Helping retirees establish a retirement income planning process

Mon, 8 Feb 2010 14:43:35 GMT

By Jason Lampa
First Published on ProducersWeb

As baby boomers move from accumulating assets to drawing on them, they face significant financial risks. Some of these factors include outliving their assets, health care costs, withdrawal rates, and inflation. Due to the complexity of the retirement planning process, it is expected that investors will turn to financial planners to find solutions that will mitigate these risks. This presents an excellent opportunity for investment professionals to develop a standardized process to attract more assets as retirees look to consolidate their life savings under one umbrella.

To capture this opportunity, it is important that investment professionals begin with a simple philosophy on retirement income management:

The foundation of all retirement planning should be to provide clients with the highest probability of being able to meet their basic needs in retirement (core expenses such as food, housing, and health care).
Retirement income projections should be based on a minimum of 30 years, organized into six intervals of five years each.
Provide a solution that will mitigate risks that can be mitigated. Utilize investment offerings that have a high probability of overcoming risks that clients are willing to take.

On the basis that retirement income management is a continual process, I put forth that there are three steps:

Creating the roadmap

The first step in creating a retirement income plan for clients is the gathering of information through an in-depth interview process. At this juncture, investment professionals should discuss with their clients how the information that is gathered will be used to create the plan. I would suggest to investment professionals that you look to your firm or an outside vendor to provide you with the questionnaire to gather this data.

The next step of the interview process is gathering a snapshot of the client''s assets and liabilities. Included in liquid assets should be retirement plan savings, checking/saving accounts, annuities, and brokerage accounts. On the liability side, information on credit card debt, mortgages, and vehicle loans should be provided.

One of the big advantages to an investment professional that works at compiling a personal balance sheet for clients is the opportunity to see a map of the clients complete financial picture; allowing the investment professional to begin the process of consolidating the clients investments assets over to them.

Implementation

The implementation stage begins after the client has agreed to the action plan. The advisor, with help from their back-office, will be working with the client to fill out the necessary forms to process new accounts, transfers, and the consolidation of investment assets under one umbrella.

The implementation phase is when the advisor, with the client''s input, establishes a withdrawal strategy. Deciding on how income should be drawdown from the client''s retirement portfolio is a critical decision that requires that the clients provide the investment professional with full-transparency into their spending habits and core needs (food, housing, health care, etc.).

As a starting point to creation of a withdrawal strategy, I recommend that the investment professional, with their client(s) sitting there with them, log into the T. Rowe Price Retirement Calculator as a way for the investment professional to highlight the difference between having a customized strategy through them or someone creating a retirement plan on their own. Inputs into the online-calculator are as follows:

A couple, both 60 years old, retiring at age 65
Combined savings of $250,000
Combined salary of $120,000
Each contributing 15 percent to employer retirement plan
Expect $1,000 of monthly income from their investments in retirement
Expect social security of $3,630.00 per month
Monthly expenses in retirement of $7,500
Both individuals live to age 95
Currently contributing a combined $10,000 to stock accounts

The results suggest that the client would need an additional $1,400.00 per month to have an 80 percent chance not to run out of savings by age 95.

Here, the investment professional should let the client know that together, they are going to work toward minimizing that $1,400/month gap.

Expenses need to be divided into core and discretionary, respectively. As mentioned above, core expenses include food, clothing, medical and insurance costs, and transportation. Discretionary expenses include things that make retirement enjoyable: traveling to exotic destinations, starting a non-profit organization, publishing a book on a favorite hobby, building a dream house in Costa Rica, etc.

Basically, the core and discretionary expenses can be divided into what your client needs to live and the things they want to purchase to make life more enjoyable.

Fortunately for investment professionals, financial services institutions have recognized the need to provide better tools and products to meet the needs of investment professionals working with retirees. On the asset management side, firms have created investment offerings such as target date funds, lifestyle funds, retirement income funds and managed accounts with principal protection. Insurance companies have responded to the opportunity by creating annuity vehicles with additional riders that factor in market risk, provide guarantees, and alternative payout structures.

The segment method first created by Denver CFP Phil Lubinski was updated and packaged by David Macchia, CEO of financial marketing firm Wealth2K.

In the October 2008 addition of Retirement Income Reporter, Lubinski provides investment professionals with a hypothesized 65-year-old client with about $1.33 million in investable assets.

At the beginning of the exercise, the investment professional assigns 25 percent of the assets to an emergency fund. Then, the rest is dedicated to the creation of income divided into six segments. Each succeeding bucket is allocated less money, has a longer time-horizon, holds assets considered higher in risk, and is expected to grow faster than each of the prior segments.

The segments utilized by Lubinski are as follows:

Segment No. 1 -- Income for Age 65 to 70, the investment professional allocates $280,000 to a five-year period certain immediate annuity.

Segment No. 2 --To be made available at Age 70, $260,000 invested in a five-year deferred fixed annuity.

Segment No. 3 --Ready in 10 years (Age 75), $200,000 invested in a 50 percent equity, 50 percent bond portfolio

Segment No. 4 --Ready in 15 years (Age 80), $130,000 invested in a 60 percent equity portfolio

Segment No. 5 --To provide income from age 85 to 90, $70,000 in an 80 percent equity portfolio at the start and grows for 20 years.

Segment No. 6 --Place $60,000 in equities with about 50 percent in small-cap funds. According to Lubinski, segment six should be worth $1 million when the client is 90 years old.

Ongoing consulting

According to a Fundquest white paper, "A Process-Centered Approach to Retirement Income," investment professionals should conduct quarterly and annual reviews with their retirement clients. Where the quarterly reviews are used to assess progress versus the plan, the annual review can be used to assess the sustainability of the income plan based on investment performance.

The second reason why investment professionals will want to continue the consulting process with retiree clients is to learn about major events related to age, health, and life (e.g., death of a spouse at age 75). Incorporating these major events with factors such as investment performance and inflation requires ongoing communication between the investment professional and their client.

How to introduce financial life planning into your IFA business

Mon, 8 Feb 2010 09:10:24 GMT

Thinking of introducing Life Planning into your IFA business but not sure where to start?
Need more help to understand specifically how Life Planning can benefit your IFA business?

IFA Life’s founder Philip Calvert has described Life Planning as “The most significant opportunity the financial planning industry has ever seen.”

At a time when the financial services industry is under the microscope, and with many advisers reviewing their business models, Life Planning brings a long-awaited breath of fresh air to the UK.

It is much needed oxygen that’s giving life, energy, enthusiasm and optimism to a forward-thinking group of IFAs and financial planners; planners who are offering a service which is invigorating their careers and the lives of their clients.

With dire predictions of the demise of thousands of IFA businesses, right now is the time to be looking at business models in minute detail. And the good news for many is that Life Planning delivers a structured, proven methodology and process which offers the potential to transform the fortunes of IFAs’ businesses and the lives of their clients, with a process of investigation that creates a deep, insightful and long-lasting relationship between client and adviser.

How else do financial advisers benefit?

