Marketing for Fund Managers
Strategy, content and distribution marketing for managers who raise money through advisers, platforms and wholesale investors.
Funds management marketing for boutique and mid-size managers
Marketing for fund managers works when it turns a strong process into a clear story that advisers, platforms and investors remember. We help boutique and mid-size managers explain each fund, support their distribution team, and publish performance and sustainability content that stands up to compliance review.
We work with Australian fund managers across asset classes such as equities, fixed income, property, private credit and alternatives. Some run retail funds available on platforms and adviser approved product lists; others raise money only from wholesale and sophisticated investors, family offices and institutions. Most have a small distribution team covering a large market.
The engagement scales to match. We can lead your marketing as a fractional CMO, run all of it as your outsourced team, or sit alongside an in-house marketing or distribution team that needs a strategy and senior direction.
Why marketing a fund manager is different
Fund managers face a different marketing problem from most financial services businesses. Five things shape almost everything we do for them.
Performance alone does not raise money
You sell through gatekeepers
A small distribution team covers a big market
Every claim is scrutinised
Investors need reasons to stay through a bad year
The rules that shape asset management marketing
Fund marketing sits under the Corporations Act, the ASIC Act and ASIC’s guidance, and the rules tighten when a fund is open to retail investors. These are the points we plan around.
Your compliance team has the final say on everything published. We agree their review process during onboarding and build it into the calendar, so content arrives ready to approve instead of rushed.
RG 234 and past performance
ASIC reissued RG 234 on 9 June 2026, absorbing its old past performance guide. Performance figures should be relevant, balanced across a sufficient period, shown for standardised periods and paired with a prominent warning.
Design and distribution obligations
Issuers must make a target market determination for retail funds and take reasonable steps to distribute consistently with it. Campaigns need to reach the investors the fund was designed for.
Advertising retail funds
An advertisement for a retail fund must identify the issuer and tell investors to consider the product disclosure statement before deciding.
Sustainability claims
ASIC’s guidance on greenwashing, and its court action against managers, mean ESG and sustainability claims must be specific, accurate and backed by how the fund is actually run.
Research ratings and awards
Ratings and awards usually come with conditions from the research house or awarding body, and must be current and presented in context so they do not mislead.
Wholesale-only funds
Funds open only to wholesale and sophisticated investors need marketing that does not become an offer to retail investors, especially on public channels such as your website and LinkedIn.
Our marketing services for asset managers
From a one-off plan to a whole marketing team.
Every engagement starts with strategy, then scales to the level of support your firm needs.
Marketing Strategy
A CMO-led strategy and 12-month roadmap: the story for the firm and each fund, priority investor segments, a distribution marketing plan and a channel scorecard.
Fractional CMO
Senior marketing leadership that works with your CEO, CIO and head of distribution, sets the priorities and directs your in-house team or suppliers.
Outsourced Marketing
The whole team: fund commentary, adviser content and webinars, fund pages and fact sheets, research house and platform materials, and reporting, run to a calendar with compliance review built in.
Partner Thought Leadership
LinkedIn and published insight under your portfolio managers’ and leaders’ own names, drafted from their market views and approved in minutes.
What works in fund manager marketing, and what does not
An honest view of the channels, based on how advisers and investors actually choose a fund.
| Channel | Verdict | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Monthly and quarterly fund commentary | Works | Regular, plain-English updates keep advisers and investors informed and build trust through good and bad periods. |
| Adviser webinars and roadshows | Works | Lets advisers hear the portfolio manager explain the process, which no fact sheet can do. |
| Portfolio manager LinkedIn and insights | Works | Advisers and investors follow the people who run the money. |
| Research house and platform presence | Works, with a process | Ratings and platform availability drive adviser use, and the materials behind them need planning. |
| Fund pages and fact sheets kept current | Works, underused | Often the first thing an adviser checks. Out-of-date pages cost credibility. |
| Industry media and podcasts | Works for some | Builds a profile for managers with clear, quotable views. |
| Paid social to retail investors | Mixed | Can work with careful targeting, but must match the target market determination. |
| Short-term performance advertising | Avoid | Ages badly, attracts scrutiny and invites investors to leave when performance turns. |
How we start: the first 90 days
Three phases, from strategy to a steady working rhythm.
