CRM to create a fuller picture of their customers’
behavior.


At the same time, Stewart’s team helped to refresh the customer
experience on their websites with a focus on easy access. This
led to a massive increase in online traffic and subscriptions, a
key metric for the firm.


“That led to that has led to more people coming to our website,
but then more people go into our fund center,” Stewart says. “The
fund center is the key part of our website where [you get]
information on the funds that we sell and how they're
performing.”


According to Stewart, the key to the success of their strategy
has been breaking down data siloes and connecting tools to a
centralized CMS.


“Do not do things in silos,” Stewart warns. “It really just makes
a rod for your own back. So, map it out, think it through, and
then go for it.”
Key Findings


Follow your customers’ expectations. Even
industries that have lagged in the past need to keep up with
rapidly changing customer behavior.


Break down data siloes. If you can’t link your
data then you won’t be able to build a complete picture of your
customer.


Link your tools. Connecting the dots between
your internal systems will produce more meaningful, data-driven
insights.