A more efficient way to do financial planning
A far greater understanding of clients’ goals and aspirations
Clients who really buy into the process, plus far greater trust
Clients who stay for life
Immediate, high quality referrals
Higher conversion rates
A learnable and trainable methodology
3-5 times the sale value of commission-based firms
The potential for much cheaper PI cover
Excited, energised, motivated clients, advisers and staff

Not only that, but Life Planners report:

Significantly reduced workload
Increased income (Life Planners are in the top 2% of earners in the profession)
Greater profitability per client
More time for their family
More time for hobbies, thinking and focus
More time to develop new income streams from their expertise

Philip Calvert comments:

“For over 30 years, I’ve worked closely with IFAs and financial planners at every level. I’ve seen a multitude of different business models, but I’m left in no doubt that Life Planners are now leading the profession forward to meet the needs of consumers in today’s world.”

IFA Life can provide a variety of ways to help IFAs to integrate Life Planning into their businesses:

Full and half day Introduction to Life Planning workshops - helping IFAs to understand what Life Planning is and how it will benefit their business
Marketing workshops - how to market and promote a Life Planning service
Personal consultancy to help IFA firms introduce Life Planning services within their businesses
eBooks and video materials
Ongoing mentoring

Expert help for IFAs and Financial Planners

Whilst excited about offering Life Planning services, many IFAs need help in marketing and promoting their proposition. So the first of the 'e' materials is now available with a downloadable eBook on the IFA Life website: Marketing for Financial Planners - How to Market and Promote a Financial Life Planning Business. Available here.

Workshops, mentoring and consultancy are provided by IFA Life’s founder Philip Calvert and Tina Weeks of Financial Weeks Ltd.

Tina Weeks is a graduate of the Kinder Institute Seven Stages of Money Maturity workshop and the five day EVOKE® advanced Life Planning training. Weeks is the UK representative for the Kinder Institute and now assists George Kinder in the delivery of his trainings and is on course to be the first female Kinder Registered Life Planner in the UK.

Tina comments:

“Financial life planning is rapidly catching the imagination of IFAs everywhere, with many realising that it can build value in their business and add significant value to clients.”

“But many IFAs are unsure as to what to do next, how to introduce it into their services and how to market and promote it. Our workshops and consultancy will enable many IFAs to understand the benefits of providing a life planning service and how to get the message out there.”

Details of forthcoming workshops will be posted shortly, but for information on consultancy on introducing Life Planning into your business, please contact Philip Calvert on 07773 359 619 or by email to philip@ifalife.com

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Just Be Nice: A Case Study of Karma Marketing in Action

Mon, 8 Feb 2010 05:31:32 GMT

This is a guest post from Laura Biskupic, Marketing Director of Winch Advisory Services, LLC in Appleton, Wisconsin. In November, I wrote a blog called <a href="http://kristenluke.wordpress.com/2009/11/08/karma-marketing/"> Karma Marketing</a> which discussed the concept that doing good deeds will result in positive outcomes for a firm’s marketing efforts. Laura, who is a reader of my blog, wrote to me with her own case study of how her firm applies a similar concept. In this post, Laura shares how her firm has integrated their philosophy of “Just Be Nice,” into their marketing plan.


Sometimes, the most effective marketing tools can be gleaned from maternal advice. “Just be nice,” might be a universal mom phrase to stop the squabbling, but it’s also an effective attitude for any small business.


At our firm this past year, we planned several marketing activities that centered on the “just be nice” theme. Although many of the activities were met with initial skepticism by the staff, all of them ended up being extremely positive experiences.


As a company, we participated in a walk for our local chapter of the National Association for Mental Illness (NAMI). Initially, only a few employees agreed to join me and when the day dawned cold and drizzly, I was pretty sure I’d be marching solo. But by the time the walk took off, a dozen co-workers and spouses joined me and we ended up having a great time, bonding as a team and demonstrating to our clients, who are board members of the charity, that we were willing to give up a Saturday morning to support the cause. Additionally, we learned about an impressive local program and we received an added bonus when a picture of our staff participating in the walk appeared in the local newspaper. I wrote about the experience in our monthly newsletter, making another 450 clients aware that we are not a nine-to-five, Monday-through-Friday bunch.


Our participation in a local NFL player’s charity, which included a winning bid on luxury box seats with the player’s family, resulted in a coveted spot at Lambeau Field for the must-see Packers-Vikings game and an extremely fun evening for staff members and clients. Again, a photograph of us at the event made it into the local paper and I also wrote about this experience in the monthly client newsletter.


In addition to our involvement with the walk and the charity event, we adopted a family at Christmas. This year we are continuing our “just be nice” philosophy and are planning an event to support a cancer-related cause.


I recommend firms find a cause they believe in and support it both financially and publicly. A genuine commitment to a cause, coupled with a “just be nice” attitude, will reap all sorts of rewards.


Laura Biskupic is the Marketing Director of Winch Advisory Services, LLC in Appleton, Wisconsin. For more information about the firm, visit <a href="http://www.winchfinancial.com/"> www.winchfinancial.com</a>.



Have a case study you would like to share about your own firm’s marketing successes? Email me at <a href="mailto:kluke@wmmktg.com"> kluke@wmmktg.com</a> to submit a guest blog.




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Residential - what''s it all about then?

Sun, 7 Feb 2010 20:23:42 GMT

By Martin Skinner

A love affair - my story
I''ve been a passionate advocate of residential property investment particularly in London since I bought my first investment property our in the far reaches of London''s Docklands in 2002. My love affair with residential began much earlier though...

I spent my formative years from 7-18 growing up in a big house on 3/4 of an acre of land in East Sussex. My parents had settled there after many years of travelling and teaching in far off places like Uganda & the Solomon Islands, where I was born. It wasn''t a particularly expensive house or in a particularly expensive area but it had a big garden, big trees, a gravel driveway and a garage big enough to play table-tennis & snooker in. And I had a bigger bedroom than I remember any of my friends having - so they often came to my place - I loved it ! An Englishman''s home is his castle and I didn''t have to pay any rent...

... until I moved up to London for university in 1998 and had to pay rent. From 11 years old onwards I''d always worked to earn extra money to pay for extra toys - first skateboards, then bikes and finally sports cars - and I really didn''t enjoy having to throw a whole £300 a month away on something I''d always enjoyed for free. Have you any idea how much faster I could make my car go for £3,600 (12 months'' rent)?? My parents didn''t seem to share my pain. "I could buy a 3-bed ex-council flat, rent out the spare rooms to friends and live rent free if only you''d guarantee the mortgage" I explained. Mum would have helped but my dad, who was a tough old sod from an army background, threatened to divorce her and move out if she took such a huge risk on me. And then my car got stolen.

Anyway, as soon as I had the salary to support it without a parental guarantee I bought my first 3-bedroom house. I paid £220,000 for it in March 2002; quickly knocked the kitchen into the dining room to free up an extra bedroom and let the 3 rooms out. I received enough rental income to pay the mortgage, all the bills and still left me with £500 a month (and my own bedroom). I then re-mortgaged it for £70,000 extra just six months later. It would have taken me at least 10 years to save up that much money from my £34,000 a year job and I was convinced; this was how I would earn my money.

Institutions - still flirting
Meanwhile institutional investors rarely share the passion I have for the sector and consistently struggle to get their products beyond first base. A number of large UK institutions announced their intentions to invest last year but almost a year on they still haven''t got them off the ground. The main reasons appear to be:
•    More active management required
•    The recent rebound in market values
•    Lower net yields compared with commercial
•    Short-term tenancies (longer-dated income is preferred)
•    Reluctance from banks to release large volumes of discounted stock

In addition to this many financial advisors struggle to differentiate between an investor (or client)''s home and their investment portfolio and therefore look to diversify into commercial property over residential alternatives.

