Becoming the go-to expert in your niche isn’t just for influencers; it’s for retirement plan advisors, too.

In this episode of the 401(k) Marketing Podcast, Rebecca Hourihan shares how advisors can become micro-influencers through education, storytelling, and strategic content. From quick videos to compliance-friendly guides, she explains how to build trust and credibility before you walk in the door.

Rebecca also dives into the shift with AI, the power of planning, and how consistent visibility drives results. No matter your work style, she shows how to harness your team’s strengths for scalable, effective marketing.

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What makes startup 401(k) plans the new frontier for retirement savings?

Join Rebecca Hourihan as she sits down with Kevin Spaeth from PenChecks to explore the modern twists redefining 401(k) plans. They delve into the impact of auto-enrollment and escalation, the role of safe-harbor rules, state-mandated IRA programs, and the introduction of strategic tax incentives designed to engage more businesses. 

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About Our Guest:

As part of the Clean Up Crew, Kevin Spaeth helps TPAs support their clients in keeping retirement plans clean, compliant, and running smoothly. The goal: to help clients increase average account balances while reducing fiduciary risk.

Since 1997, Kevin has dedicated his professional career to working with ERISA plans, with a focus on helping small businesses empower their employees to prepare for retirement. His background spans recordkeeping, investment management, and the administration of qualified retirement plans.

Today, at PenChecks Trust, Kevin is passionate about reuniting Americans with their hard-earned retirement savings, ensuring no one leaves behind what they’ve worked so hard to earn.

As the retirement landscape continues to evolve, understanding how new legislation and emerging technologies impact employers and employees is more important than ever.

In this episode, Rebecca chats with Will Hansen, Executive Director of the Plan Sponsor Council of America, to discuss the latest shifts in retirement planning and policy, and what they mean for you. Together, they explore how SECURE Act 2.0 has reshaped the way plan sponsors and employers approach retirement benefits, the growing gap between policymakers and those on the front lines, and how AI might change the future of plan management.

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About Our Guest:

Will Hansen joined the American Retirement Association (ARA) in January 2019 in the new role of Chief Government Affairs Officer. In this position, Will oversees all advocacy activities at the federal, state, and local levels on behalf of the five trade organizations within ARA. In addition, Will is the Executive Director of Plan Sponsor Council of America (PSCA) as of January 2020. Founded in 1947, PSCA has been at the forefront of protecting the American retirement system and is committed to improving workers’ retirement security by providing advocacy, insights, and education to plan sponsors.

What if your 401(k) followed you from job to job as effortlessly as your favorite playlist?

Join host Rebecca Hourihan as she sits down with industry experts Spencer Williams and Neal Ringquist from the Retirement Clearinghouse to explore this game-changing innovation. Discover how the Portability Services Network is tackling the challenge of maintaining retirement savings as employees change jobs, what it took to bring this idea to life, and why it matters to the evolving mobile workforce.

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About Our Guests:

Spencer Williams is Retirement Clearinghouse’s Founder, President & CEO and also is the President & CEO of Portability Services Network, LLC. Retirement Clearinghouse is a specialized provider of retirement savings portability and account consolidation services for America’s mobile workforce. Portability Services Network, LLC is a retirement industry-led utility dedicated to the industry-wide adoption of auto portability.

Williams is an innovator, including RCH’s singular innovation, Auto Portability, which was specially designed to help low-income and minority workers. Portability Services Network is built on a foundation of Retirement Clearinghouse’s intellectual property, technology, and operations.

Neal Ringquist is the Retirement Clearinghouse’s Executive Vice President & Chief Revenue Officer and is a member of RCH’s Executive Leadership Team. Ringquist is responsible for the company’s overall marketing strategy and for all institutional sales activities.

Ringquist has been at the forefront of developing and delivering innovative wealth management solutions to the retirement and investment advisory market for more than 25 years. He joined RCH from Advisor Software, Inc. (ASI), where he served as President and Chief Operating Officer for nine years, responsible for the day-to-day operations of this privately held financial technology company. Previously, Ringquist was vice president of sales and marketing for Morningstar Associates, LLC, a registered investment advisor. Earlier, he was executive vice president of sales, marketing, and client service for mPower.com, Inc.(acquired by Morningstar), which established him as one of the early entrants into the online advice movement.

Join Rebecca Hourihan in this engaging episode of the 401(k) Marketing Podcast as she shares insightful strategies to elevate your 401(k) advisory practice from good to great. Explore Rebecca’s five dynamic techniques to stand out on social media, boost your engagement, and solidify your presence in the retirement plan community.

