Ultimus: Have a good story and tell it to the right people

I enjoy talking with mutual fund entrepreneurs. They are smart people. They often have their names on the door and wear many hats. In addition, they are money managers first, marketers second.

Many built nice businesses on the institutional or high net worth side and decided to launch a fund or two primarily to support their smaller clients or build a national track record. Others started with a couple funds funded with capital from friends or family.

Some commit to growth. Others decide to wait it out hoping to get discovered. Some do, but most don't. Over time, they realize that the "build it and they will come" strategy isn't going to work and they need a change from the status quo.

They realize their distribution strategy should be as serious as their investment strategy. They need to have a good story and tell it to the right people repeatedly. They can take a sales approach, marketing approach or a hybrid model.

Ultimus Fund Solutions recently held its client conference that brought dozens of fund advisors to Cincinnati to network, share experiences and learn.

They were as different as their fund styles. Besides large cap, alternatives, and concentrated approaches, their experiences ranged from start-up with hopes of success to experienced firms who could teach a course on how to grow.

While many of the panels focused on compliance and operations, I was impressed by the sessions on distribution and marketing.

I spoke on a growth panel with some firms doing it right.

• BPV Capital's Jeremy Floyd runs a sales and marketing group and leverages data every chance he gets to make decisions and reduce costs.
• Wavelength Capital's Mark Landis focuses on platform gatekeepers and does digital marketing.
• TFS Capital's Mark Schlegel participates in "Speed Dating" advisor conferences.

Ultimus' Dave Carson moderated the panel.

Other sessions focusing on distribution and marketing included how to work with the platforms, how to develop and communicate your message, how to know who your advisor clients are, and how to conduct stronger interviews.