These are not insurmountable challenges however and some including Invista Real Estate and Inspired Asset Management (who I advise) with their Urban Share Fund are succeeding with their products.

Why not just stick with commercial property?
Assets are generally valued based on multiple of their current and future income (in this case net rental yields). And rents are still under downward pressure for offices, industrial and in particular retail where sheer weight of money meant more space was developed. Combined with changing consumer and occupier behaviour (online shopping for example) the recovery in commercial property is likely to be much more muted.

In residential meanwhile there was a housing supply shortage/crisis before the downturn even began. The demand pressure is building and the supply-side is hamstrung. National house builders had to shrink their businesses to survive the recession and could take 5 years to get back to where they were in 2007 and smaller developers cannot raise the development finance they need to produce new stock.

Hybrid variants of residential including affordable housing and student accommodation are attracting more attention from investment funds but even they are both still in short supply; particularly in London where according to Savills student numbers are growing at 15 times the rate of new supply. London is also where waiting lists for council housing have reached such extreme levels that dedicated workforces are being recruited to persuade those on the lists to look to the private sector for help. Private landlords of course prefer to steer well clear of tenants on housing benefit after suffering huge losses when the government diverted payments from landlords to tenants who then frequently failed to pass them on.

Anecdotal evidence from West London agents suggests rents are increasing again and at quite a pace. Knight Frank is forecasting house price increases of 34% in London over the next 5 years. The Centre for Economics and Business Research (CEBR) expects prices in the UK as a whole to rise by 20% over the next 3 years as banks step up lending and interest rates remain low.

Historically residential property has proven to be a relatively safe asset class hence the expression ''as safe as houses'' and:
•    outperformed other asset classes
•    offered higher income yields than bonds
•    offered an effective hedge against inflation

Whether the powerful few step up their investment programmes in Residential Property or not it''s clear that in the years ahead many students and young graduates are going to have a much harder time finding accommodation they can afford to rent let alone buy.

If you would like to learn more and/or discuss some of the pressing issues faced by our next generation please book your tickets for our University Challenge event. We will be hosting a discussion involving fund managers, property managers and students at the May Fair Hotel in London from 6.30pm on Thursday the 11th February. The last few tickets are available now on http://inspired.eventbrite.com.

How to Market and Promote your Financial Life Planning Proposition

Sat, 6 Feb 2010 16:34:31 GMT

MARKETING FOR FINANCIAL PLANNERS – How to Market and Promote your Life Planning Proposition

Increasing numbers of IFAs and financial planners are discovering that adding Life Planning to their service proposition is a powerful and proven way to enhance both the value of their business and the value they add to clients.

At a time when the financial services industry is under the spotlight, and with many advisers reviewing their business models, Life Planning brings a long-awaited breath of fresh air to the world of financial advice.

It is much needed oxygen that’s giving life, energy, enthusiasm and optimism to a forward-thinking group of IFAs and financial planners; planners who are offering a service which is invigorating their careers and the lives of their clients.

According to the Kinder Institute of Life Planning, there are many proven benefits of introducing Life Planning to your proposition, including:

A process which creates a deep, insightful and long-lasting relationship between client and adviser
A more efficient way to do financial planning
A far greater understanding of clients’ goals and aspirations
Clients who really buy into the process, plus far greater trust
Clients who stay for life
Immediate, high quality referrals
Higher conversion rates
A learnable and trainable methodology
3-5 times the sale value of commission-based firms
The potential for much cheaper PI cover
Excited, energised, motivated clients, advisers and staff

Not only that, but Life Planners report:

Significantly reduced workload
Increased income (Life Planners are in the top 2% of earners in the profession)
Greater profitability per client
More time for their family, hobbies, thinking and focus
More time to develop new income streams from their expertise

IFA Life’s founder Philip Calvert has described Life Planning as “The most significant opportunity the financial planning industry has ever seen.” But for advisers to reap the rewards that Life Planning can bring to their business, it’s important that they are able to communicate their service clearly to clients, prospects and professional connections.

That’s why IFA Life has produced a new guide to help you:

MARKETING FOR FINANCIAL PLANNERS – How to Market and Promote your Life Planning Proposition

From Seminars to Social Media, you’ll discover a wealth of different and proven ways to get your message out there. Including

Eleven proven ways to promote your business and win new clients
Online tools and websites which will attract new prospects
Proven techniques to appear on the first page of LinkedIn search results
And much more

The guide has been written for IFAs, financial planners and other financial advice professionals who wish to introduce Life Planning into their business and service proposition. Whilst it refers to the Kinder EVOKE® advanced Life Planning training, it is equally relevant to all Life Planning methodologies.

Indeed, the guide has benefits to any financial advice firm wishing to enhance its marketing and communications strategy.

"We've been working with Philip Calvert to promote our Financial Life Planning proposition to clients, and the tips and techniques in this guide have made getting the message out there so much easier and more effective. Highly recommended - download your copy today." Tina Weeks, Serenity Financial Planning

To own your copy of this eGuide today, simply order safely and securely with your credit/debit card using the link below, or pay with PayPal. Your investment is just £39.97 (inclusive of vat).

And for a limited period you will receive a free eBook copy of Philip Calvert's acclaimed Successful Seminar Selling (the paperback is currently selling for between £50 and £150 on Amazon)

Three types of people who should give up Twitter. Any IFAs in this group?

Sat, 6 Feb 2010 14:16:09 GMT

Throughout the world there are people sitting right at this moment, scratching their heads and wondering "Should I use Twitter?". Every day people ponder over joining up with Twitter; yet each day people stop using Twitter as well. There is a never ending revolving door of people joining and then leaving (or at least leaving their accounts dormant). Importantly, though, there is a real pressure for business owners to join. And that in itself could be a problem.

If you are a loner, perhaps social networking on Twitter is not for you

For instance, research shows that in the past year the most profitable companies have been those who have engaged heavily with social media. In particular, the firms like Starbucks and Dell, who have used Twitter enormously, are the ones that have seen the best financial improvement. There appears to be a link between business results and use of social media. Cash-strapped chief executives and business owners must be looking at this success and asking "if they can do it, why can't we?".

Similarly, family members who engage with Twitter are likely to be enthusiasts for the network, trying to get the rest of the family to join up so they can all have fun together online, share images at TwitPic and keep up-to-date with what each other has been doing. It all sounds like a good idea and so brothers, sisters, cousins, uncles and aunts, all think "Mmmm, this might be a good idea".

But then they get online and rather like the CEO facing Twitter for the first time they ask "What on Earth is this all about?". Some people investigate and work out what they can do. Others download useful booklets on Twitter, and some struggle on and just hope they can "get it". But should you struggle on? Should you do all that research and find out how to use Twitter? Should you go to a workshop on Twitter?

Possibly; but possibly not. Some people are just not made for Twitter. They are not the kind of people who will be able to get on with Twitter, no matter how valuable they can see it might be from a logical perspective. If you have struggled with Twitter, you might be one of the people it's not aimed at - so stop using it...! Otherwise you will waste your time trying to understand it, work with it and use it. That will lead to frustration, even stress. And that will affect your business - and your relationships.

