Weekend Content for New Planners

Weekend Content for New Financial Planners (February 19-20, 2022)

“Weekend Content for New Financial Planners” is a collection of articles, podcasts, videos, etc. that I’ve been consuming regarding breaking into financial planning, industry trends, career development, and more.


Financial planners Scott Frank and James Conole discuss the best ways to become a financial planner as well as [Podcast]:

  • Their own stories of how they got into the industry
  • The differing standards and models of RIAs and broker/dealers
  • Various entry-level roles, responsibilities, and career pathways
  • Resources for securing new positions

“Probably the best thing that it’s giving you is a chance to observe. Like I said before, you have this sense that it’s all about the money and having to be good financially about what retirement plan is best or what investment strategy is best. That’s kind of what you think it is until you realize that so much of it is really just about how you are really getting an understanding of what’s most important to the client: how are you really understanding their goals, their values, and everything about that. And learning to listen in a way that you get to the heart of what’s important.

So, what I think these first two roles are preparing you to do is really master the financial piece, so that you don’t really have to be thinking about the finances. You can just be thinking about the client and be thinking about what matters most to them.”

What’s The Best Way To Become A Financial Planner? [Scott Frank & James Conole, Real Financial Planning]


How to handle rejection from a prospective client [Article/Gallery]:

“The first and most humbling lesson is simply not everyone sees eye to eye with you and your process. It took some maturity in the business to realize this. Earlier in your career, you are just trying to land clients, but at some point, you cross this invisible line and realize there are enough people out there that need our services, so you can become more selective in trying to find a good fit for both you and the potential clients.

That is why a discovery meeting with a prospect is so important. I usually say that the ‘only agenda I have today is to see if I can add some value to your financial life and see if we are a good fit to work together.’”

What 11 Advisors Learned From Rejection: Advisors’ Advice [Jeff Berman, Think Advisor]


Colton Etherton’s success from evolving his target client to an underserved niche [Article]:

“I thought millennials was a niche in itself, but it’s really still too broad,” he said. “I kind of had trouble with marketing, right? Because I’m trying to speak to so many people, in so many different roles and positions.” 

“Etherton said the rebranding completely changed his business. He’s already added four tattoo artists as clients and has helped a few others with one-time, project-based plans. He went from averaging less than one call a month from prospective clients to a couple of calls every week, he said. Word is slowly spreading, and his marketing efforts have been fruitful.”

How Tattoo Artists Saved An Advisor’s Business [Holly Deaton, RIA Intel]


A throwback discussion between Samantha Russell and Justin Castelli covering branding versus marketing, common marketing mistakes, and more [Video]:

“To make everybody, including you, feel better, just go back Twenty Over Ten’s YouTube channel and watch the first very ten to fifteen videos that were posted, and that will make you feel so good. Because they are horrible: I recorded them in the wrong orientation, I had no editing, no thumbnails.

But you know what, I left them up there because the whole point is don’t let perfect be the enemy of good and done. You need to get started. Getting started is the hardest part of any new habit.”

All Things Advisor Marketing With Samantha Russell [Justin Castelli, The Advisor Of Tomorrow]


Executive performance coach Dr. Julie Gurner on the traits high-performers in finance tend to exhibit [Twitter thread]:


Leveraging emotion in your marketing to build deeper connections with your prospective clients [Article]:

“These emails needed to read as personal to stand out to these prospects and start to build a relationship with them. One that would hopefully end with new clients.

Over the email series, the founder apologized for losing touch and softly reminded the prospect of what the firm did and its value, without pushing too hard. At the end of every email we had the founder write, ‘By the way, I have a question,’ which resulted in 120 replies to the first email.

By the end of the email series, the firm converted 20 of those prospects into clients — at an average annual revenue of $4,200 per client.

Automation sounds impersonal but it doesn’t have to be. Because our emails were repetitive over a period of time and relied on emotion and a personal touch, they struck a chord in the target audience.”

Emotions Can Be The Key To Making Your Firm Unforgettable [Robert Sofia, InvestmentNews]


Nick Maggiulli with a reminder to protect your most important asset [Article]:

“You might not think this has anything to do with investing, but it has everything to do with investing. How you invest your time is far more important than how you invest your portfolio. In other words, asset allocation matters, but attention allocation matters far more.”

Do I Have Your Attention Now? [Nick Maggiulli, Of Dollars And Data]


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