Private Equity Advertising and Marketing

Private Equity Advertising & Marketing

Private Equity Advertising and Marketing Strategies

There are many restrictions on private equity fund advertising and marketing.  Private equity firms do not contact average, non-accredited investors to invest with their funds.  While this means private equity firms will not take out TV or radio commercials, there are many more gray areas where many private equity firms are now self-promoting or more subtly establishing their branding.   To gain access to the contact details for thousands of private equity investors check out the Private Equity Investor Database.

I never provide financial advice on PrivateEquityBlogger.com and this is surely not a recommended or list of “safe” ways to market your fund.  No matter what you hear from a consultant or at a conference always check with your own compliance officer or legal counsel before taking any action. Here is a list of ways in which funds are currently marketing their strategies:

• Websites – Many funds have websites describing their firm and investment strategy/focus. Some go as far as to explain what their strategy is in detail along with their current assets under management and who is on their portfolio management team. These websites may cost between $1,000 and $25,000 to create and generally $30-500/month to maintain. A few private equity managers or mid level employees even run blogs.

• Public Relations Professionals – Many private equity firms actively engage public relations firms to help increase the number of quotes or in-story mentions their firm’s executives get placed within mainstream media outlets. These consultants may work on some one-off crisis management projects for a premium but generally prefer $2-12k/month retainers instead.

• Book Publishing – One of the many ways which private equity managers are promoting their businesses is through publishing books on the topic of private equity or business more generally. These books may be on industry trends, portfolio management theories or one’s experience in the industry. Many professionals within the wealth management space are hungry to learn more about private equity and books which bridge the gap between what can be learned within editorial articles versus an educational book. Some niche publishers will publish books by private equity managers but most avoid publishing anyone who doesn’t have a marketing network or a real “media brand” behind their name which has been built up for several years. Due to this fact some private equity managers self-publish their own books through programs such as Lulu.com.

• Conferences – One of the ways in which private equity managers market themselves each week is by speaking at conferences and events within the industry. These events could discuss marketing and sales, private equity in general or be on niche subjects related to what the firm invests in such as technology or alternative energy. This strategy can be highly effective because it can support and serve as a direct marketing arm for the strategies mentioned above. Most speaking engagements do not pay, but many firms will at least cover your expenses and display your logo and name prominently at the event. Broker dealer conferences can also be productive events for hedge fund managers to attend. If you can gain a distribution agreement with HNW-focused broker-dealer and obtain a speaking engagement or booth at their event it can be a great way to get your foot in the door with some new face-to-face relationships with HNW advisors with the specific broker-deal group holding the conference.

• External Consultants – While not technically advertising, thousands of firms choose to use the help of external consultants to help market their private equity funds. These consultants could be experts within raising capital within a specific channel, creating marketing materials or creating a marketing message. Those consultants who take on whole or partial responsibility for raising assets on behalf of the private equity manager are often referred to as third party marketers.

•  Television Interviews - It is becoming increasingly more common for private equity partners to appear on CNBC, Bloomberg or Fox Business to provide commentary.  This is a powerful way to reach a broad audience and establish your brand.  A capable public relations firm will be able to get you interviews and opportunities to comment on the financial talk of the day.  With more and more viewers shifting to online resources, there are a great number of online media outlets like the Deal which regularly interview private equity managers. 

Database - Another way to boost your brand recognition and market yourself to private equity investors is to make sure that your firm is included in private equity directories and databases like the Private Equity Directory

Naturally, it is important to complete thorough due diligence upon any groups which you ask to represent you in the market for both effectiveness and compliance reasons. Do not simply sign-up with someone to represent your firm simply because they promise that they can raise the assets which you have been looking to raise.

There are many other ways to market and grow your private equity fund which are not related to advertising or traditional marketing but most of these fall under more traditional means or external consultants.

If you are looking to contact more than 3,500 private equity investors download our Private Equity Investor Database.

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Tags: private equity advertising, private equity advertisement, private equity advertising and marketing, private equity database, private equity databases, private equity directory, private equity investor directory

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Brazil Emerging Market

Forget China? Brazil Claims Spotlight as Hot Emerging Market

In recent years, China has been the preferred emerging market for hedge fund.  Now, the private equity industry is favoring Brazil as the premier emerging market.  A recent survey confirms that private equity investors see the South American country as a smart place for private equity investing.

But increasingly Brazil appears to be capturing the hearts of return-hungry investors looking to ramp up their emerging markets exposure, a trend supported by a newly released investor survey conducted by secondary firm Coller Capital and the Emerging Markets Private Equity Association (EMPEA).

Brazil nudged out China among investors as the most attractive emerging market for private equity deal-making over the next year, according to the 2011 edition of the Emerging Markets Private Equity Survey. The report, which surveyed 156 institutional investors from around the globe, found that nearly 70% see Brazil as an attractive place for private equity investing in the next 12 months, versus just under 60% of investors that said the same for China.

At the same time, 14% of investors surveyed plan to begin making private equity commitments in Brazil, versus less than 10% that plan to enter China for the first time.  Source

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Private Equity Seed Capital

Four Private Equity Fund Seed Capital Sources

Private Equity seed capital is the money a private equity fund tries to raise to launch or within it's first year of operating to try to "get off the ground" and hopefully raise enough assets to appear respectable to initial investors and provide initial momentum towards breaking even as a business.  Private equity fund seed capital is in high demand, there are literally hundreds of investment groups looking for it right now and only a select few will receive any significant amount of it.  Looking to meet new private equity investors?  See the latest version of The Private Equity Investor Directory

Private Equity Fund Seed Capital Sources

Private Equity Fund Seed Capital Source #1: High Net Worth individuals (accredited investors) who are familiar with your trading skills, past portfolio management experience, or clearly understand your competitive advantage in the marketplace.