Give up Twitter if you are an Introvert

Twitter is a social environment. It's full of people who love being with other people. True there are probably more than a few narcissists there as well, but on the whole it is where people who love talking to other people congregate. Introverted individuals prefer solitary occupation and, importantly, they tend to be single-focus people. In other words they are less able to multi-task than extroverts. Twitter is a multi-tasker's dream - you have Twitter open in one window, while you busy yourself in another, every now and then looking at something your Followers are chatting about. Indeed, you have to use Twitter whilst doing something else, otherwise you'd probably never get any work done. As a result, Twitter is geared much more to the extrovert than the introvert.

Give up Twitter if you are a Perfectionist

If you dot the i's and cross the t's, Twitter is not for you either. You'll spend too long crafting Tweets and replies, when the "instant" conversational tone of Twitter doesn't work well with that kind of approach. You'll also get immensely frustrated with the poor spelling, the inaccuracies and the bad grammar. But spoken language is also grammatically poor when compared with written language - it's just that we don't see it. On screen, that spoken style so dominant on Twitter is exposed, warts and all. If you are a perfectionist, or someone who likes things "done right", then Twitter will frustrate and annoy you considerably.

Give up Twitter if you are Creative

Creative people are generally poor at time management. Studies show that the people who are good at managing time tend to be less creative than people who are pretty rubbish at time management. Twitter can eat into your plans easily. As you get hooked into a conversation, as you discover interesting things to read and as you find more fascinating people to Follow, you can spend hours and hours just Twittering away. If you are not a creative type you will be able to more easily manage these kinds of distraction which Twitter provides. But if you are a creative individual, there's a chance you'll while away the hours and not get any work done..!

So who should be using Twitter then? Well if we take away the introverts, the perfectionists and the creatives we are left with a careless, unimaginative, extrovert...! And do you really want to spend your time with lots of them...?

Having said this, you might not need to give up Twitter after all. If you are an Introvert you can listen - just read the Tweets that interest you and follow the links, but don't join in. In other words, do the same as you do down the pub - eavesdrop. If you are a Perfectionist you can get your own Tweets right, of course, but if you learn the Twitter lingo, you'll discover that the spelling isn't incorrect, it's just a new language you need to learn. And if you are a Creative person why not come up with an idea for earning your living via Twitter? Your creative brain could work that out and you'd then be able to while away those unplanned hours on Twitter and still pay the bills.

In other words, Twitter is for everyone - and we all use it in entirely different ways. So just because people in your company say there is a "right way" of using Twitter and just because your cousin tells you that you ought to share family photos using Twitter - don't believe them. Do what works for you and use Twitter the way you want to. That way it will work for your business or your family because you will be enjoying it. Much of the frustration about Twitter is because people feel forced to use it in particular ways. There is no right or wrong - unless you are a perfectionist of course..!

Graham Jones
Internet Psychologist

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Agents versus principals

Fri, 5 Feb 2010 09:38:05 GMT

In all the outpourings of angst over the global financial crisis there is one group that has suffered more than any other, yet its voice has been drowned out by politicians, the media and taxpayers. It is shareholders in banks that have been the hardest hit by this financial Armageddon. Some commentators would argue that speculators holding bank shares simply got their just desserts for holding such risky investments. That is unfair though because for most of the last half century bank shares were regarded as rather boring and less risky than other sectors such as technology and commodities. Moreover, many individual shareholders became accidental capitalists as a consequence of the demutualisation of a number of building societies. Few could accuse those venerable institutions of playing fast and loose in the world of finance in their original form.

The reality was that banks shares formed the bedrock of a great many portfolios ranging from individuals, income funds and pension funds. For thoe investors to have avoided a sector that was generating about £20 billion of dividend income, about one third of the total cash flow from the market, would have been nonsensical. Two years ago, before the great implosion, this sector was valued by the market at about £200 billion. That was a staggering large amount of capital.

So who was responsible for vaporising it? The simple answer is that it was largely in the hands of a small group of people who were, for a while, on the front pages of newspapers up and down the land. Sir Fred Goodwin, Andy Hornby, Sir Victor Blank and so on. In fact these men were not custodians of that capital but the agents responsible for deploying it. They, in the truest sense of the phrase, were merely managers. They did not represent the owners of that capital but were deploying it for the greater good of the shareholders.

The agents deployed the capital on behalf of the principals. But the rewards for the risks incurred went to the agents who organised the trade, not to those who took the risk. No wonder the system blew up. If the principals, the shareholders, had been properly rewarded for the risk, and kept the proceeds, the banks would all have had stronger balance sheets.

Of course history records that then, and even now, the executives made themselves very rich in the process. Not only did they reward themselves very handsomely through wages and bonuses they also decided that they would like to become shareholders as well. So they awarded themselves options enabling them to become part owners of the business. Unlike other shareholders though, they did not have to write out a cheque for their investment. They got the shares for free just for turning up and doing their job as directed by the owners. It’s not a perfect analogy but it is a bit like a window cleaner turning up on a regular basis, cleaning the windows of your house and, in addition to being paid, demanding and being given a small share in your house.

Most householders would not contemplate such an agreement. Why should they give up a part share of an asset to someone who is merely following orders? Yet this transfer of ownership is precisely what happened at the banks, and it is still going on. When Barclays sold its iShares business in 2009 Bob Diamond received millions of pounds for the shares he owned in that division. Did he buy them? I don’t think so.

It is this insidious dilution of the original owners of the business that is at the core of the financial crisis. Managers, the agents, acquired part ownership from the shareholders, the principals, by stealth and then treated all the capital in the same way. As if it was free.

In theory the rights of the shareholders are protected by the watchful eye of the non-executive directors. But take a look at the board of Barclays as an example. CEO John Varley, with 622,000 shares and Bob Diamond with 8.3m shares are executives, as is Finance Director Chris Lucas with 101,700 shares. They have to explain their actions to the shareholders and take instructions from the non-executives. But who are they?

The Chairman is Marcus Agius, a Swiss banker, so he doesn’t represent British shareholders but has 113,500 shares. John Sunderland, with 80,000 shares used to run Cadbury. David Booth owns 73,000 and used to work for Morgan Stanley. Simon Fraser with 46,000 shares was a fund manager at Fidelity before he retired. Fulvio Conti has 39,000 shares and currently runs Enel, the Italian energy company. Leigh Clifford with 35,000 shares used to run Rio Tinto and is now Chairman of Qantas. Richard Broadbent with 34,500 shares is Chairman of Arriva. Andrew Likierman with 23,000 shares is Chairman of the National Audit Office. Michael Rake with 15,000 shares used to work for KPMG and is now Chairman of BT. Finally there is Reuben Jeffery who spent 18 years at Goldman Sachs.

The non-executive directors are clearly there to cement business relationships. It is patently clear that none of them represent large, long term shareholders. There is no one on the board of Barclays Bank who is actively involved in managing money. There is no representative from Schroders, Prudential, Standard Life or Aviva, the biggest money managers in the UK. Neither is there any representation from hedge funds or sovereign wealth funds, many of whom will have capital invested in the bank. Traditional fund managers will of course declaim that they cannot be directors because it would generate a conflict of interest and would inhibit their ability to trade if they became privy to inside information. That is less relevant now because so much money these days is run on a passive basis. Portfolios are constructed totally independently of any “information” that fund managers might be able to acquire from a board meeting or anywhere else.

