Ensombl Advice Australia

At the age of 20, James Millard had it all figured out. He was going to make it big in the clothing industry, sell his ‘Insufficient Funds’ branded T-shirts to Billabong and never work a day in his life. Unfortunately for James this dream never eventuated, but fortunately for us, this failed business venture sent James down a 10-year career path in personal finance for which he now co-owns YOLO Financial Services, hustles a lifestyle blog called ‘Sufficient Fundz’ and shares with us a some of the cool and innovative things he and his partners are trying within their business.

Amongst the many topics discussed, here’s some we really liked:

• How YOLO developed an in-depth marketing plan and how they are catering to three very different client demographics
• The (really cool) types of content marketing James and YOLO are focusing on in 2018
• What James thinks is one of the best business play cards you can have (hint: it rhymes with ‘biting a hook’)
• Why it’s difficult for advisers to incorporate an element of ‘story telling’ and how to not just overcome it, but nail it
• Why there is a massive market for one-to-many online courses and who benefits most from this kind of business model

Between juggling a financial planning business, maintaining a blog and recently adding the title ‘Dad’ to his repertoire, James has also kindly put his hand up to be the MC at our upcoming event in Sydney (thanks legend!) with a discussion around starting and scaling an advice business. With a power panel of speakers and an MC all with startup financial advice practices, it’s guaranteed to be a night full of great ideas, advice and inspiration. Click here to grab your tickets.

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And as always, a big thank you to our major partner Zurich and to SunSuper for the continued support.

If straight up insight and opinion on the royal commission and areas around best interest duty, tough regulation for advisers and everything in between makes your ears prick up then this XY Podcast is exactly what you've been waiting for.

With punchy lines like "are they bad advisers or just good employees", Aleks Vickovich, author of G'day USA, award-winning journalist and legend commentator in the financial services space, ignites a constructive and thought-provoking discussion that looks into what brought this Royal Commission to light, implications that are likely to arise for various stakeholders and Aleks' crystal ball prediction on the result of this 12-month inquest. Surrounding the buzz that is the royal commission, both Aleks and the XY panel also touch on other important topics affecting financial advisers like: • Why more and more advice businesses are looking to self-licence • The barriers advisers face having a responsibility to their client's but also to their employers - think professional ethics vs. KPI's. • Implications for advisers regarding best interest duty and the way it is viewed by the law versus being viewed by a judge • Why Aleks believes it's paramount that the industry differentiates between financial product salespeople and holistic advisers but why both play an important role for consumers. Aleks Vickovich is a man of many words. He is willing to say what most are thinking and backs it up with facts and figures that can only come about by surrounding himself with the political play makers and financial industry shakers. This podcast is bound to give you plenty of insight, ideas and perspective. Enjoy!

If straight up insight and opinion on the royal commission and areas around best interest duty, tough regulation for advisers and everything in between makes your ears prick up then this XY Podcast is exactly what you’ve been waiting for.

  With punchy lines like “are they bad advisers or just good employees”, Aleks Vickovich, author of G’day USA, award-winning journalist and legend commentator in the financial services space, ignites a constructive and thought-provoking discussion that looks into what brought this Royal Commission to light, implications that are likely to arise for various stakeholders and Aleks' crystal ball prediction on the result of this 12-month inquest.   Surrounding the buzz that is the royal commission, both Aleks and the XY panel also touch on other important topics affecting financial advisers like:   • Why more and more advice businesses are looking to self-licence • The barriers advisers face having a responsibility to their client’s but also to their employers - think professional ethics vs. KPI’s. • Implications for advisers regarding best interest duty and the way it is viewed by the law versus being viewed by a judge • Why Aleks believes it’s paramount that the industry differentiates between financial product salespeople and holistic advisers but why both play an important role for consumers.   Aleks Vickovich is a man of many words. He is willing to say what most are thinking and backs it up with facts and figures that can only come about by surrounding himself with the political play makers and financial industry shakers. This podcast is bound to give you plenty of insight, ideas and perspective.   Enjoy!

Master of 'technoclientology', financial adviser, behavioural specialist, speaker and author, there's not much that Andy Marshall can't do.

It's been two years since he hosted XY's 'The Modern Adviser' event so we thought a catch up on all things finance, behaviour and everything in between was well and truly in order.

