Social media has proved an immensely powerful driver in recent political campaigns: President Obama’s 2008 run for office organized more than 200,000 events through its website, developed 35,000 volunteer groups, and in the final four days of the campaign three million telephone calls were made via an “internet virtual phone” on the website. President Obama’s superior ability to communicate his platform and educate voters about his vision for the country through social media was without a doubt a decisive factor in his winning the presidency. Because marketing is the act of educating a consumer about a product (or in the President’s case, a service), social media has the ability to act as a catalyst for businesses’, politicians’, and other groups’ success should they use these new information channels effectively. Unfortunately though, there have been just as many social media blunders as there have been successes. For instance, the “Weinergate” scandal of 2011 landed Rep. Anthony Weiner out of office after he tweeted sexual photos of himself to a 21 year-old university student. Other organizations have found themselves in hot water following controversial posts, such as American Apparel which tweeting inappropriate “advertisements” after Hurricane Sandy. My point is this: social media’s increasing prevalence could prove to be a huge asset to almost any member of society if it is used responsibly. This communication channel offers a more direct form of correspondence with consumers and allows politicians and businesses alike a more intimate environment in which to share their ideas. However, with that online proximity and the rapid communication of information that flows through twitter, facebook, reddit and other sites comes a responsibility from both the consumer and the poster to think twice before they hit the enter key.

I was interested to read Nick Parkhev’s blog post about investment fraud among senior populations. While I think Nick hit the nail on the head, so to speak, I also believe that a massive amount of poor investment management occurs every year across a wide range of demographics for one common reason: a lack of customer knowledge. While seniors may be the most vulnerable, their inability to understand the contract that links them to their investment manager or the overall investment strategy of these managers is something that is not entirely unique to the elderly. Enron, Madoff Investment Securities, Lehman Brothers – the list of firms who have caused bankruptcy for a variety of clients in recent decades could fill my entire blog post. My point is this: while the primary job of marketing is to educate consumers, when it comes to ensuring one’s livelihood will remain comfortable for decades to come, I strongly believe that it is the responsibility of the client to understand what types of investments they are and are not comfortable exposing themselves to. With the baby boomers starting to enter retirement, massive institutional pension funds have been flooded with capital over the past decade; the Canada Pension Plan alone has grown from $55 to $161 billion in assets under management in the past nine years. I worry that too much of the baby boomers’ retirement savings comes with a ‘no strings attached’ philosophy as these individuals leave their life savings in the hands of investment professionals and neglect to question or demand changes to their asset mix or company exposures. Nick brings up a very good point that seniors are especially vulnerable to the risky investment strategies of some managers, but I would take that assertion one step further to include any client who does not adequately understand their asset mix or legal relationship with their investment manager. A retiring baby boomer generation dependant on sustained income, the complex and increasing securitization process that few investors truly understand, and a general apathy toward fully understanding one’s retirement portfolio are only a few reasons why I recognize that taking advantage of customers in the investment management space is something that must be seriously addressed in the future by both investment firms and individual clients. Thank-you Nick for your thought provoking post!