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Are you keeping up with the AI wave in the financial services industry?

Rebecca Hourihan chats with Spencer X. Smith from AmpliPhi Digital about the transformative power of AI in the retirement plan industry. Get ready to explore how AI has quickly evolved from a niche technology to an everyday tool for financial advisors. Spencer and Rebecca discuss the innovative ways AI is being embraced, share insightful case studies, and offer practical advice for integrating AI into your business to enhance efficiency and profitability. 

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About Our Guest:

After starting his career at IBM during the Y2K days, Spencer X. Smith has always been an early adopter of new technology, with a passion for teaching others what he learns. This dedication to education has led Spencer to deliver over 300 in-person speeches, including at prestigious venues like the New York Stock Exchange, Gillette Stadium in Boston, and the Superdome in New Orleans. From 2008 to 2015, Spencer worked as a 401(k) wholesaler. Since then, he has been a regular presenter at the NAPA 401(k) Summit, the nation’s largest retirement plans conference. The rise of “DeFi Summer” in 2020 sparked Spencer’s deep interest in cryptocurrency and all things Web3, including NFTs, metaverses, and blockchains. Spencer is also among the first graduates of the Economics of Blockchain & Digital Assets program at the University of Pennsylvania’s Wharton School of Business.

Rebecca Hourihan sits down with Mike DiCenso, a renowned expert in institutional retirement plans, wealth management, and fintech innovation. Discover Mike’s profound insights on tackling modern challenges in the retirement plan advisory space and how to leverage them for success.

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About Our Guest:

Mr. DiCenso is a thought leader in Financial Services, Investment Management, Asset Management, and Wealth Management arenas in the Institutional and individual Markets, both USA and International. Focused in the areas of fiduciary process management, fee transparency, innovation, technology, vision, strategy, sales growth, marketing, client service, operations, practice management, M&A, and capitalizing on industry trends. He has been quoted in numerous retirement and financial publications and media sites including PLANSPONSOR, PLANADVISOR, 401kwire.com, the Chicago Sun Times, Defined Contribution, and more.

In this episode, we talk with Brandon Helms, MarshBerry Vice President on the five key strategies for financial advisors to build more value in their businesses. The conversation covers the importance of organic growth, differentiation strategies, succession planning, M&A opportunities, and understanding client demographics. Brandon emphasizes the need for advisors to think like stewards of their business, focusing on long-term success, and client relationships. 

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About Our Guest:

As a Vice President on MarshBerry’s Financial Advisory team, Brandon’s background in building fast-growing financial advisor teams gives him a unique perspective on consulting with advisors on growth strategy and succession planning. His commitment to using clarity to make more informed decisions when working with clients helps drive retirement and wealth advisors to steward their businesses. Brandon’s core focus is providing financial advisors with ideas & insights specific to their business today that align with their vision for the future. Many times, this includes anticipating any potential challenges advisors face as they grow and ways to overcome them.

Rebecca Hourihan speaks with Blake Allison, founder and CEO of LifeCents, on the evolving concept of financial wellness, its challenges, and how it impacts both employers and employees. He emphasizes the need for personalized financial wellness programs and critiques overly complex, one-size-fits-all programs, advocating instead for tailored approaches that consider each employee’s unique financial situation, stressors, and goals. Blake highlights the importance of measuring success through behavioral changes rather than just numerical outcomes, advocating for a more holistic approach to financial health.

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About Our Guest:

Blake founded LifeCents with a mission to empower individuals by making financial health accessible, personalized, and behaviorally driven. Since 2005, Blake has championed a holistic approach to financial wellness, pioneering LifeCents as an adaptive platform that responds to each user’s unique needs, values, and goals. Under his leadership, LifeCents has set a new standard in the industry by combining technology, behavioral insights, and inclusivity to transform the way people engage with their financial health—changing lives and redefining what it means to be financially well.

Rebecca Hourihan is joined by Laura Garfield, co-founder of Idea Decanter, to discuss the evolution and significance of short-form content and video marketing, particularly for financial advisors. Laura emphasizes the importance of adapting to your audience’s evolving preferences, leveraging video for effective communication, and utilizing AI tools to enhance video production.

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About Our Guest:

Laura Garfield spent her teenage years idolizing Jane Pauley and Katie Couric. A thirst for learning and a love of writing had her hooked on broadcast journalism – where you didn’t have to know everything except how to ask the right questions. After graduation, Laura landed her first news gig at a tiny TV station in Hastings, Nebraska. Over the span of more than a decade, she worked her way up through stations in Omaha and New Orleans to a position at CBS News in New York and then CNN in Atlanta.