In this comical and thought provoking podcast, Andy gives his insights and demonstrates his expertise by highlighting some important points surrounding the systematic and behavioural elements within the financial advice environment, some of which include:

• The importance of peer-to-peer networks and how this creates innovation within your business
• Why client's respond well to forward thinking advisers and how seasoned advisers are staying relevant
• How to balance the 'warm and fuzzy' goals based advice with the investment position to deliver the best possible outcomes for clients.
• Why sharing your own life experiences or those of other client's is extremely beneficial in building trust during the client journey
• The best kind of Fintech solution to add to your 'weapons of advice choice'
• Three things the best advice businesses are doing differently

Andy Marshall is a serious wealth of knowledge who now spends most of his time with financial advisers, providing new ideas to help implement efficiency into their businesses. With a book titled 'Client Engagement for Financial Advisors' and a passion for using technology to engage with clients in a meaningful and relevant way, this is a guy you definitely want to listen to (and then google later on).

Master of ‘technoclientology’, financial adviser, behavioural specialist, speaker and author, there’s not much that Andy Marshall can’t do.

It’s been two years since he hosted XY’s ‘The Modern Adviser’ event so we thought a catch up on all things finance, behaviour and everything in between was well and truly in order.

In this comical and thought provoking podcast, Andy gives his insights and demonstrates his expertise by highlighting some important points surrounding the systematic and behavioural elements within the financial advice environment, some of which include:

• The importance of peer-to-peer networks and how this creates innovation within your business
• Why client’s respond well to forward thinking advisers and how seasoned advisers are staying relevant
• How to balance the ‘warm and fuzzy’ goals based advice with the investment position to deliver the best possible outcomes for clients.
• Why sharing your own life experiences or those of other client’s is extremely beneficial in building trust during the client journey
• The best kind of Fintech solution to add to your ‘weapons of advice choice’
• Three things the best advice businesses are doing differently

Andy Marshall is a serious wealth of knowledge who now spends most of his time with financial advisers, providing new ideas to help implement efficiency into their businesses. With a book titled ‘Client Engagement for Financial Advisors’ and a passion for using technology to engage with clients in a meaningful and relevant way, this is a guy you definitely want to listen to (and then google later on).

2017 has been a year full of surprises, changes and announcements. We saw a world divided over the inauguration of President Trump, the Australian Government announced a royal commission within the banking sector and cryptocurrencies appear to have become a household term overnight.

For the XY community, 2017 has undoubtedly been the biggest year yet with an increasing presence of nearly 1,500 enthusiastic members driving the positive evolution of financial advice. With the Facebook group evolving into a central intelligence hub for advisers, the podcast getting a professional makeover, a new membership site on its way and events that are now moving out of Sydney and into a national agenda, it's fair to say that when it comes to XY in 2018, you ain't seen nothin' yet!

To reflect on the year that was and to discuss the exciting things ahead; Clayton, Adrian, Ben and Ray all got together to shoot the breeze on things like:

• The hype around Bitcoin and why people want to invest in something 'sexy' (but probably shouldn't)
• Ideas and strategies Ben brought back from Fincon and why you should include content within a service based business to stay relevant
• Everything the XY community can look forward to in 2018
• Different practices and systems that are working (and not working) in advice businesses
• What the next toy of financial advice will be in 2018 (did someone say Big Data?)

…plus loads more and with plenty of laughs!

XY Adviser started when a handful of people got together and asked how they could best serve their clients and the industry they love. Today, the success of XY Adviser is the result of an entire community who understands the value and benefit that comes with sharing knowledge and ideas and supporting each other. 2017 has been great, but we have a feeling 2018 is going to be EPIC!

Enjoy.

2017 has been a year full of surprises, changes and announcements. We saw a world divided over the inauguration of President Trump, the Australian Government announced a royal commission within the banking sector and cryptocurrencies appear to have become a household term overnight.

For the XY community, 2017 has undoubtedly been the biggest year yet with an increasing presence of nearly 1,500 enthusiastic members driving the positive evolution of financial advice. With the Facebook group evolving into a central intelligence hub for advisers, the podcast getting a professional makeover, a new membership site on its way and events that are now moving out of Sydney and into a national agenda, it’s fair to say that when it comes to XY in 2018, you ain’t seen nothin’ yet!

To reflect on the year that was and to discuss the exciting things ahead; Clayton, Adrian, Ben and Ray all got together to shoot the breeze on things like:

• The hype around Bitcoin and why people want to invest in something ‘sexy’ (but probably shouldn’t)
• Ideas and strategies Ben brought back from Fincon and why you should include content within a service based business to stay relevant
• Everything the XY community can look forward to in 2018
• Different practices and systems that are working (and not working) in advice businesses
• What the next toy of financial advice will be in 2018 (did someone say Big Data?) 

