Haven Tower


FSI is pleased to partner with Haven Tower Group – the leading strategic public relations firm exclusively focused on supporting the independent financial advice industry, and the PR agency of record to FSI since 2011 – to provide Member Firms with access to comprehensive corporate public relations services on a specially discounted basis.

For more information, please contact Joseph Kuo, President & Managing Partner of Haven Tower Group, by phone at 424-652-6520 ext. 101 or by email at jkuo@haventower.com. For more background information about Haven Tower Group, please visit www.haventower.com.

From having more immediately recognizable Internet search results in connection with one’s specific brand; to building a reservoir of press hits that can be instantly repurposed for website, social media and marketing collateral; to achieving the unique third party validation that only positive media coverage can provide; positive press visibility can be utilized in a variety of ways by FSI Member Firms to directly support advisor recruiting and retention efforts, and more effectively engage with key industry partners and influencers.

With its very specific industry focus and longstanding relationships across key industry media outlets, Haven Tower is able to get up to speed immediately on any new client engagement, and begin adding value rapidly by generating high impact, positive media results through highly customized PR strategies.

In particular, Haven Tower is pleased to offer the following on an “a la carte” basis exclusively to FSI Firm Members:

New Advisor Recruit Press Announcements On A One-Time, Non-Recurring Project Basis

Experienced advisors considering a transition to a different independent broker-dealer will always research which IBDs appear to be successfully attracting their peers. And when it comes to choosing a different IBD firm, “success begets success” in that advisors are more likely to select an IBD that appears publicly to already serve as more of a destination of choice for independent advisors.

For this reason, generating positive industry press visibility around successful recruits of independent advisory practices is essential to supporting the long-term recruiting and retention efforts of any growth-oriented independent broker-dealer. Positive media stories of successful recruits to an IBD firm will be noticed by other advisors thinking about changing firms, and can also be repurposed for a wide range of recruiting marketing purposes.

Haven Tower will develop and execute an industry media announcement strategy for an IBD that has successfully recruited an independent advisory practice with at least $100 million in advisory and brokerage assets or more (typically, a “minimum quantitative threshold” for the press to consider the development worthy of coverage).

In terms of process:

1. Haven Tower will hold an initial due diligence call with both the IBD firm and the newly recruited advisor to assimilate all background data and key themes all parties involved want to disseminate about this transition to the public

2. The information from this call will be utilized to develop all key materials needed in connection with this announcement

  • Industry media announcement strategy plan, including top targeted reporters / outlets and execution time frames for outreach
  • press release, media talking points and media reactive use Q&A
  • One-on-one media training and interviews preparation for the IBD’s designated spokesperson and the new advisor recruit

3. Haven Tower will execute on the announcement plan, including issuing the press release* on the designated announcement day, pitching the press release out for interviews / stories with specifically targeted reporters / press outlets; shepherding all interviews that take place and conducting any follow-ups / follow-through with press as appropriate

4. Haven Tower will track and compile all press hits in a format that can be easily forwarded / further re-merchandised via social media and other platforms for the client.

Typically offered from start to finish at a cost of approximately $8,700.00 per project on a non-recurring single project basis, Member Firms accessing this service through FSI will pay $5,500.00 for the entire process, representing a 45% discount.**

Industry Media OP-EDS On A One-Time, Non Recurring Project Basis

Each IBD firm’s ability to achieve its business growth goals becomes considerably easier with the marketing advantages of public recognition by reputable media outlets as a thought leader for expertise in practice management expertise and top industry issues.

Towards this end, Haven Tower provides a comprehensive, turnkey approach to developing – on a non-recurring, one-time project basis – a “media ready” op-ed or by-lined article on a subject matter in which an FSI Member Firm wants to achieve publicly recognized expertise.

In terms of process:

1. At the outset, Haven Tower will spend one hour with the appropriate subject matter expert from the FSI Member Firm to brainstorm potential topics, get a sense of preferred voice / style, and do a “deep dive” on a top selected topic.

2. From there, and within approximately two weeks, your Haven Tower team will deliver a comprehensive first draft op-ed to the Member Firm for review and feedback. Haven Tower will then incorporate all relevant suggestions on an expeditious basis.

3. Upon final compliance and other approvals, Haven Tower will pitch and place the finished article with a top industry media outlet (such as Investment News, Financial Advisor, Financial Planning, REP magazine / WealthManagement.com, etc).

Typically offered from start to finish at a cost of approximately $8,000.00 per piece on a non-recurring single project basis, Member Firms accessing this service through FSI will pay $4,500.00 for the entire media op-ed process, representing a 56% discount.***

Special Situations / Crisis PR Management On a One-Time, Non-Recurring Project Basis

In today’s Internet era, independent broker-dealers should expect others to move very aggressively in exploiting the widest possible array of public visibility and media tools to further their own goals.

With its unparalleled body of collective knowledge about the independent financial advice industry, Haven Tower is able to serve as an extremely effective crisis PR firm for special situations that have a public dimension, and which require careful planning and “hands on” management.

Haven Tower works seamlessly with independent broker-dealers and their legal teams to help weather the immediate issue as favorably as possible and help set the groundwork for reputational recovery on a longer-term basis.

In terms of process, this includes:

  • Media Strategy and Execution
  • Direct Client Communications Strategy and Content Creation
  • Media Training and Coaching
  • Serving as Media Spokesperson for Firms
  • Media Research and Press Tracking
  • Longer-Term “Reputational Recovery” PR Plan Development

Because no two crisis situations are necessarily alike, Haven Tower can provide a specific and highly cost-competitive proposal on a one-time, non-recurring project basis upon understanding the precise situational details of the client. Typically, Haven Tower will request to be retained by the Member Firm’s external legal counsel in order to ensure attorney-client privilege in regulatory or litigation-related crisis PR matters.

Comprehensive, Ongoing Corporate PR With Haven Tower As PR Agency Of Record On A Preferential Price Basis

For FSI Member Firms that are seeking more of a robust and steady “drumbeat” of positive press visibility generated across the widest array of PR tactics throughout the year, together with an “on call” resource for any potential crisis PR situations, Haven Tower is the ideal partner.

Haven Tower can provide comprehensive long-term PR programs encompassing media thought leadership (op-eds and by-lined articles), media trend story visibility and origination, comprehensive press release announcements (beyond simply drafting / issuing a press release), etc.

For those member firms who are interested in consumer brand recognition, we can also provide access to our mainstream national broadcast platform, which we utilize to routinely generate hits for clients on major networks such as CNBC, Fox Business, Bloomberg TV / Radio, etc.

Because the precise needs of ongoing corporate PR relationships can vary significantly from Member Firm to Member Firm, Haven Tower can provide a specific cost proposal upon understanding the precise situational details of the client.

* Does not include service fees from press release issuance wire service providers, which will be billed separately and vary according to word count / length as well as the client’s distribution preferences.

** Please note that these are one-time, non-recurring project fees only. Should Haven Tower be asked to undertake more than three such announcements for as many consecutive months, we may need to discuss conversion into a long-term, ongoing relationship, depending on the circumstances. Also, please note that, consistent with FSI policy, Haven Tower will not be able to undertake recruiting announcements that involve advisors transitioning between two existing FSI Member Firms for non-compete purposes.

*** Please note that these are one-time, non-recurring project fees only. Should Haven Tower be asked to undertake more than three such announcements for as many consecutive months, we may need to discuss conversion into a long-term, ongoing relationship, depending on the circumstances.

NB: Although rare, due to existing clients, there may be times when Haven Tower cannot accept a certain firm as a new client