Passive mangers now have the worst of all worlds. They are custodians for pensions and ISAs yet can only stand and watch, passively, as large banks deploy that capital in a way that could destroys it.

Alan Greenspan, former chairman of the US Federal Reserve, was surprised by the financial crisis. He thought the self interest of all the participants would inhibit them from undertaking activities that were likely to result in such a catastrophe. The problem was that the agents of the crisis were not risking their own capital. The principals, whose capital was being risked, never got a chance to express their opinion.

There will be other financial crises, it is human nature. But it is possible to ensure that this one is not repeated. The first step would be to ban the use of share options as a means of incentivising bank executives. The second is for shareholders to ensure that they are adequately represented on the boards of banks. Once there they need to understand the risks that are incurred and ensure the return is sufficient compensation. Most importantly, they need make sure the risk takers are rewarded, not the agents.

Rob Davies

www.themunrofund.com

Big FINRA week spurs early release of Advisolocity financial social media report

Fri, 5 Feb 2010 00:13:44 GMT

Mutual fund marketers and compliance officers are cautiously cheering the long-awaited social media guidelines from the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA).

D. Bruce Johnston, distribution media consultant for DBJ Associates, and Advisolocity, a new social media forum for advisors, said this week, "The financial professionals I''ve been speaking with are feeling good about FINRA''s hard work."

He cited two areas he termed positive for advisors and money managers looking to expand their social media presence. "Archiving technology, for one, is here today to meet the FINRA rules requiring record retention. The software-as-a-service company Socialware seems to be doing a particularly good job in this department."

The requirement for in-house development of social media policies is a big plus, too, Mr. Johnston added. "It''s more work in the beginning for a firm, but it will allow a lot of smart flexibility. Some firms have already said that they want to use interactive blogs to emphasize thought leadership and subject matter expertise only -- and leave investment marketing to their web site. Why not make that the official policy?"

Social media buzz came to a head with this week''s FINRA webinar. "From the interest we''re seeing and the calls we''re getting,” Mr. Johnston said, “We thought financial professionals could use our new white paper ahead of Advisolocity’s official March 1 launch date."

Mr. Johnston invited interested professionals to register and download their complimentary copy of One-2-One, How Social Media Lets You Have 1000 Conversations at Once, directly from the Advisolocity blog at http://tinyurl.com/yjcf32l.

For breakaway brokers, Advisolocity offers way to test power of social media

Mon, 1 Feb 2010 13:11:52 GMT

Distribution media consultant D. Bruce Johnston announced this week the March 1 launch of a new strategic, creative service called Advisolocity dedicated to thought leadership messaging strategies for advisors in transition.

“First: It’s about each advisor, their vision and the clients they serve. It’s about building conviction and consensus around their story,” Mr. Johnston noted.

“Second: It’s about speed to market when nothing less will do. Advisors will find they can actualize their vision with Advisolocity faster and more cost-effectively than with conventional agencies.”

Third: It’s coming to the RIA world March 1.

Zach Hedges, project developer, added that his prospects and clients were increasingly demanding a more intense focus on blending low-cost solutions into the messaging mix. “Social media is like free air time,” Mr. Hedges said. “No entrepreneur can afford to ignore free exposure. Thoughtful decision-makers are finding that social media strategies quickly reward them with low-cost, creative strategies that make it easier to attract and retain clients and assets.”

In the meantime, advisors are invited to contact the Advisolocity team at this link to discuss their current situation.

Compliance Resources for Social Media Marketing

Mon, 1 Feb 2010 04:16:48 GMT

Last Monday, FINRA released Regulatory Notice 10-06: Guidance on Blogs and Social Networking Web Sites. These long awaited guidelines finally gave some direction on how registered representatives can use social media for marketing purposes. Since the release, there has been quite a bit of discussion online about the topic. Since I am not personally an expert on compliance, I thought I would share with you some of the commentary and resources that have been published this past week on this topic:

Regulatory Notice 10-06: Guidance on Blogs and Social Networking Web Sites

FINRA, January 25, 2010

In the Game: New Rules for Social Media

Financial Planning Magazine, January 29, 2010

Whitepaper: The Companion Guide to FINRA/SEC Social Networking Compliance

SocialWare, January 2010

Special Webcast: Advisers and LinkedIn

InvestmentNews, January 26, 2010

Social media: 10 things every adviser should know

InvestmentNews, January 27, 2010

FINRA Cautions Advisors About Social Media

Financial Advisor, January 26, 2010 If you are interested more in this topic, I encourage you to follow these bloggers who are closely monitoring the topic:

Bill Winterberg, FP Pad

Pat Allen, Rock the Boat Marketing & Advisor Tweets

Mark Astarita, SECLaw.com

Katherine Kilpatrick, BlissPR

For a few more days (or until Twitter stops storing the tweets) you can view what people were saying about the guidelines on Twitter: http://search.twitter.com/search?q=%23finrasm

Kristen Luke is the Principal of Wealth Management Marketing, a firm dedicated to providing marketing strategies and support for financial advisors. Kristen works with independent advisors to develop effective marketing plans and provides the back office support required to implement the strategies. For more information, visit www.wealthmanagementmarketing.net.

Your Money Or Your Life

Wed, 27 Jan 2010 04:31:03 GMT

“We all have one life and one chance to make the most out of it” is the foundational belief that I’ve built my financial advice business upon.

Unfortunately, many in the business of delivering financial advice seem to see your money and your life as important, but competing, objectives that you have to choose between.

A couple of examples …

Most advisors will administer a multiple choice “risk tolerance questionnaire” to determine how much investment risk you think you can stomach. Then, to make matters worse, they’ll typically design your investment portfolio to position you at your stated maximum level of risk based, of course, on your questionnaire. What if you want to take as little risk as possible? Is that about your money or your life?

I’ve seen and heard many advisors argue that you shouldn’t reduce your debt with investment dollars. Their argument is that over time, the return on your investments should exceed the cost of your debt and you can get more leverage from your dollars by carrying the debt. (Note: always be wary when the word “leverage” is used). Is this about your money or your life?

What about assumptions used in planning projections? This is dangerous ground, and I’ve seen some really scary numbers and rationalizations used. I’ve seen some advisors use “conservative” projections in their planning work, but they still assume straight-line projections which means they pick an assumption and project that the client will experience this return each and every year into the future. About the only gurantee that I can make in my work with clients is that you will not experience the same return each and every year going forward. But there are more issues besides the problematic use of straight-line assumptions. What if because of your “conservative” assumptions, you are working longer than you may need to or saving more than you may need to or both? And if you’re assumptions are too “aggressive”, things can quickly come crashing down like a house of cards. Again I ask you, are these decisions based on your money or your life?

By now, you may wonder if there is an alternative, and I’m happy to say that there is.

Imagine all financial decisions being driven by what’s most important to you and your family. Imagine an approach to financial advice that focuses on making the most of your one life. How would this approach address the scenarios above?

Instead of a multiple choice risk tolerance questionnaire, I would encourage you to think of risk from 2 perspectives: and Ideal and an Acceptable. Ideally, what is the minimum level of risk you would like to experience. And, if the situation called for is, what is an Acceptable level of risk you’d be willing to tolerate if it meant the difference in reaching your goals.