…plus loads more and with plenty of laughs!

XY Adviser started when a handful of people got together and asked how they could best serve their clients and the industry they love. Today, the success of XY Adviser is the result of an entire community who understands the value and benefit that comes with sharing knowledge and ideas and supporting each other. 2017 has been great, but we have a feeling 2018 is going to be EPIC!

Enjoy.

Two years ago we interviewed Cathryn Gross who was just two months into launching her brand new business Twelve Wealth. Two years on from the single most downloaded XY Live podcast ever (watch it here), it was a no brainer that we had to get Cathryn back on the show to follow up and get the juicy on what it's really like building an advice business from scratch.

From starting out with referrals from her hairdresser and GP to now working with upwards of 30 really engaged and sticky clients, Cathryn has developed a business model that targets a very specific niche clientele while providing a high level of service focusing on both the logical and emotional value she can add to client's lives and financial wellbeing.

In this episode both Cathryn and Ben are not shy in opening up about some of the important and often personal aspects of running an advice business such as:

• Their pricing models
• Their fee structures
• Their client exit rates
• Their referral process
• Other ways to generate income streams and acquire new clients

…and all with figures included!

Cathryn also explains why she has moved away from the traditional process of trying to implement all of the different elements of a full SOA all at the same time and how she has successfully retained the client's commitment to fulfilling their implementation obligations by doing this.

This episode is for anyone who has ever thought about taking the leap and going out on their own. This episode is for anyone who already owns an advice business. This episode is for anyone who wants some fresh ideas as to how they can best service their clients. This episode is for everyone in advice.

Take it all in, take notes and enjoy!

Two years ago we interviewed Cathryn Gross who was just two months into launching her brand new business Twelve Wealth. Two years on from the single most downloaded XY Live podcast ever (watch it here), it was a no brainer that we had to get Cathryn back on the show to follow up and get the juicy on what it’s really like building an advice business from scratch.  

From starting out with referrals from her hairdresser and GP to now working with upwards of 30 really engaged and sticky clients, Cathryn has developed a business model that targets a very specific niche clientele while providing a high level of service focusing on both the logical and emotional value she can add to client’s lives and financial wellbeing.

In this episode both Cathryn and Ben are not shy in opening up about some of the important and often personal aspects of running an advice business such as:

• Their pricing models
• Their fee structures
• Their client exit rates
• Their referral process
• Other ways to generate income streams and acquire new clients

…and all with figures included!

Cathryn also explains why she has moved away from the traditional process of trying to implement all of the different elements of a full SOA all at the same time and how she has successfully retained the client’s commitment to fulfilling their implementation obligations by doing this.

This episode is for anyone who has ever thought about taking the leap and going out on their own. This episode is for anyone who already owns an advice business. This episode is for anyone who wants some fresh ideas as to how they can best service their clients. This episode is for everyone in advice.

Take it all in, take notes and enjoy!

Is this the most useful whitepaper ever produced in Financial Services?

Benjamin Marshan is at the forefront of a digital whitepaper having just been released by the FPA and encompassing months (and months) of research looking at the marketplace relative to Fintech and the Financial Services industry. We have an accidental run-in at Bunnings to thank for the idea which kick started a project analysing over 400 Fintech startups and piecing together a document designed to act as a 'thought starter' when looking at practice efficiencies and the advice process.

Ben addresses the obvious pain points being felt by most advisers like which technologies should we be implementing in our practices and questions that perhaps we haven't even considered – is there a benefit to working with Fintech companies that look to exclude the adviser? Here's our favourite takeaways from this week's XY Live:

• Why it's important to map out the entire advice giving process within your practice and how to address inefficiencies
• Ben's thoughts on advisers being replaced by robots
• The key area in the advice process that is lacking Fintech
• Why Ben wants to disrupt the way we present the SOA and how he plans on doing it
• How ASIC is monitoring new Fintech companies and their duty of care for clients
• How to decide on which technologies to implement into your practice

With chapter titles such as 'Do you know how to Fintech', this interactive digital whitepaper is chock-a-block full of useful information, tips and advice which you can implement into your practice now and evolve into the future. Don't worry, there is also a paper version available here which can be downloaded, saved, opened, printed, stapled, read and then probably lost in amongst all the other paperwork floating around your office. Or, check out the digital version here and experience interactive technology in the way your client's may just be able to do so with your advice presentation soon.