Posts by Melissa Ellis
Strengthening Your Client Retention Strategies
Client retention is the lifeblood of the financial advisor industry, but dangerously, it’s also something many advisors take for granted. The industry is evolving at a new pace, and the data shows retention like a wave on the cusp of breaking. As we look to the coming year, here is significant food for thought.…
Read MoreThe Moving Target of Financial Independence
Financial buzzwords have a knack for shifting definitions. In some contexts, what they mean heavily depends on who says them. One of the current popular examples among financial advisors is financial independence. Fundamentally, financial independence has a simpler, literal definition. You might have heard it called “work optional”. Whether or not your clients want…
Read MoreFinancial Fitness Part II
Last week we wrote about financial fitness, drawing parallels between physical fitness and financial fitness. With physical health, achieving fitness comes from a combination of discipline in both diet and exercise. Even if one is diligent with physical fitness, all that hard work can be undone with poor eating habits. With financial health, achieving…
Read MoreMore Advisors Are Outsourcing Investment Management: Here’s Why
There’s a growing trend in the advisor industry toward outsourcing investment management. A Cerulli study revealed that most (54%) CFP professionals now outsource their investment management. In our own conversations, we see a focus on comprehensive planning driving this trend. Advisors want to minimize time spent in the weeds of portfolio management, allowing them…
Read MoreFinancial Fitness
Many people think of the December holiday season as a time for family, loved ones, celebration, and good food and drink. Especially this time of year, discipline seems to take a back seat to enjoyment, much to the chagrin of fitness experts and medical professionals. If you have spent some time in your life…
Read MoreKey Q4 Tax Conversations for Advisors
Advisorpedia recently reported on the gaps between services expected and services received with advisors’ clients. Among the broadest gaps? Tax planning advice. Even though 92% expected assistance with tax planning, only 25% reported receiving it. For many households, especially high-net-worth families, taxes are the single largest expense on an annual basis. The challenge is…
Read MoreWelcome December!
As we await the arrival of December and a possible “Santa Claus” rally, here is what markets have produced year-to-date through Friday, November 24th: As you can see, large cap tech stocks (NASDAQ and S&P) have dominated the capital markets while small caps and bonds have substantially lagged. In a year like…
Read MoreThanksgiving Week
As we enter a trading week interrupted by Thanksgiving, it is a good time to take a pause and survey the broader economic picture. Here are the important drivers: Inflationary pressures continue to recede; but there is some stubbornness to it. The Fed continues to be vigilant with its tightening policies and rhetoric. The…
Read MoreU.S. Credit Rating Downgrade by Moody’s
We wrote about the U.S. financial situation a few weeks ago. We have been concerned about total U.S. debt levels, the cost of servicing that debt as interest rates rise, continued and ballooning deficit spending, and the percentage of total tax revenues used to cover interest expenses. The reality is things are not good.…
Read MoreThings Are Looking Up
Eighty percent of S&P 500 Index companies have now reported earnings for the third quarter and things are looking constructive from a corporate earnings perspective. According to FactSet, earnings are up year over year for the first time since 3rd quarter 2022—by over 3%. The stock market this week reflected this rosy earnings report,…
Read MoreMarket Valuations and Big Cap Tech
At the midway point of this current earnings season, FactSet has reported that both earnings and revenue are up over 2% from a year ago. This resumed growth lends credence to arguments that—after a shallow earnings recession—corporate earnings growth has resumed. We will be monitoring earnings as they come in over the next couple of weeks but…
Read MoreReferral Marketing for Financial Advisors: A Comprehensive Guide
Referrals are the most powerful marketing tool for financial advisors, and for good reason. They accelerate the trust your prospects need to become clients. The challenge? Referrals aren’t usually a predictable channel. It’s true. Without a referral strategy, you’re relying on your clients and friends to do all the work. With a referral strategy,…
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