What about debt reduction or elimination? Again, think in terms of Ideal vs Acceptable. Maybe it would be Ideal for you to have no debt and you want to include a plan of action to eliminate your debt in your overall strategy. But then again, if the situation called for it, maybe it would be Acceptable to you to continue to carry a 1st mortgage on your home for the time being.

Assumptions? This is where we can embrace the uncertainty of the markets and “stress test” our plan and it’s assumptions through the use of probability testing, or what is often referred to as a Monte Carlo calculation. This isn’t a perfect science, but it is a much better solution than the use of simple, straight-line return assumptions.

This article isn’t designed to help you solve your most pressing financial needs. Instead, I hope you’ll begin to understand that financial decisions and financial advice are all about balancing trade-offs based on what’s most important to you.

And I believe that the balance between your money and your life is one of the most important aspects of professional financial advice. You need to strike a healthy and comfortable balance between enjoying the fruits of your labor today while still having rational confidence that you’re prepared for the uncertainties that inevitably lie ahead in each of our lives.

It’s not a question of your money OR your life.

It’s a pursuit of your money AND your life.

Measure the Success of your Marketing through your CRM

Mon, 25 Jan 2010 04:22:47 GMT

Marketing is an area of business that is often difficult to track for effectiveness. We would all like to know what our return on investment is for any specific campaign, but more often than not, we find it nearly impossible to do so. The reason we struggle with this is because it is rare for a client to come from one specific campaign. For example, you might meet a prospect at a Chamber of Commerce mixer, send him an invitation to connect on LinkedIn, add him to your monthly e-newsletter distribution list and invite him to your client appreciation golf tournament before he schedules an appointment. Which one of these campaigns was responsible for bringing in the client? You may say the Chamber of Commerce mixer since that is where the initial contact occurred, but that event alone would not have been sufficient. Some campaigns are easier to track than others, such as a radio show or a workshop, since there is a measurable call to action (e.g. a specific phone number to call to respond to the campaign). But who is to say that a prospect only decided to attend a workshop when they received the invitation because they had been listening to the radio for years? No single marketing campaign works alone. It is all of the marketing campaigns in aggregate that produces results.

Just because marketing is difficult to measure, doesn’t mean you should give up any attempt to do so. Your time is valuable and you have a limited budget so you will want to make educated decisions about where to best allocate your resources. The best way to do this is to utilize your customer relationship management (CRM) system to track your marketing efforts. Each CRM will vary in its capabilities, but you should be able to customize it to track some of your basic marketing activities. Depending on the system you use and your own comfort with technology, your CRM may be able to track all aspects of your marketing campaign. But if you don’t have the time, skill or resources to develop your CRM for this type of functionality, there are two things you can easily do to help you make more informed marketing decisions in the future.

1. Track the Source of Your Prospects. Depending on which CRM system you are using, you should have a field that tracks the source of your prospects. This field should contain information about how the prospect originally heard about you. Standard inputs for the field can include: networking event; workshop; client referral; center of influence (COI) referral; radio show; Twitter; FPA Planner Search; Google; etc. You will want to customize the different options to correspond with your marketing campaigns. You should also consider being very specific when naming the sources. For example, instead of just selecting the source as “networking” choose “Chamber of Commerce” instead. This will help you not only track which types of marketing campaigns have been most successful for you (e.g. networking) but also the specific details of the campaign (e.g. Chamber of Commerce networking mixers) so that you can develop more effective marketing plans in the future.

2. Track Referrals. In your CRM you will want to have a field to track referrals. While the source field will help you identify the type of referral (i.e. client or COI), it is equally important to know who specifically referred a prospect to you. In John Doe’s account you would want to create a field that showed that he was referred by Mary Smith. Ideally, you would want to show in Mary Smith’s account that she referred John Doe. Some CRM systems will let you create relationships between contacts making this process much simpler. By tracking which clients and COIs have referred prospects to you, you can tailor your future marketing efforts. For example, you may want to host a special event for or send a gift to all of the clients who referred a friend, family member or colleague to you. Likewise, you may want to spend more time nurturing relationships with the COIs who refer clients to you.

Analyze the Data

Once you track this information for a year, analyze the data to make informed decisions about your annual marketing plan. Your CRM system should allow you to run a report for all of your prospects, clients and COIs with the source and referral information included. Look for the activities that are working and focus more resources on those areas. For example, have you received five new clients come from college alumni mixers and none from your Rotary Club meetings? Perhaps it’s time to cancel your club membership and spend more time with your alumni association. You can also look at your data to identify weaknesses and make adjustments. For example, perhaps you have received zero referrals from COIs. It could mean that you should focus more on your client referrals if that has been effective or it could mean you don’t have sufficient campaigns in place to nurture your COI relationships (e.g. a monthly communication schedule). Carefully decide which campaigns should be cut, which ones need to be improved, and which ones should have more resources allocated to them.

Marketing will still be an art, but by making a few small customizations to your CRM system and tracking the source of your prospects and clients, you will be able to use more “science” to craft your art.

Central London IFA offers innovative acquisition structure

Fri, 22 Jan 2010 21:39:52 GMT

A Central London IFA is seeking to acquire two small London based IFA businesses with funds under influence of up to £20M each. They have an innovative purchase structure which allows exiting IFA''s renewals in perpetuity.

Each opportunity will be assessed on a case by case basis but the potential for appropriate retiring IFAs is considerable.

Brian Spence

Working With IFAs For IFAs

Harrison Spence Partnership

68 Lombard Street

London

EC3V 9LJ

T 077677 38389

E bhs@harrisonspence.com

www.harrisonspence.com

The Quiet Power of PR

Thu, 21 Jan 2010 09:36:26 GMT

PR has a unique ability to deliver brand messages by stealth. Acting like a silent samurai, PR takes your key messages and brings them to large audiences. Unlike traditional advertising, PR gives your business a method for communicating discreetly, without having to shout.

And in a tough economy, the ability to keep your business at the forefront of people''s minds often means the difference between success and failure.

Because PR creates reputations, changes perceptions and influences behaviour, many of our clients are investing more resources in well-planned media relations campaigns.

What has your business got to say?

Skill Sets - Who Do You Need?

Wed, 20 Jan 2010 15:31:15 GMT

It's important to remember that different PR functions require different people with different skill sets.

So you may need help writing and distributing a press release or you may need someone to create a marketing plan and carry out the required steps. You may need a confident, presentable individual to address the media, or you may need an accomplished schmoozer to make new contacts.

IFAs and Mortgage Advisers are probably your best bet for getting the right mortgage. But you've got to be able to trust them.

Wed, 20 Jan 2010 12:04:37 GMT

IFAs and Mortgage Advisers are probably your best bet for getting the right mortgage.

But you've got to be able to trust them.

Read this article to find out more....
We asked home owners about their mortgage buying experiences. Some had done well, others were disappointed. We got to understand what works and what doesn't when using a mortgage adviser or IFA.

Background

The thing that strikes you most when talking to home owners is how inexperienced most of us are when it comes to finding a mortgage.
It’s hardly surprising. We'll probably only take out a handful of mortgages in our lifetime so most of us aren't sure who to turn to for good advice. So we’re forced to make a huge, long-term financial commitment without having any real sense that we’re doing the right thing.

