Subscription Models

Delivered February 4th, 2018. Contributors: Kennedy H., Prapti D., Lu J., Ashley M. and

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Subscription Models Best Practices - Asset Management Companies

Businesses in the Asset Management Industry have a wide array of Newsletter and subscription models available. The variation of newsletters is dependent on each individual company. While some companies just have general company newsletters that are not stated to have a time frame by which they operate, there are others that have multiple newsletters and allow users to select preferences based on how often they would like to receive information. Below you will find 10 example companies in the Asset Management industry and their subscription and newsletter models.

BlackRockBlackRock offers a single, Closed-end Funds Newsletter to anyone that is willing to provide an email address and other basic information. There is no timeline publicly stated on how often the newsletter is sent out. However, when signing up for the newsletter, it asks if you are an "Individual Investor" or "Financial Adviser." This information could be used to determine what version of the newsletter is sent out. The newsletters are stated to include insights on closed-end funds, market commentary, educational material about closed-end funds, and interactive forums with thought leaders and portfolio managers for financial advisers. Users cannot pick and choose which of this information they want to receive, it all just comes in a single newsletter. 

FidelityFidelity offers three different types of newsletters or similar products that individuals can subscribe to. The Viewpoints Newsletter provides information regarding economic and market insights, investing ideas, and personal finance tips. There is no stated timeline for this article, but there is a selection for users to choose how often they trade per year. It is possible that this determines how often newsletters are set out.

The Active Investor Weekly newsletter provides trading tips, technical analysis advice, and strategy methods for the industry. As stated in the title, this newsletter is sent out once a week.

The Fidelity Webinars newsletter does not have a time period associated with it either, but it provides information about upcoming live events regarding trading strategies. 

VanguardVanguard offers two different newsletters to users from which they can choose one or the other, or both:

"In the Vanguard" is sent out once a month and provides users with top news articles and blogs with information relating to investing, markets, and retirement. 

"Eye on the Economy" is a newsletter that explains some factors that investors are keeping their eye on and why. There is no associated timeline for this newsletter. 

PIMCOPIMCO offers the most extensive and detailed newsletter options for users. This acts as a great example of a company that provides newsletters for all topics of interest/products offered. Individuals can first choose between insights on markets, solutions, or publications, or they can choose from literature regarding mutual funds, ETFs, closed-end funds, or interval funds. Users can also choose as few or as many options as they want. Within each category, there are a significant number of subcategories to choose from, as well.

For the insights, the information available is as follows:

 Markets (all periodically):
 — Economic Outlook, Market Commentary, PIMCO Blog, Policy Updates, Smart Charts in Focus

 Solutions (all periodically, except where stated):
 — Alternatives (quarterly)
 — Asset Allocation, Core, Credit, Defined Contribution, Equities, Global/EM, Income, Munis, Pension Solutions, Real Return, Short Duration

 Publications:
 — All Asset All Access (monthly)
 — Asset Allocation Outlook (semi-annually)
 — Cyclical & Secular Outlook (quarterly)
 — Global Central Bank Focus (periodically)
 — Macro Perspectives (monthly)
 — Monthly Market Update (monthly)
 — Putting Market in Perspective (quarterly)
 — Total TR Update (quarterly)

In addition to the insights, the literature provided has an even more extensive list of subcategories for users to choose from within each category. There are options to choose how often literature should be sent: as available, weekly, or monthly. Subscribers can also choose from the following based on what additional information on each topic they wish to choose:

 — Fund Fact Sheets 
 — Monthly Fund Commentary 
 — Fund Card 
 — Quarterly Investment Report 
 — Sector Allocation Card 
 — Summary Prospectus 

BlackstoneBlackstone has the option for users to choose between two different newsletters. The first is the Bryon Wein Market Commentary newsletter, which  offers global economic insights from the Vice Chairman of the company, himself. In addition, there is the Blackstone Press Releases newsletter, which assumingly send out information every time there is a press release regarding Blackstone or a topic of importance to the company. There are no specific details on how often these newsletters are actually sent out.

UBSUBS only has one newsletter available to readers. It is called the "Insights E-Newsletter" and contains information and advice on money, home ownership, investing, and interviews from financial experts. There is no information stated regarding how often this newsletter is sent out. 

