[December 11, 2014]

Putnam Investments Announces Findings from 2014 "Social Advisor" Study

According to findings released today by Putnam Investments from the most comprehensive study conducted to date of the social media practices of financial advisors across the United States, financial advisors are making more use of social media than they were even a year ago - and reaping tangible financial rewards as a result.

In the Putnam Investments 2014 Social Advisor Study, which surveyed over 700 financial advisors across the country, 66% of advisors using social media for business indicated that social media networks have helped them gain new clients, up from 49% in the previous edition of the research. Advisors acquiring clients through social media initiatives report booking a median of almost $2 million in new assets as a result, close to triple the level of last year's respondents.

Equally striking is the shift in usage of social media platforms preferred by advisors for business use. While LinkedIn (News - Alert) remains the number one business site, used as a primary network by 55% of advisors, Facebook usage is up sharply year-over-year to 24%. Google+ and Twitter (News - Alert) also show major gains. This fragmenting of social media preferences occurs against a backdrop of more social media usage generally - the share of advisors using only one network for business is down (from 33% to 25%), while the proportion using four or more networks for business has more than doubled (from 11% to 25%).

"We're seeing a remarkably rapid and dynamic evolution of social media use as advisors test ways to make this work for their practices," says Mark McKenna, Head of Global Marketing, Putnam Investments. "A year ago, the focus was almost entirely on business content and professional networking. Increasingly, advisors are leveraging the more personal side of social media and getting results."

The Putnam Investments research indicates that the typical financial advisor who currently uses social media for business has the following characteristics:

• 46-year-old wirehouse advisor living in southern or western U.S.
• Active on an average of three social networks
• Has 11 years of experience
• Runs a book of business with an average of $84 million
• Has median client of $900,000

Although most advisors (75%) make at least some business use of social media, female advisors have strongly embraced the use of social media in advisory practices. Since last year, for example, the proportion of fmale advisors using social media for business has doubled, to 29%. Women are significantly more likely than men to use social networks for business (82% vs. 73%) and much more likely than male advisors to say that social media plays a significant role in their practice marketing efforts (67% vs. 52%). Importantly, women are also likelier to obtain new clients through social media (71% vs. 64%), although the median asset lift for male and female advisors is about the same.

"The emerging demographic patterns among advisors on social media are really surprising to us," notes McKenna. "While the research has clearly indicated that social media use is concentrated among advisors under age 50, especially those under age 30, this is the first evidence we have seen that female advisors are more deeply engaged in social media practices than men."

Other noteworthy findings from the study:

• Among advisors designating LinkedIn as their primary social network for business, their most prevalent use of the network is connecting with other advisors and financial professionals. Among Facebook (News - Alert) users, it is enhancing current client relationships.
• Smartphones are the access device of choice for advisors under age 30, about even with stationary or docked computers (which are strongly preferred by the age 50+ set).
• The number of advisors using social media for business may have hit a wall, at least for the moment. Of those not active, only 16% are "absolutely certain or very likely" to start in the next three years and only 21% more are "somewhat likely" to do so. Advisors not using social media for business overwhelmingly cite broker/dealer compliance limitations as the main reason.

In discussing Putnam Investments' ongoing work in identifying social media trends, McKenna explained, "Our firm has a strong, ongoing commitment to providing timely, valuable practice management insight to the advisor community - with social media as one of the critical areas of focus as we move forward. The findings of our research confirm our belief that understanding and utilizing social media is becoming a critical, core element in the building of an advisor's business today - and most definitely in the years to come."

Putnam Investments and Social Media
In recent years, Putnam Investments has expanded outreach to clients, advisors, consultants and other stakeholders with social media by building out a robust presence on Twitter, YouTube (News - Alert) and Facebook. The firm has been widely recognized for developing and adopting best practices in social media. Earlier this year, Putnam Investments was ranked the #1 social media leader in the asset management industry by kasina, based on Putnam's work across social media platforms.

In identifying a need among financial advisors to understand the emerging importance of social media as a business-building tool, Putnam Investments has developed key practice management offerings in this area including: providing best practice seminars to advisors on use of LinkedIn and other social platforms; a series of online resources and tools; one-on-one training and continuing discussions; creation of a community discussion via the firm's LinkedIn group; and video vignettes on Putnam's Advisor Tech Tips blog (http://www.advisortechtips.com/).

Earlier this year, Putnam Investments President and CEO Robert L. Reynolds was named a LinkedIn Influencer, joining a select group of CEOs, political figures, entrepreneurs and other influential business executives who provide compelling commentary and professional insights on a variety of subjects. Currently, Reynolds has over 8,000 followers on Twitter (https://twitter.com/RobertLReynolds). Reynolds was also one of the first CEOs in the financial industry to actively tweet - beginning in July 2009. He currently has over 33,500 LinkedIn followers.

About the Survey
This research was conducted online by Brightwork Partners LLC among 729 advisors nationally who have been advising retail clients for at least two years. The study was conducted in the third quarter of 2014.

About Brightwork Partners LLC
Brightwork Partners is a specialty research and consulting firm focusing on distribution strategies for retail asset managers and providers of defined contribution services. Founded in 1999, the firm conducts custom and multi-client research among advisors, consultants, plan sponsors, third party administrators and participants on behalf of major providers in the industry.

About Putnam Investments
Founded in 1937, Putnam Investments is a leading global money management firm with more than 75 years of investment experience. At the end of November 2014, Putnam had $160 billion in assets under management. Putnam has offices in Boston, London, Frankfurt, Amsterdam, Tokyo, Beijing, Singapore and Sydney. For more information, visit putnam.com.

Photos/Multimedia Gallery Available: http://www.businesswire.com/multimedia/home/20141211005661/en/

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