Defining and Refining Your Firm’s Values for 2020
When we ask friends at other houses to describe their company’s culture, we’re often met with an uncomfortable silence. Do we mean...
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The Latest from Finra: If You Change Jobs, Can You Ask Clients to Come Along?
On June 30, 2020, the SEC’s Regulation Best Interest – already familiarly spoken of, with some foreboding, as Reg BI – will come...
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What to Expect in 2020: Three Developments Advisors Should Watch
In a sense, every new year is the same: expect the unexpected. It’s tough to plan for the unknown unknowns, but preparing to meet...
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Helping Clients Avoid Capital Gains Distributions
Clients typically expect to owe taxes on capital gains distributions that their mutual funds pay at year-end. For advisors who want...
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Why Clients Leave and How You Can Keep Them
Why do clients jump ship on you? You’d think the answer was simple: you didn’t earn them money, and in the current extended bull...
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How to Break Through with Stubborn Prospects
Seasoned advisors know the game isn’t easy: signing clients takes diligence, insight, a cogent argument and a talent for...
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Marketing Matters: Don’t Get Caught in the Short-Term Trap
A firm’s marketing strategy – the successful kind, we mean – can never be haphazardly concocted. You must immerse yourself in the...
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One Step Forward, Perhaps: SEC Floats Amendments to Testimonial Rule
Until recently, the SEC has been actively enforcing the Testimonial Rule, which since 1961 has forbidden financial advisors from...
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Reg BI Is Coming to Town: What Advisors Should Do
Regulation Best Interest: that’s it’s full proper name and you’d best make its intimate acquaintance. Implementation is still...
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Closing Time: Getting Business Done Before Year End
Is there still time to close important business before the year comes to an end? We’re tempted to say ‘no’, but that would be no...
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The Tax Planning Benefits of Shrewd Charitable Giving Strategies – For Older Clients
Charitable giving has changed in recent years, driven by tax code shifts that had a mighty impact on venerable tax-limitation...
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Year-End Rundown of Tax Rules on Investments
As the year fades, it’s a good time to review the taxation strategy for your portfolio and consider the ins-and-outs that can...
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New Tax Rules in 2020: How They’ll Affect Wealthy Clients
The new year will ring in tax developments both good and bad for your wealthier customers. It’s also good to recall the upcoming...
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E-Wills Are Now Ready for Prime Time
The idea seems so simple and in keeping with the times, but tradition and established legislation have prevented the broad legal...
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How to Validate Advisors’ Value to Clients
How do you know you’re a good advisor? One big clue is that your clients are better off when following your advice after allowing...
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When Salespeople Can’t Sell
Pity the poor salespeople of our world. All that confidence and energy, boldness and bravery in a landscape of gimlet-eyed...
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