BNY MellonUnlike other asset management companies, BNY Mellon has online newsletters, but does not appear to email them out to individuals. Instead, there are 74 newsletters are each updated on weekly, daily, monthly, etc. time period that people have free access to read. 

AllianzAllianz has two newsletters that subscribers can choose between. The first one is just the simple Allianz Newsletter regarding basic company info and related information. This newsletter seems to be aimed at journalists and bloggers, since it asks how often your personal publications appear (24.7, daily, weekly, or monthly). However, there is no time stated for how often the newsletter itself is sent out. The second one is called the Allianz Careers Newsletter, and it provides professional insights, career news, and job postings within the company. Users can subscribe to either or, or both. 

AmundiAmundi offers a general newsletter at the bottom of their web page, with information relating to market insights and helpful articles. Users simply have to provide their name, email, and company to sign up for the newsletter; no timeline is stated.

JP MorganJP Morgan offers four different newsletters based on user preferences. Subscribers can choose as few or as many options as they want from the following:

"Insights to Start Your Week" — This is a weekly email that contains multi-asset solutions, the market recap for the week, and a strategy report. 

"Eye on the Market" — Written by the Chairman of Market and Investment Strategy, this newsletter does not say how often it is sent out, but it provides views on the economy, market and example investment portfolios.

"Insights and Events" — This is a bi-weekly newsletter that contains overviews of recent research and publications, as well information about upcoming webcasts and events.

"Guide to the Markets" — This quarterly newsletter uses charts to explain the market and economic trends and statistics. 

ConclusionEvery company in the asset management industries goes about newsletters in a different way. In general, the timeline by which newsletters are sent out is not publicly available without actually signing up for the subscription. While some companies like PIMCO offer a wide array of preferences for users to choose from, there are others like BNY Mellon that don't send them out at all, simply keeping them on their website for users to access as they please. There is no one right or wrong way to go about subscription models for company newsletters; it is all dependent on the content that you wish to provide and how often you want to make it available to your audience. 

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Subscription Models Best Practices - Publishers / News Outlets, Hospitals / Research Organizations

Organizations like publishers, news outlets, hospitals and research organizations offer a customized newsletter to their subscribers, based on preferred topics chosen by them. While media companies send out daily newsletters, hospitals and research companies have a lesser frequency, usually weekly. For this research, I have listed at least two examples of companies in each category and listed their best practices related to newsletter subscriptions. The examples chosen are well-known companies in their field that have existed for many years. Some have been selected to highlight a different newsletter practice from the general trend.
THE WASHINGTON POSTThe Washington Post is a leading News company with 69 different newsletter options. Subscribers can choose to get updates on different topics. Each topic has a different frequency. "Politics" and "Daily202" are daily alerts. "The 5-minute fix" is three days a week and "Must-reads" are delivered every Saturday morning.
NATIONAL PUBLIC RADIO (NPR)National Public Radio is a multi-media news organization. NPR and its team have received several Journalistic awards since 1971. It focuses on weekly updates through their Newsletters. Out of 21 Newsletters offered, 16 are delivered weekly, and the remaining have different frequencies. "Music" is sent out twice a week, "News" is daily and "Breaking news" is sent out as real-time updates. I selected NPR as one of the examples to showcase the weekly frequency strategy practiced by them. 
THE MAYO CLINICThe Mayo Clinic hospital in Minnesota was recently ranked as the best hospital in 2017-2018 by US News & World Report. They offer 11 different newsletter options. The formats and frequencies are varied, ranging from weekly, monthly, bimonthly and quarterly to biannual and triannual issues.
CLEVELAND CLINICThe Cleveland Clinic is a multi-specialty academic hospital in Ohio in the United States. They offer 15 different newsletter options that subscribers can select and subscribe to. Frequency ranges from monthly to biannually. The topics are divided into seven different categories. These are "General health & wellness"; "Heart health"; "Sports health"; " For our national/international friends"; " For health professionals"; "For those interested in supporting Cleveland clinic" and "Research news."
THE NEW YORKERThe New Yorker is a weekly magazine that publishes its famous mix of commentary on politics, international news, current affairs, humor, fiction, technology and more. They offer eight newsletter options. These include podcasts, cartoons and "fake news." "Humour" and "The daily" updates are delivered daily while most others are weekly.
TIME MAGAZINETime magazine is a prominent weekly magazine published in New York City. It is known for its annual list of the "100 most influential people." They offer 12 different newsletter options to choose from. Frequencies are weekly, Monday to Friday and occasionally, depending on the subject matter.
CENTER FOR STRATEGIC & INTERNATIONAL STUDIES"The Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS)" is a "bipartisan, nonprofit policy research organization." They were formed in Washington D.C. more than fifty years ago. Their work is focused on building strategic insights and policies for decision makers across the globe. Subscribers can select from 58 different fields/topics for newsletters. These are grouped into 15 broader categories. Frequency is not mentioned. What makes them a unique example to highlight, is that unlike most other organizations, they do not have names for different newsletters, but rather let users subscribe to subjects of choice. E.g., Global Strategy, Civil Society, North Africa, etc
BROOKINGS INSTITUTE NEWSLETTERThe Brookings Institute is based in Washington D.C. It is a not for profit dedicated towards public policy making solutions through in-depth research. They offer 27 different newsletter options. Topics covered include Economic studies, foreign policy, Governance, and Education. Frequencies vary from daily, weekly, monthly, periodic to bi-weekly.
CENTER FOR CLIMATE AND ENERGY SOLUTIONSThe center for climate and energy solutions focuses on designing policy solutions that impact the greenhouse effect and other climate changes to build a sustainable environment. I included this organization as it is one of the few that does not offer a variety of newsletter options. The bottom of the web page just has a "subscribe" button, with no indication of the frequency at which updates are sent.
CONCLUSIONMost companies provide multiple newsletter options for subscribers to choose from. They have varying frequencies based on the subject selected.

