Cogent Research Study: American Funds, iShares, and Jackson National Lead Peers in Connecting with Advisors

CAMBRIDGE, Mass.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--More Financial advisors feel a strong personal connection with American Funds than with any other mutual fund company. Similarly, ETF and variable annuity producers identify iShares and Jackson National as the providers in those categories doing the best job connecting with advisors. These and other findings are included in Advisor Touchpoints^TM 2012, a new report released in August by Cogent Research, based on a nationally representative survey of 1,741 retail investment advisors across all major distribution channels.

“Needless to say, it’s not a big leap from feeling strongly connected to a firm to dropping a ticket. It’s only a matter of time.”

When asked to identify the mutual fund company with which they feel the strongest connection, 16% of mutual fund producers point to American Funds. Meanwhile, more than a third (37%) of ETF producers and a quarter (24%) of variable annuity providers identify iShares and Jackson National as the firms achieving the best connection with advisors in their respective product categories.

“Relationships matter,” said Linda York, Research Director at Cogent. “In the case of American Funds and iShares, trust and familiarity built up with advisors over many years has and will continue to sustain these market leaders against the onslaught of competition. For Jackson National, which overtook Prudential this year on this measure, it is proof that building a strong connection with advisors can actually propel a company to the top.”

York notes that another strong indicator of future momentum for a provider is the portion of advisors who aren’t currently using a company’s products, but identify the firm as the provider to which they feel personally most connected. Three specific examples include J.P. Morgan Funds, PowerShares, and Jackson Life where 5%, 9%, and 11% of non-users respectively feel more connected to these providers than any other firm in the category - including their current providers.

“Needless to say, it’s not a big leap from feeling strongly connected to a firm to dropping a ticket. It’s only a matter of time.”

Best Personal Connection with Advisors

Mutual Fund Providers

ETF Providers

Variable Annuity Providers

American Funds

iShares

Jackson National

Franklin Templeton Investments

PowerShares

Prudential

BlackRock

State Street/SPDR;

MetLife

J.P. Morgan

First Trust (tie)

AIG/Sun;

Fidelity;

Vanguard

America/VALIC (tie)

OppenheimerFunds;

ProShares;

Nationwide Financial

PIMCO (tie)

WisdomTree (tie)

Source: Cogent Research Advisor Touchpoints^TM 2012

About Cogent Research

Cogent Research helps clients gain clarity, obtain perspective, and formulate direction on critical business issues. Founded in 1996, Cogent Research provides custom research, syndicated research products, and evidence-based consulting to leading organizations in the financial services, life sciences, and consumer goods industries. Through quality research, advanced analytics, and deep industry knowledge, Cogent Research delivers data-driven solutions and strategies that enable clients to better understand customers, define products, and shape market opportunities in order to increase revenues and grow the value of their products and brands.