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Joe:
Thank you for the very very kind plug. I am not sure I qualify as an expert,
but then I am not really sure what an expert is. But I am someone who is
trying to stay up on what is going on in the futures and securities industry
during this time of tremendous change.
>From a professional standpoint there are many risks ahead. Many brokers have
made careers out of just execution. Their days are numbered. I have already
seen a number of marginal brokers leave the industry in recent months because
of the pressure on commissions and service. We have seen a number of firms
sold in the last couple of years from those same pressures.
I recently hired a broker who formerly worked for First American Discount
Corp, recently purchased by ED&F Man. Matt Shelley is an experienced
industry pro, who used to work under me at FADC when I was there in the
1980s. When I was there, FADC had 11 discount desks. When Matt left, there
was one discount desk and bunch of full-service brokers, some who handled
some discount accounts along with their full service business. The discount
business had largely migrated to online trading. Thus, you get the picture.
Brokers who just provide execution are in a shrinking sector.
Brokers must add value to the trader somehow to survive. Some do that by
giving trading advice. I do a little of that for clients, but it is not
something I market as it is a crowded sector full of good and not so good
people and services.
One of the surviving types in the industry, shorn of the execution function,
will be content providers. I consider myself a content provider. I write
about the industry, how it works, where it is going and my experience being a
part of it. To do this, it is important to be well informed. Thus, I read
the different trading lists and forums and have constructed a webpage on my
computer to quickly scan a few dozen web sites and their news or press
release pages.
There are several news organizations that do this too. I subcribe to some
of them. But, I find their focus too wide. So, I constructed my own to
cover the futures and securities industry, with a little b2b and other
related areas thrown into the mix. Since I was going to all these web sites
anyway, I decided to start an email to keep my customers, prospects, friends,
associates and acquaintances informed as well.
It has had a very nice reception and has grown mostly by word of mouth. I
mention it here or there on a post, where it is a relevant factor, but have
tried to keep it low profile. I am going to change that though, though in
the appropriate venues. I am going to start to offer the e-mails as an
official part of my marketing efforts to introduce myself to new and
experienced traders.
Joe told me that I should charge for the service, he liked it so much. One
technology consulting firm catering to the brokerage industry told me they
discussed sponsoring it, they liked it so much. For now, it is free. It is
my contribution to the industry to help educate traders, brokers, exchange
members, exchange staff, quote vendors, CTAs, brokerage executives, media and
others about what is happening, how things work and where are the risks
inherant in the ongoing change.
Of course this also works on several different levels from a marketing
perspective, from an industry networking perspective and a personal growth
perspective. This free email gets my name in front of a lot of people, more
than are just on the list. It gets forwarded all around the world as people
pick and choose the stories and commentary they want to share. Thus I become
a known entity in many different offices and firms. It also allows me to
stay on top of things as people use me as a barometer for news that they
hear. Additionally, I started my career as a journalist and I like to write,
explore issues and express myself.
There was recently an article in the Wall Street Journal talking about the
failure of banner ads to produce the results that were expected. E-mail was
the winner. Content providers were the winners. It was nice to see my ideas
validated, but we shall see what comes. The world keeps changing, and I am
just trying to change with it.
As for soliciting business, I prefer an understated soft sell. If someone
likes me enough that they want to do business with me, they will figure that
out for themselves. Sure, I want to grow my business and make more money.
That is a consideration in any business. But I consider the quality of a
relationship to be a very important factor towards a successful long term
business relationshp. A relationship built on knowledge, understanding and
appreciation of the person you are doing business with is a good way to start
that. Thank you for the opportunity to share and contribute. If you would
like to be added to the distribution list for the Industry News e-mails feel
free to contact me.
Regards,
John J. Lothian
Disclosure: Futures trading involves financial risk, lots of it! John J.
Lothian is the President of the Electronic Trading Division of The Price
Futures Group, Inc.
In a message dated 2/28/01 4:00:52 PM Central Standard Time,
joeduffy@xxxxxxxxx writes:
<< Seems to be a lot of complaining about trading platformns and brokers. I am
sure a lot of it with merit. We all look to John Lothian as an expert here,
and he does run an on line brokerage firm.
I don't know John, as I am happy where I am. But it seems for those who are
not, this might be an alternative to look into. Again, I don't know John
from Adam, and the first time he will know about this is when he reads it,
so I am not plugging him. Just that he seems like a logical place to go for
informed assistance.
He also writes a FREE newsletter about industry events. I have been getting
it a couple months, its great, and he has NEVER in anyway solicited any
business thru it or any other avenue (though I would not think it was
unusual or out of place if he did). Anyway you might even want to have a
look at that. Here is his pertinent info...
jlothian@xxxxxxxxxxxxxx
The Price Futures Group, Inc.
Electronic Trading Division
www.pricegroupetd.com
>>
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