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Subscription Models Best Practices - Thought Leaders

Thought leaders have a variety of practices in managing subscription communications to their users. From four examples we were able to find, two leaders offer a weekly newsletter which offers top content that doesn't feature only one specific topic. Dave Ramsey offers multiple topics that range from finance and real estate to articles and highlights from Dave's show. The users can opt to sign up for one newsletter or a number of them, depending on their interests. Tim Ferris offers different newsletter content when users sign up for his newsletter. The complete offer that you receive in your inbox upon signing up includes: "The first 50 pages of The 4-Hour Workweek, 11 simple must-use apps and tools, 5-Bullet Friday and Weekly productivity tips and tricks".
FINDINGSWe used this list is a reference list of thought leaders. We included only those who have an identifiable email subscription offering.

 Dave Ramsey offers multiple topics which users can select upon sign up. They can choose one or multiple topics which are advertised as follows: "Email newsletters are a great way to get the specific information you're looking for at daveramsey.com. Whether you're brand-new to the whole Dave Ramsey world or have been a listener for 15 years, we have something for you." The topics are:
1. Dave's eNewsletter which includes updates, motivating stories and articles.
2. Dave's Deals which gives updates on special offers.
3. Dave's Investing Minute which provides investment advice.
4. Real Estate Minute which helps with buying, selling and decorating houses and flats.
5. Getting Started Guide is a beginner's newsletter for all just starting with Dave's plan.
6. The Best of Dave Ramsey provides highlights from Dave's show on a monthly basis.
7. Stewardship gives advice to church leaders.
8. Ramsey Event Productions notifies people about upcoming shows and events.
9. Entre Leadership gives advice on how to become a better business leader.
10. Stewardship provides practical tips how to live intentional in all areas of your life.

 Jon Gordon offers a weekly newsletter that users can subscribe to. There is no selection of topic. "Copies" of the newsletter are maintained on the site, which means there is a page on the website where users can go back to see all the newsletters that have been published.

 Gary Vaynerchuk uses a pop-up page on his website to encourage subscriptions to his weekly newsletter called Hustler's Digest. The message in the pop-up window says: "Get my top content and exclusive tips in your inbox every week.".

