Mutual Fund Marketing Specialists

The first mutual, or “open-ended” fund in the U.S.— the Massachusetts Investors Trust—was introduced in Boston in 1924. Fund managers did their own marketing—talking up the promising aspects of their funds to friends and family—ideally those who had a lot of money to invest. By 1955, there were 125 mutual funds, and this number increased to 361 by 1970. Two developments—the enactment of the Employee Retirement Income Security Act in 1974, which created individual retirement accounts for workers not covered by employer-sponsored plans, and the Revenue Act of 1978, which created 401(k) retirement plans—fueled growth in the industry. By 1980, there were 654 funds, and fund companies greatly expanded their menu of fund offerings and ramped up marketing to individual investors. By 1990, there were 3,079 funds, and in 2022 there were 7,222 funds.

With so many funds, investment companies must find new ways to differentiate themselves from the competition. As a result, demand is growing for marketing specialists to help companies improve their brands, create informative and interesting marketing materials, and develop a strong social-media presence.