May 14, 2012
By Susan Konig
The branch office manager used to be the highly revered elder statesmen of the industry. No more. Many advisors say the position is increasingly part of a corporate bureaucracy with a mandate to push the agenda of the firm over the interests of the clients....
May 11, 2012
By Mark Miller
We've all seen the studies – one seems to land on my desk once or twice a week. “Americans are living longer.” “Fewer have defined benefit pensions.” “The value of Social Security is shrinking.” “Boomers don't have enough money to retire comfortably.” “A retirement crisis is looming.” ...
May 10, 2012
By Stephen Boswell and Kevin Nichols
Welcome to the world of the elite. There’s a small cadre of elite new advisors, 2.4% to be exact, who are doing the right activities, the right way and seeing phenomenal results. ...
May 8, 2012
By Lauren Barack
Apple owners often claim superiority over PC users believing Macs virus-free. Those days are over. Here’s how to keep your data safe....
May 8, 2012
By Lauren Barack
Randy Beeman is hardly shy about making his voice heard. ...
May 8, 2012
By Lauren Barack
Weather reports are notoriously wrong. No one’s escaped grabbing an umbrella only to find clear skies all day, or bringing the jacket on the day temperatures soar to unseasonably warm. ...
May 3, 2012
By Matt Oechsli
The bad news is that most CPAs don’t trust the financial services industry and therefore don’t trust financial advisors. ...
May 1, 2012
By Diana Britton
May 1, 2012
By Jerry Gleeson
Clients tell advisors they're looking for portfolio products that dampen volatility. ...
Apr 30, 2012
By Jerry Gleeson
Ah, the good old days of the mid-1990s, when business people debated whether they needed a website. Lately there’s déjà vu in the air now that social media is playing a greater role in the affairs of financial advisors. Do I need to be on Facebook, or have a Twitter account? Do my clients really care?...
Apr 26, 2012
By Stephen Boswell & Kevin Nichols
LinkedIn is great for connecting with other professionals and business-oriented clients, but Facebook is the real jackpot for connecting with clients (after all it has over 900 million active users!) ...
Apr 25, 2012
By Diana Britton
Full-service brokerage firms need to take a lesson from their fast-growing online peers when it comes to communicating with clients via technology, says MFEA panelists....
Apr 24, 2012
By Matt Oechsli
Elite advisors are very serious about their profession and are always looking to improve....
Apr 19, 2012
By Matt Oechsli
Our recent research cites that socializing with affluent clients is important in meeting expectations and penetrating spheres of influence. ...
Apr 12, 2012
By Stephen Boswell and Kevin Nichols
We’ve found that affluent clients leave advisors far more frequently for poor service than for poor financial advice. Don’t get us wrong – financial advice is the core of your business, but the affluent consider that a hygiene factor....
Apr 10, 2012
By Lauren Barack
Many financial advisors use their personal phones and tablets for business, carrying around private client data in devices that are notoriously getting lost, stolen or hacked. Here is how to prevent your own personal security breach. ...
Apr 9, 2012
By Philip Palaveev
Staying or going is a critical decision for your practice and given the gravity and consequences of that decision every advisor should take control of the situation....
Apr 5, 2012
By Matt Oechsli
Many financial advisors fail to consistently provide their affluent clients with the high level of service that they claim to offer. Advisors who take the concept of “client experience” seriously develop what I refer to as a client-centric practice that always delivers. ...
Apr 1, 2012
By Mindy Diamond
For advisors with an entrepreneurial spirit and a little courage, starting an RIA and hooking up with a platform firm for middle- and back-office support is a great way to go....
Apr 1, 2012
By Matt Oechsli
These trends will affect an advisor's ability to meet investors' expectations....
Mar 29, 2012
By Jerry Gleeson
Moving beyond the hype and regulatory angst, financial advisors are landing new clients via social media, according to Registered Rep.’s latest research....
Mar 28, 2012
By Jerry Gleeson
Your female clients may have a lower opinion of your skills than you think, according to research. If you don’t learn to communicate with female clients, you are putting much of your business in jeopardy. ...
Mar 22, 2012
By Stephen Boswell & Kevin Nichols
When it comes to social media, advisors have a resounding question, “How do we actually use it and how do we get value from it?” We decided to answer this question by giving you real ways our clients use social media every day... ...
Mar 8, 2012
By Stephen Boswell and Kevin Nichols
You might call it luck, but getting up early, being at a high-end fitness center, and being prepared with a strong value proposition, landed an initial meeting with an excellent prospect. ...
Mar 5, 2012
By Jerry Gleeson
Jordan Waxman can handle the Ironman—he’s planning to run his fifth and sixth triathalons this year—but he couldn’t handle Bank of America bureaucracy. ...
Mar 5, 2012
By Diana Britton
As independent broker/dealers continue to consolidate and the search for profitability accelerates, some firms may be considering dropping their clearing relationship and taking it in-house. Building scale comes first. Could your firm be next?...
Mar 1, 2012
By Diana Britton
National Planning Corporation has expanded its recruiting team with the addition of Scott Montgomery and Keith Mistretta as vice presidents of new business...
Mar 1, 2012
By Jerry Gleeson
When it comes to what they are paying their advisors, investors are clueless. A 2011 survey by Cerulli Associates and Phoenix Marketing International...
Mar 1, 2012
By Diana Britton
RIA custodians like Schwab and TD Ameritrade may be stealing business away from the IBDs. According to a report by Cerulli Associates, 76 percent of dually-registered...
Mar 1, 2012
By Jerry Gleeson
In a year that saw roller-coaster market moves, the nation's top custodians seemed to do all right in their efforts to lure new assets and advisors to...
Mar 1, 2012
By Matt Oechsli
Two broad findings highlight how the economic challenges we’ve been experiencing over the past few years have fundamentally changed the relationship between the affluent investor and financial advisors. ...
Feb 29, 2012
By Jerry Gleeson
Dispensing financial advice for a living is a tough game if you are young.
That’s the conclusion drawn from a new report by Charles Schwab, which shows that advisors under the age of 40 are more likely than their older peers to feel pressure to grow their book of business, or to focus on selling proprietary products.
...
Feb 27, 2012
By Lauren Barack
These days you can’t afford not to be online if you want to build and safeguard your “brand.” There are many things you can do to head off potential trouble and make sure potential clients don’t stumble upon a nasty surprise during a search. ...
Feb 23, 2012
By Stephen Boswell & Kevin Nichols
The following are some common social media faux pas we’ve seen advisors make over the past few years. By reviewing these and inverting, we can learn from our mistakes and ensure we avoid them. ...
Feb 16, 2012
By Matt Oechsli
Minneapolis—“We’ve got to make a change in our support personnel,” John explained with a rather painful expression. “My personal assistant just isn’t capable of communicating clearly with the other players on the team.”...