Strategy
Weeks 1 to 3. Interviews with your leadership, portfolio managers and distribution team, a review of your current marketing and investor base, and an audit of competing managers.
- The story for the firm and each fund
- Priority investor segments
- Distribution marketing plan
- 12-month roadmap
Onboarding
Weeks 4 to 5. We agree how we will work together, starting with the cadence that suits your firm and how compliance review fits in.
- Working cadence agreed: weekly, fortnightly or monthly
- Compliance and TMD review workflow
- Tone of voice
- Access to your systems and CRM
Foundations
Weeks 6 to 12. The groundwork and first activity, delivered at the cadence you chose.
- Content calendar built around reporting periods
- Fund pages and fact sheets refreshed
- First adviser webinar planned
- Research house and platform materials updated
- Reporting baseline in place
Why Paraìba for investment management marketing
Our founders, Kayla and Nicolette, have both worked in highly regulated industries. We know marketing in these sectors has to be buttoned up: written in the right language, accurate in every claim, and ready for compliance review before it goes anywhere.
We also work with wealth managers and financial advisers, the people your distribution team is trying to reach, so we know what they need to hear before they recommend a fund.
What you get
- A clear story for each fund and the firm behind it
- Marketing built for advisers, platforms and research houses
- Senior thinking and hands-on delivery, without the cost of a senior hire
- Embedded, not external: a set cadence and a named owner for every activity
FAQs: marketing for fund managers
The questions fund managers ask us before they start.
What does marketing for fund managers cost?
It depends on how much support your firm needs. We confirm the scope and price after an initial call, so you know exactly what is included before you commit.
How do fund managers market to financial advisers?
Give advisers what they need to recommend the fund with confidence. That means a clear explanation of the philosophy and process, regular commentary they can share with clients, webinars where they can hear from the portfolio manager, and current fund pages and fact sheets. Research house ratings and platform availability open the door; consistent, useful communication keeps the fund on their list.
How do we stand out when our performance looks like our peers’?
Compete on clarity rather than numbers. Advisers see dozens of funds with similar returns, so the managers who stand out explain their edge simply, show the team behind it and communicate consistently. A distinctive point of view, expressed well and often, is easier to remember than a basis point.
Can we use research house ratings in our marketing?
Usually, yes, but research houses typically set conditions on how their ratings are used, such as wording, dates and disclosures. Ratings must be current and shown in context so they do not mislead. We check the research house’s requirements and build the right wording into fund pages, fact sheets and campaigns.
How do design and distribution obligations affect fund marketing?
For a retail fund, the issuer must make a target market determination and take reasonable steps to distribute consistently with it. In practice, that shapes who campaigns target, which channels are used and how results are monitored. We plan campaigns against the TMD and keep a record of how each one fits it.
How can we market a wholesale-only fund?
Carefully, because public content can reach retail investors. Most wholesale managers focus on relationship-led channels such as events, direct engagement with family offices and advisers who serve wholesale clients, and gated content for qualified investors. Public content can build the firm’s profile, provided it does not become an offer of the fund to retail investors.
How do we avoid greenwashing in our sustainability marketing?
Say exactly what the fund does, and nothing more. Specific, verifiable statements about screening, stewardship and holdings are safer and more persuasive than broad claims such as “sustainable” or “ethical”. ASIC has taken managers to court over vague or overstated claims, so we check every sustainability statement against how the fund is actually run before it is published.
Should a fund manager use a funds management marketing agency or hire in-house?
Many managers need both. An in-house marketer handles day-to-day materials and knows the funds well, but rarely has senior strategy, content and campaign capacity together. We bring CMO-level strategy and a delivery team, and we often work alongside an in-house person or the distribution team, giving them a clear plan and senior direction.
This page is general information about marketing. It is not legal, compliance or financial advice.
Turn a strong process into a story advisers remember.
Book a 30-minute call. We will look at how your funds are found, understood and recommended today, and tell you honestly where to start.
