Financial advisors cannot ignore the business aspects of their profession, and should put thought into how to market themselves. This podcast (4:58) argues that the key objectives should be to become discoverable; to define one’s unique abilities; and to use the advisor’s best communication method to demonstrate how the advisor’s offering addresses the prospect’s unique pain points.
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A best-advisor algorithm can only rank abstractions; it cannot rank real people because it can differentiate between qualitative factors like empathy or judgment. This podcast (4:41) argues best-advisor rankings are just business, and not in its best sense. Marketing often carries a negative connotation, but it’s really a neutral method that can be used positively or cynically. Every advisor should define and highlight the value of the service they offer.
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The more you look into the various “Best Advisor” rankings, the less you will want to eat the sausage. This podcast (9:07) argues that this data is extremely heavily skewed toward the most “productive” advisors, meaning the ones who attract assets under management, and the other data crunched in these algorithms do not speak to “best advisors.” It would be fairer to call these rankings “America’s Wealthiest Advisors.”
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I like studies – which in the investment domain are typically based on surveys of large numbers of people – because they provide an opportunity to avoid making common mistakes. This podcast (4:15) argues that just as doctors, with a front-row view of new medical research, were first to quit smoking, financial advisors at the forefront of investment research benefit from a commitment to remain on the cutting edge of advancements in their field.
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Kim Blanton writing on the Squared Away retirement blog notes that the problem of retirees’ reluctance to spend affects the rich, middle-class and poor alike. This podcast (5:05) argues that the root of the so-called retirement-savings puzzle is a fundamental economic insecurity. Advisors’ job is to provide that security. We discuss the academic solution – annuities – as well as other approaches.
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Seeking Alpha contributor Ploutos calculates that someone who invested on the pre-global financial crisis market peak in 2007 would have more than doubled his money by staying invested until now. This is an important reminder for market timers out there. This podcast (4:49) suggests that disciplined asset allocation can enhance client outcomes, especially during the market rough patches that have the greatest positive impact on long-term investment returns.
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Hebbian theory, a neuroscientific explanation of synaptic plasticity, may offer insights for advisors seeking to protect clients against bad investing habits, such as frequent checking of stock prices or tuning into sensational financial infotainment. This podcast (5:02) suggests that people can change for the better, and advised investors can have better outcomes when their advisors educate them toward good investing habits.
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Daniel Colin James, a futurist and editor-in-chief of ForwardTick.com, wrote a fascinating article brazenly titled “This is How Google Will Collapse.” He offered some compelling reasons, but his timing was off. This podcast (4:56) suggests that the sense of permanence big businesses impart is illusory and that advisors, practically speaking, should ensure that client portfolios can withstand the collapse of any one stock, be it Google or Microsoft.
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Two new retirement surveys seem to be speaking to each other. One comes from Provision Living, and seeks to find out why senior citizens remain in the workforce. The second, a Harris Poll commissioned by TD Ameritrade asks Americans if they’d rather cut back on expenses now or later during retirement. This podcast (4:25) proposes that clients share these findings with their clients, and make their own experience-based contributions to the discussion.
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One of the most confounding investor experiences occurs when one hears conflicting advice from really sharp analysts of the bullish and bearish persuasions. This podcast (5:53) argues that being bullish or bearish is a shallow profession. Advisors need to understand and act on behalf of client goals, beating a path toward satisfaction of those goals despite constantly shifting markets and incessantly contradictory opinions.
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