Yet, from this research, it was clear that the people who were most satisfied with their mortgage choice had used an IFA or mortgage adviser they felt they could trust.

The people who were less satisfied had either used a financial adviser they hadn't trusted or tried to miss out advisers altogether and found a mortgage on their own.

From the video clip on the right you can see satisfied clients - but also people resigned to the fact that they hadn't got the right mortgage, because they'd got the wrong advice or because or they'd gone it alone.

So the question is - if getting a good mortgage adviser or IFA is the best way to get the mortgage that suits you best - where do you find an adviser you can trust?

This is what we'll explain in the next few paragraphs.

First off, let's review the pro's and con's of the various routes to getting a mortgage.

The people we interviewed took three different approaches to obtain their mortgages.

1. Went directly to a mortgage lender.

2. Sourced their mortgage from a comparison website.

3. Used a mortgage adviser or IFA.

1. Went directly to a mortgage lender.

Whilst these might not be the cheapest or most flexible mortgages available, some of the couples we interviewed felt that a high street brand gave them a feeling of security and as many people felt insecure about making the right choice, this seems a reasonable option. Also on the plus side, some banks offer discounts if you hold your current account with them.

On the down side, many found the qualification criteria needed to secure a mortgage with a high street bank so restrictive and inflexible that all but the most straightforward applications (big deposits / long income history etc) could be rejected for the most minor of infractions.

2. Sourced their mortgage from a comparison web site

Comparison sites seem like a major step forwards for those who wanted to go it alone - especially if they'd had a bad experience in the past. In reality, most of our respondents found it very difficult to use comparison websites because it's far from easy to compare mortgages as they all offer something different. As such, it's hard to know if you are getting a good deal.

It’s not just the interest rate you need to factor in. You obviously need to consider the type of mortgage; tracker, fixed, discounted, flexible etc and over what term.

Then there are arrangement fees, redemption fees and any charges associated with getting out of your current mortgage. To make a true comparison you need to be extremely thorough and that takes considerable time, effort and know-how, all of which are in short supply. A case of apples and pears, not to mention the grapes and bananas!

In addition, it took our couples longer to secure the mortgage through comparison sites and this may be the biggest drawback of all; when you find the property you want its important to move quickly. Yet the trial and error nature of comparison websites doesn't lend itself to fast turn-around deal-making. All of which leads to the third method of finding a mortgage, namely:

3. Using a mortgage adviser or IFA.

As we mentioned, the people who seemed happiest with their mortgage choices had used either a mortgage adviser or IFA they felt they could trust. In fact, in the cases where our couples had felt they'd got a good deal from their adviser, there was often a sense of gratitude and a desire to refer their adviser to someone else.

These happy campers were confident they'd got a better deal than if they'd gone to the high street lender and had felt no need to find their own mortgage though a comparison website.

Couples explained that they felt their adviser had been able to sensitively evaluate their financial situation, taking into account all of the many variables that come into play.

Many felt their adviser had some sort of ‘inside track’ on the best deals, many of which would change quickly and, perhaps most importantly they knew how best to present their case to the lender in the best possible light.

The overall message was clear: Mortgages are complicated. To get the best deal that suits you, by far the best option is to use a quaified and experenced adviser. They'll almost always be able to get you a better deal than the high street lenders (and if they can't then they'll recommend that choice and you'll have peace of mind). And they'll certainly take away the stress and frustration that comes with using a comparison website and find you a better deal to boot!

Finding the adviser you can trust

So why doesn’t everyone use a mortgage adviser or IFA?

From this research we’d suggest it’s all down to a matter of trust. Our interviews revealled a good deal of wariness persists amongst the mortage buying public.

Partly this is due to some of the mortgages recommended in the past when the market was less tightly regulated. Not surprisingly these usually have something to do with endowments mortgages.

Its also partly a function of borrowers not being sure of how advisers make their money and how independent they are when it comes to recommending the right choice.

Both of these aspects of the mortgage advisers' business are now heavily regulated and advisers make great play of explaining both these points. Yet, many would-be home owners remain uncomfortable about addressing these issues even when doing so would satisfy their need for transparency and trust.

Therefore, before you take out a mortgage through a high-street bank or via a comparison website we suggest you do the following:

Find a mortgage adviser and ask him (or her) these two simple questions:

1. How do you make your money?

2. Are you indepedendent?

If they come up with answers that satisfy both of these points, then maybe it's worth finding out how they can help you get the mortage that best suits you.

Watch our respondents discussing these issues below.

How do you make your money?

Is it based on a fixed fee that they charge for their advice or do they take their money as a commission from the mortgage lender? Maybe it’s a bit of both.

There's no right or wrong option with this - just make sure you understand the benefits of each and feel comfortable that this is the method that suits you best.

Are you truly independent or are you limited in the mortgages you offer?

Is the mortgage adviser truly independent or do you suspect he might be trying to get you to take one mortgage over another because he will make more commission out of it?

Some advisers will be tied to a particular bank or building society, and are only able to offer a limited range of mortgages.

This in itself may be OK as they may be able to give you better terms because they are tied to a specific lender. It’s the same with the companies that don’t appear on the comparison web sites. They claim to pass on better deals to you because they don’t pay to be on those sites.
Alternatively, independent advisers and IFA’s will have access to the whole market – all 1715 mortgages currently available (as of 11 Jan 2010). You may feel more comfortable knowing your adviser can search the whole market on your behalf and identify very specific mortgages that suit your situation best.

In Summary

From this research we recommend you use an IFA or Mortgage adviser to find you the best mortgage for your situation – and that’s the case even if you can get a mortgage directly from a bank or building society

but make sure you fully trust your adviser first!

Ask them these two simple questions:

- How do you make your money?

- Are you independent?

Be sure to satisfy yourself you’ve got the right adviser on your side. Don’t be embarrassed to ask. If your adviser is worth their salt they’ll be happy to satisfy your concerns and with luck, provide you with the right mortgage choice this time and into the future!

For more information visit: www.20QMortgage.co.uk

20 minutes of CPD that all retirement planning IFAs should read

Tue, 19 Jan 2010 11:25:15 GMT

If you’re involved in retirement planning for your clients then I’d highly recommend you spend 20 minutes reading this 12-page little gem of a debate. It took place on Wednesday 13^th January 2010 in the House of Commons and involves the IBM Pension Scheme.

It’s not the specific pension scheme that is important, rather the principle that it focuses upon.

I can''t comment on the piece as there is an impending court case but it''s very insightful.

It’s important for ANY of your clients that have defined benefit scheme pensions EITHER as an active or preserved member.

It’s also important for YOU if you have used early payment projections in the retirement plans of any clients.

There are potentially serious implications concerning early payment of their pension benefits.

I suspect there are more than a few sponsoring employers and boards of trustees watching this case very carefully, so you need to be aware of this case.

Download it and read it for some very interesting CPD. See:
- IBM Pension Scheme (www.parliament.uk) (pdf-12pages)

To read this and other pension related news stories which appeared over the last 24 hours, visit:
http://www.mycompanypension.co.uk/Pension-News-In-January-2010#Jan152010

Mike Jones

Director,
MyCompanyPension.co.uk Ltd

Special Social Media workshop for just SIX IFAs

Tue, 19 Jan 2010 11:20:57 GMT

Following on from the amazing interest in Social Media in Financial Services conference last week, we have been asked by many IFAs if there are any follow up workshops to help individual IFA firms to start to put the lessons and material straight into action.