Private Equity Fund Seed Capital Source #2: Family & Friends who are accredited investors.

Private Equity Fund Seed Capital Source #3: Private Equity Firms. Some already established private equity funds have huge amounts of free cash flow and are looking for ways to re-invest it within area they understand and do not directly compete with products that they plan to create on their own.  Many buyout firms have jumped into the space of seeding private equity funds and many will in turn work on raising assets for your fund once it will benefit both your fund and themselves.

Private Equity Fund Seed Capital Source #4: Associated banks or investment networks. will often seed new private equity fund products they are launching with significant levels of capital.

Looking to meet new private equity investors?  See the latest version of The Private Equity Investor Directory

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Private Equity Job Interview 

Three Tips for Preparing for a Private Equity Job Interview

Every training session, we are adding new career resources for participants in the Certified Private Equity Professional program.  When I was putting together our career guide, I started thinking about best practices for preparing for a private equity job interview.  Here is one of the tips, to gain access to career advice and many other private equity resources check out the Certified Private Equity Professional program.

Preparing for a job interview is difficult because you never know what to expect.  In fact, many employers will deliberately make you uncomfortable or throw surprising questions at you in order to see how you respond.  This certainly makes preparing for the interview difficult, but not impossible.  Here are three ideas for how to better prepare yourself to nail a private equity job interview.

• Do your homework:  You want to know your record and accomplishments very well.  It's easy to think that you already know everything you've done, because you're the one who did it.  But you need to be able to clearly and concisely answer questions about your professional history--it's tougher than you'd think.  Focus on your most impressive and relevant accomplishments and what exactly you contributed in your last position.
  
  You also need to do your homework on your potential employer.  Few applicants really become familiar with the firm they are interviewing with, and I think that's a lost opportunity to show your abilities.  If you have clearly studied your potential employer, it will become evident in the interview and you will likely gain an edge on other applicants.

• Practice: Private equity positions are very sought after and therefore often have a very rigorous interview process.  Many professionals just assume that all interviews are the same and do little to prepare for the interview.  I recommend that you spend many hours practicing for the interview--as many as it takes for you to feel comfortable and confidant. 
  
  Your practice can be simply reviewing your answers and rehearsing by yourself, or you can enlist a friend, professor, family member or roommate to act as the interviewer.  Be sure to make the practice as realistic as possible so you don't form bad habits that will carry over to the interview.  

• Do A Lot of Interviews:  Sure, you may have your sights set on one particular private equity firm, but that doesn't mean you shouldn't apply to others.  If for no other reason, it's great practice so you are confidant for your primary job interview.  You can even call up various private equity firms and request an informational interview just to get comfortable talking with buyout firms.

For more tips and private equity best practices like this one, visit the Certified Private Equity Professional website.

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Private Equity India IPO

Private Equity Firms in India Taking A New Approach

Private equity firms in India are taking a new approach that is somewhat rare.  Instead of taking private companies and exiting through an initial public offering, buyout firms in India are investing in companies that are putting off plans to go public because of an unreceptive market. 

While it's usual for private equity firms to use initial public offerings as an exit route, it's unusual for them to invest in companies that are waiting to be listed, but haven't done so yet. There are at least half a dozen deals brewing through this alternative to public fund-raising, according to bankers. Companies too accept the sometimes lower valuations of these deals as they try to meet their fund-raising needs.

The emerging trend is a direct consequence of the unpredictable equity markets. The Bombay Stock Exchange's Sensex after hitting a record high of rose to 21,004, dived more than 3,500 points lower, and now is at 19,612.20 points as of Wednesday. As a result, at least 79 companies that have filed a draft red herring prospectus with regulator the Securities and Exchange Board of India over the past year, have not gone ahead with their initial public offering plans, according to data compiled by Capitaline, a financial data provider.

IOT Infrastructure and Energy Services Ltd, an oil-storage company that's a joint venture between Indian Oil Corp. Ltd and Germany's Oiltanking GmbH, had sought approval from the regulator in September. Currently, the company is in talks with private equity firms.  Source

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New Private Equity Managers

Private Equity Managers Seek to Change Negative Image

Private equity has been through a tumultuous journey during the last few years, from the industry's peak during the buyout boom to the very rough economic recession.  The future of private equity is still something of a mystery, with investors waiting to see big returns before returning to the asset class and many private equity firms sitting on mountains of capital. 

Now, the industry's future is resting more and more in the hands of a new wave of private equity managers.  These new managers are looking to open the doors of private equity to the public and defy the preconceived notions about an industry that has long-suffered under public and media scrutiny.

Accusations of asset stripping plagued the industry as vast profits came quickly, followed by the worries that many of their businesses could collapse under the weight of their debt destroying jobs.

Since those dark days, Europe's private equity industry has been on a mission to improve its image and get its message across.

Into this environment, new senior figures have emerged as calming influences at the top of some of the largest private equity houses either to put them back on track or to continue to steer them through choppy markets.

Three figures to step up in the wake of the credit crunch are Michael Queen, chief executive of 3i Group (III.L); Lionel Zinsou, chairman of PAI Partners; and Joe Baratta, senior managing director at Blackstone (BX.N), who has taken on leadership of the firm's European operations.  Source

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