 Tim Ferris offers different newsletter content when users sign up for his newsletter. The complete offer that you receive in your inbox includes: "The first 50 pages of The 4-Hour Workweek, 11 simple must-use apps and tools, 5-Bullet Friday and Weekly productivity tips and tricks".
CONCLUSIONThought leaders have different ways of managing subscription communications to their users, from giving weekly updates on their most popular content to offering topical newsletters which can be selected based on interests.

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Subscription Models - Summary

Each institution has their own way to direct their subscriptions. For example, thought leaders will send newsletters on a more regular, weekly basis, and these will include more or less of what the thought leader is trying to sell — whether it be a '4-hour work week', a book, or a more spiritual life. However, news outlets and research organizations have a more varied list of options for their subscribers' different interests including news, music, entertainment, etc. These are sent at different times, including weekly, daily, monthly or bi-weekly, depending on the interest options the subscribers chose.
Asset Management Companies BlackRock is an asset management company that offers a close-end funds newsletter that is sent out to either individual investors or financial advisers. The newsletter includes insights on closed-end funds, market commentary, interactive forums where one can communicate with their portfolio managers and thought leaders, educational materials, and industry data. The newsletter includes each one of these options, so in this particular case, the newsletter is not personalized. 

 PIMCO, on the other hand, gives their subscribers many options with regard to what they are signing up for. They offer different options under different interests. For example, under Markets, one can choose either Economic Outlook, Market Commentary, PIMCO Blog, Policy Updates or Smart Choice in Focus, or one can choose each of the above options. The options under Solutions are vast as well including Alternatives, Asset Allocation, Core, Credit, Defined Contribution, Equities, ESG, ETFs, Global/EM, Income, Munis, Pension Solutions, Real Return and Short Duration or again, the subscriber can select each option. They also have options for different publications and literature pertaining to investing. 

 Fidelity offers a newsletter called Fidelity Viewpoints. All the user has to do is provide their first and last name and an email. It is a weekly newsletter and doesn't provide any options for the subscriber.
Thought Leaders Dave Ramsey offers 10 different options for his subscribers. They can either select all, or chose between topics such as motivational stories, deals, investing tips, real estate tips, getting started on his plan, highlights, resources for church leaders, info on events, how to be a better business leader, and how to live intentionally. They are offered in a variety of timelines, mainly weekly or monthly. 

 Gary Vaynerchuk offers a weekly newsletter to his subscribers called the "Hustler's Digest". Those interested can sign up through the pop up as soon as they get to his website or at the bottom of the page. They just need to provide their name and email address.

 The 4-hour work week offers their audience an option to subscribe to their weekly newsletter which includes; 11 apps and tools, "5-Bullet Friday", productivity tips on a weekly basis and the first 50 pages of Tim Ferris' book, 'The 4-Hour Work Week'. The initial week would see about 4 emails, and then 2 each consecutive week (5-Bullet Friday and weekly productivity tips). 
News Outlet  The Washington Post offers many different options for subscribers, including Sports, Morning Mix, Energy, and Environment, Must Reads, Politics, Entertainment, Animals, Science, Parenting, Weather, Inspiration, Different Alerts, and many more options tailored to different individual interests (69 in total). These subscriptions can come whenever breaking news hits, every morning, to once a week. 
publishers NPR (National Public Radio) offers 21 different subscription options, varying from breaking news alerts to health or music options. Some are sent daily (News for example), some weekly or bi-weekly (music), some monthly (NPR training) and some at random (shopping or breaking news). 
HospitalsThe Mayo Clinic offers a variety of newsletter options for 'medical professionals'. They include 11 updates for physicians of varying practices including cancer, neuroscience, psych, trauma among others. These are offered monthly, triannually, bimonthly, and quarterly. 
Research Organizations The Brookings Institutions is a major research facility in the US. They offer 27 different subscription options including Governance Studies, Global Economy and Development, Foreign Policy, Economic Studies, Brookings Research and Events, Metropolitan Policy, Cenntenial Scholar Initiative, DOHA Center, Brookings Institution Press, Executive Education, The Brookings Essay, and Brookings India, many with sub-categories. They are offered daily, weekly, monthly, periodically and bi-weekly.
ConclusionIn conclusion, each institution offers their own unique newsletter subscription options. For asset management, news and research institutions, there are more options than for thought leaders, but they also cater to an audience with many different interests. 