October 3, 2022

When is the last time you took a look at your investment strategy? You probably thought about diversification and which of your investments were performing the best. But one study shows that many investors are also overlooking one big component that could be very important for your planning: ESG investing.

Representing environmental, social, and governance investing, this is all about a strategy in which you’re selective about who you invest in based on the way the company runs the business beyond profit generation.

A study found that only 9% of retail investors are actively incorporating ESG strategies into their plans. Only 21% could even name what the letters stood for, and only 24% could define what ESG meant with regards to an investing plan.

If you’re new to ESG but things like corporate responsibility are important to you, working with a professional is a great way to get acquainted and to become more confident in your approach to ESG investments.

Even though not many people really understand its impact or have taken action steps to diversify with ESG in mind, fund performance perceptions are solid. For example, 41% of investors with ESG strategies believe that returns will be the same as the broader market and another 14% expect ESG investments to perform even better.

Some people start with a relatively simple framework: wanting to invest in companies that have green policies and/or are dedicated to environment giveback campaigns. But the truth is that you might have other social issues important to you, and working with a financial team to identify other companies in that realm can be extremely helpful.