In July we posted a blog titled “Re-Imagining the Wealth Management Experience: Advisor2.0.”  In this blog we described the fact that the experience required to be competitive in today’s wealth management landscape has evolved, requiring more breadth, depth and skill of advisors.  Interestingly, this was one of the most popular blogs we have ever posted,…

Our clients frequently ask us to actively participate in pre-call planning sessions as advisor teams plan for prospect meetings. From these engagements, we’ve identified five fundamental mistakes that we see occurring time and again. The reality is these mistakes also undermine the results of many experienced advisors as certain habits unwittingly developed over time become…

There are some very compelling statistics that confirm the critical importance of equipping new, “next generation” advisors to fill the talent gap the wealth management industry will be facing over the coming years. For example, look at some of the following statistics: 55 The average age of financial advisors 20% Number of financial advisors who…

How will you differentiate and drive growth in the modern era of wealth management? I will start out here by stating the obvious – the wealth management industry is changing, and changing at break-neck speed. But what is not so obvious is that the majority of advisors we see out there continue to prospect, serve…

The Scenario There’s an old story about the future of air travel; the pilot’s job is fully computer-controlled from before takeoff to after landing yet, as the story goes, every flight has a human pilot and a dog in the cockpit. The dog’s job? Bite the pilot if they touch any of the controls. Here’s…

The Scenario Laws enacted by those ladies and gentlemen we send to Congress are seldom a panacea for all. The 2022 Inflation Reduction Act certainly fits that mold, as will be evident when we summarize the winners and losers under the Act. But first, here’s a quick editorial note—as with all of our articles, the…

Why do many small businesses fail after a transition to new leadership? Because the business owner did not plan the transition! Sadly, these business failures can often be traced to wholly preventable causes. So how should a savvy advisor with business owner clients or prospects respond to these avoidable causes of business failure? Use this…

The Scenario Your client received a Restricted Stock Award (RSA). So naturally, they have questions that may range from the basics to maximizing the after-tax value. This article reveals how RSAs work, their pros and cons, and tax issues. How RSAs Work Restricted Stock Awards (RSAs) are a form of equity-based nonqualified deferred compensation granted…

The Scenario Your client was granted incentive stock options (ISOs) by their employer. If your client is like many, the next question could be, “what are my next steps?” The next steps would generally include a brief review of what ISOs are and how they work. We’ll address those steps and then identify how to…

The Scenario Bear markets and sell-offs evoke strong emotional responses that can lead clients to investment decision errors. Yet, tragically, clients may be unaware that their response is emotionally driven, not logic-driven. As a result, in extreme cases, a client’s portfolio can take years to recover from investment decision errors. Challenge for Financial Advisors How…