NEW YORK, Sept. 10, 2015 /PRNewswire/ -- kasina, a DST company providing data-driven insights and distribution solutions to financial companies around the world, today released the results of its annual study on the online preferences of financial advisors across multiple behavior segments.

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The study, "What Advisors Do Online: Implications of Segmentation on Digital Engagement," leverages previous kasina research that identified five specific advisor segments: Order Takers, Rainmakers, Self-Sufficients, Support Hogs and Technophiles. Differences among the five segments have important implications for how sales managers and marketers can adapt digital engagement strategies to provide appropriate sales and support for each type of advisor.

"Advisors aren't one-size-fits-all," said Julia Binder, Head of Strategic Marketing Research at kasina, "so neither are the ways in which they do online research, use social networks and mobile devices. kasina's behavioral segmentation of financial advisors shows asset managers how to better leverage these important differences throughout the advisor journey to educate, support and do business online more effectively and efficiently."

The report's key findings indicate:


    --  Just 32.5% of "Self-Sufficients" use social media for business compared
        to 42.5% of all advisors
    --  61.6% of "Support Hogs" would use advisor sites more if content were
        recommended for them compared to 52.4% of all advisors
    --  40.2% of "Technophiles" prefer virtual to physical conferences compared
        to 25.4% of all advisors
    --  67.4% of "Rainmakers" want direct contact with their sales person to be
        enabled on the website compared to 57.5% of all advisors
    --  30.1% of "Order Takers" primarily listen to podcasts on mobile devices
        compared to 23.7% of all advisors

"By understanding each of these segments, asset managers can leverage digital contact to develop effective and profitable sales and service strategies," said Binder. "Support Hogs, for example, prefer costly in-person and phone support, and represent one in six advisors, yet they manage just 7% of assets. Because they are receptive to online content recommendations, asset managers can reduce costs by migrating these advisors to personalized digital support. Rainmakers, on the other hand, represent just one in 10 advisors but manage nearly 45% of assets. The online capabilities of an asset manager influence brand perception of more Rainmakers than most other advisors, so asset managers need to address their high expectations for digital engagement."

In addition to detailed findings about advisors' preferences for websites, social networks, email and mobile devices, this kasina report includes recommendations and best practices for asset managers to help meet and exceed advisor expectations while managing costs and increasing business.

For this report, kasina surveyed 454 advisors about their digital engagement preferences and expectations in the context of the five segments. The study relied on response to 12 quantitative and qualitative questions with hundreds of data points.

More information on kasina's "What Advisors Do Online: Implications of Segmentation on Digital Engagement" report is available by contacting Myra Bartalos, Head of Marketing, at mbartalos@kasina.com.

About kasina
 kasina helps leading companies in the financial services industry manage data, gain insight, and ignite change in their business. A wholly-owned subsidiary of DST Systems, kasina enables companies to transform the way they grow market share through the use of data, research, and advanced analytics in the design, marketing, and distribution of their products. For more information on kasina's distribution intelligence technologies, advanced analytics and research, and strategic advisory services, visit www.kasina.com.

About DST
DST Systems, Inc. is a leading provider of sophisticated information processing and servicing solutions to companies around the world. Through its global enterprise, DST delivers strategically unified transactions and business processing, data management, and customer communications solutions to the asset management, brokerage, retirement, and healthcare markets. Headquartered in Kansas City, MO., DST is a publicly-traded company on the New York Stock Exchange. For more information, visit www.dstsystems.com.

Media Contact:
Laura M. Parsons
DST Global Public Relations
816.843.9087
mediarelations@dstsystems.com

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SOURCE kasina