With thousands of Private Equity firms out there and billions of dollars to invest, traditional outreach methods are no longer sufficient to seek out new capital and secure deals. In this digital age, a key solution would be to utilise technology to your advantage for smart marketing efforts. Faster and more accurate targeting of your marketing can help you reach the right audiences for networking and fundraising events, so that your budget can be more
efficiently spent while maximising your chances for conversion.
To begin, you need to know your audience
Private Equity firms serve as a bridge between 2 main groups: investors looking to
place their funds, and companies looking for funding. As a start, marketing
campaigns are useful for identifying and acquiring a list of high growth start-ups
and fledgling companies that need capital.
To help make this process easier, marketing automation software comes in handy
through hyper-targeting, personalization, and data-based analysis. It can help you
identify and categorize your audience based on where they are on the customer
journey, and subsequently send out the corresponding collaterals to engage and
convert these audience sets.
Formulate your brand story
Now that you have the audiences you want to target, let these potential clients and customers know all the things you are able to do for them, and why they should choose you out of all the other Private Equity firms in the market. Giving context to your actions and a rationale to your strategy to convince investors that their money is in good hands with you is pivotal. Showcase your plans with clarity to let new companies know that they will be
able to reach their funding goals with your help.
One way to add flavour to your story is to use your own portfolio companies as content. Add to your website with illustrative case studies and video content. Allow the CEOs of your portfolio companies to speak out on the value of private equity ownership. Letting potential clients and companies know about who works with you and why they like doing so is a great way to build trust and credibility for your firm.
The Client Experience
An important part of Digital Marketing is the user experience. You have good service, you have an even better team — do not let these go to waste simply because your websites and other online channels do not communicate this messaging well enough. You want your current and potential clients to enjoy their transactions with you. Focusing on the user experience is a great way to improve your client’s interactions with you, and
here are some ways you can do so:
Make intuitive website designs
What path would be the easiest for clients to receive all the information they need in
the fastest way possible? If a client saw your website homepage, would they know where to click in order to answer their query?
Offer in-depth information about your services and staff
Let clients know who they will be working with! It helps to cultivate a sense of trust and credibility when people can match a name to a face.
Mobile optimisation
Ensure that your website is just as user-friendly on mobile devices. With how on-the-go
everyone is nowadays, many potential clients might discover your online channels on their mobile devices.
Automate chatbots or create FAQ landing pages
Have the chatbots answer simple questions so that clients can have the most comprehensive understanding of your services in the shortest time possible. This also reduces the number of support tickets that your customer support team will have to resolve.
Content Creation
In digital marketing, the most reliable way to build a reputation is through content creation. Creating informative and useful content relevant to your field and the desires of potential clients is a surefire way to drive engagement and increase demand. Articles, videos, and presentations relevant to private equity are valuable to potential clients looking for the service you can provide. The content you create can assuage their fears, and reassure them that you know what you are doing, and that their money is spent well on you.
The content you create can even be as simple as a blog post detailing some of your actions, the choices you make and the actions your firm takes can be framed in a more suitable way to your liking. Giving context to the work you do is an extremely
persuasive way of raising your profile and at little expense. Esteemed and established companies like Bain, The Carlyle Group, and Blackstone all maintain regular news feeds and blogs open to the public for free consumption.
These content pieces should also be published on your social media channels, and if created correctly, it can help you to further reinforce your stance as an
industry thought leader.
Social Media for networking
Unusual as it may sound to have social media and private equity connecting, networking is still essential to any business. This post-Covid reality means that almost everyone now needs to start familiarising themselves with platforms such as Facebook and LinkedIn in order to interact with their peers and prospective clients. Social media platforms allow
private equity firms to build a brand, drive more traffic to their website and make new connections. These channels are a powerful marketing tool for any business and private equity is no exception.
The importance of a social media presence cannot be emphasized enough. With many in-person events shut down, business development and lead generation has greatly relied on social selling, virtual communication, and digital marketing. This move toward digital formats won’t be going anywhere anytime soon, and it’s unlikely we’ll see a hard
pendulum swing back to as many in-person events as pre-pandemic.
Social media can also help you to remain in the top of your clients’ minds. Clients might not always need your services when they first come across your online channels, but by following your social media accounts, your presence remains fresh in their memories, and when the time eventually comes for them to engage the service of a Private Equity firm, you can be guaranteed that your firm would be up for consideration.
Building a relationship with your clients
A key point is clarity in communication with your clients. Communication through emails, articles, blogs, webinars and videos has played an important role in firms adding value to their client relationships. You want to remind and show your clients why they are happy to employ you. The content you put out is a useful way to both communicate with your clients and retain them. Talk with your investors and maintain clear lines of communication with them. The companies in your portfolio will also appreciate clear communication with you.
Email marketing is another great way to improve and more efficiently communicate with clients. It can be easily automated, and when tailored to the needs of your clients, an effective way to find new clients as well. Both email marketing and social media are ways to build relationships with your clients and customers, and should not be underestimated.
Effective digital marketing will be necessary to generate more demand for your services. As referral source meetings slow down, it will fall more and more to your marketing efforts to fill the gap. And we understand, there’s just so many things to do and grounds to cover for marketing efforts to be effective.
That’s where we come in! Free up your time on important things related to your industry, and let us handle all things marketing. Contact us today at cmocre8.com!