Wealth management firms have rapidly professionalized, raising marketing budgets and judging marketers by the assets they bring in. The next step is to tie more business growth to channels outside of referrals, according to the 2026 Wealth Management Marketing Priorities Survey from Gregory.
The survey of 100 wealth management marketing leaders reveals an expansive range of marketing priorities, highlighting how wealth managers prioritize marketing budgets, channels, technology, and measurement.
Firm leaders are investing. Of the respondents, 64% increased marketing spend over the past year, and none cut it. In addition, 77% work from an annual plan with quarterly reviews or a formal plan with tracked KPIs, and 77% have a dedicated in-house team of two or more or an in-house lead backed by an agency partner. Lead generation was the top priority for 55%.
Marketers tie their work to concrete results. The largest group, 50% of respondents, judges marketing by net new assets under management or revenue attributed to it, and 35% use qualified leads or prospect meetings. Only 23% say they track attribution very effectively. Another 46% track some activities but call attribution incomplete, and 23% call solving it a top priority.
“Our goal was to create a snapshot of marketing at a very pivotal time for independent wealth managers,” said Joe Anthony, co-CEO and president of Gregory. “We have heard from our clients and guests on Marketing Matchup that in-house marketing functions are growing more sophisticated. Our survey maps the successes and challenges that marketing leaders face today, and marks a starting point for a long-term effort to track the way the growth engines in wealth management change over time.”
Other findings include:
- 71% say client referrals earn the best return, and 86% say referrals supply at least 40% of new business. Earned media, content marketing and events are cited at 6% each, and digital advertising is at 3%.
- 54% have AI embedded in content creation, automation or analytics, and none have not started.
- 88% treat AI search optimization as equal to traditional SEO or ahead of it, and 42% call it their primary focus.
- 27% name uncertainty about which tools deliver measurable ROI as the top barrier to adopting new marketing technology, tied with a lack of internal technical expertise.