The answer is Yes!

We are delighted to announce a special workshop for just SIX IFAs on Wednesday 3^rd March in London. At the workshop we will examine in detail your current online activities and create quick wins that will have an immediate impact on your Internet presence and improve your search engine rankings.

However, the most important part of the day will be when we will also examine the Social Media options that are most relevant to your business – helping you to complement your existing traditional marketing approach with new online activities. Throughout the day, you will be working side-by-side with Philip Calvert, Founder of IFA Life and a specialist in social media marketing for IFAs and financial planners.

Important: Every IFA attending will leave with a personalised, step-by-step plan of action which can be implemented immediately.

The day will begin at 08.30am for tea/coffee and networking, with a prompt start at 09.00am. Refreshments will be provided throughout the day, including lunch.

Your day will finish at 5pm and we would warmly welcome attendees to join us afterwards for drinks at a local bar.

If you are serious about starting the transition process to a new, modern marketing model, then you can’t afford to miss the personalised attention that this day will give you.

The venue will be:

Regus Citypoint (nearest tube Moorgate)

1 Ropemaker Street

London

EC2Y 9HT

Your investment is £275 plus VAT (£323.13). Please use the button below to pay securely and safely by debit/credit card or by PayPal. To pay by cheque or bank transfer please send an email to events@ifalife.com

This event is strictly on a first come, first served basis.

Click this to post to Twitter

What attracts and retains IFA''s to potential and current employers and networks?

Mon, 18 Jan 2010 17:15:54 GMT

Hello

I am currently recruiting a number of IFA''s on behalf of Moneygate, one of the UK''s fastest growing IFA firms.

Whilst speaking to a range of people I have noticed a range of differences. Predominantly in why people are looking for their next opportunity, what exactly they''re looking for, and what attracts them to an organisation and role.

I was wondering what everyones thoughts on what IFA''s are looking for in the current market and climate are........?

Regards

Simon

Enhance Your LinkedIn Profile through Applications

Mon, 18 Jan 2010 04:05:41 GMT

There is no argument that the standard LinkedIn profile is pretty boring. If completely filled out, the profile consists almost entirely of text. This might be fine if you are using LinkedIn to find a job but doesn’t work if you are using the site for marketing purposes. Fortunately, LinkedIn has partnered with a dozen application providers to help enhance the LinkedIn experience. I have identified eight that I recommend you consider adding to help turn your profile from a resume to a marketing tool.

SlideShare Presentations

SlideShare allows you to embed PowerPoint presentations, PDFs, documents and spreadsheets into your profile. This is a valuable application because it enables you to incorporate your marketing materials directly into your profile, allowing visitors to find out more about you and your business than the standard profile would normally allow. Since SlideShare shows a thumbnail of the document, you’ll want to use the application for documents that are graphically interesting. I recommend uploading your brochure, firm summary or other marketing piece to this application. You can include multiple files, but only up to three are visible on your profile. You may want to consider only adding one document and choosing the “Show complete presentation in player” option for even more impact.

Google Presentations

Google Presentations is similar to SlideShare in that it allows you to embed PowerPoint presentations into your profile. However, unlike SlideShare, it only allows you to upload presentations. You may want to use this application if you have a PowerPoint presentation you would like to share on your profile and are already using SlideShare to highlight your marketing material. You may also want to consider creating an overview presentation about your firm and include it in Google Presentations.

Box.net

Box.net is a file sharing application. You can add any type of file and allow visitors to your profile to download these files. Since all files are displayed with standard PDF, Word or Excel icons, this application is not aesthetically appealing. You should limit the use of this application to share basic text documents such as forms. You won’t want to put your eye catching marketing pieces in the Box.net application.

BlogLink

BlogLink allows you to import your blog or other RSS feed directly into your LinkedIn profile. You can also use BlogLink to showcase your Twitter feed. This application enables you to add valuable content to your profile providing your visitors with further insight into your services.

WordPress

The WordPress application is very similar to BlogLink except that it only works for WordPress blogs. If you have a WordPress blog, I recommend this application over BlogLink since it is more aesthetically pleasing. However, you cannot use the WordPress application to showcase your latest tweets so you may still want to consider BlogLink if this is an important feature for you.

Travel by TripIt

TripIt allows you to post your travel schedule to your LinkedIn profile. In addition to allowing visitors to your profile to see your schedule, the application notifies your network when you will be in their area. The application also tells you who will be in the cities you are visiting at the same time you will be there. If you travel on a regular basis, you should definitely add this application to your profile.

Reading List by Amazon

The Amazon application breaks up the monotony of the LinkedIn profile by showing thumbnails of books you have read, are reading or would like to read. If you have published a book that is selling on Amazon, this application is a must! However, if you are like most advisors, you will just use the application to share your favorite books with your network. It may not add a lot of value but at the very least it opens the door for a conversation with your contacts.

Tweets

With the Twitter application you can display your most recent tweets on your LinkedIn profile status bar. Your status bar allows you to quickly and easily stay top-of-mind with your network. If you have a Twitter account, you should add this application so that you can update your LinkedIn status from Twitter. However, while tweeting several times a day is acceptable, updating your LinkedIn status that often is not. For this reason, choose the “Share only tweets that contain #in” option so that you can choose which tweets are posted to LinkedIn. Not every application is going to be appropriate for you and some applications serve the same purpose. Choose the ones that are most appropriate for you and your business. By adding a couple of these applications, you will soon see your profile transform from an online resume to a full-fledged marketing tool.

Startling response to Social Media in Financial Services

Fri, 15 Jan 2010 14:11:01 GMT

When the first text message came in at 08.00am from our first speaker of the day saying that there were no trains at all from Farnham and that traffic in Surrey was at a standstill, there was a brief moment of panic. Yet more snow had descended overnight.

But slowly but surely, delegates for Social Media in Financial Services started to arrive at the Tower Hotel in London. After a slightly delayed start we were underway.

Two days later and the dust still hasn’t settled. The buzz that was created by the conference was startling to say the least and wildly beyond what we were expecting.

Being a conference about Social Media in Financial Services, we were expecting a few of the IFAs attending to post some messages to Twitter and the Web. What we weren’t expecting was in excess of 500 tweets from attendees in the room and those following the event online.

Even financial planners in the USA picked up on the buzz and were following and contributing material.

The reason why there was so much buzz around the conference (which incidentally is still happening on Twitter today), was because the content was outstanding. Speakers from The Gate, Google, LinkedIn, BT Tradespace, Headshift, the BBC, Fincision and YouTube hit exactly the right spot. Our financial planner speakers Nick Bamford, George Kinder and Jaime Steele were particularly popular and proved how important Social Media is in a modern financial planning business.

Other major highlights were Alan Stevens the Media Coach and Internet psychologist Graham Jones whose anecdotes and considerable expertise shocked and amazed the audience.

But why does this matter?

It didn’t take long for a key point to emerge from the conference – that the consequences of RDR pale into insignificance compared to the impact that the Internet is having on the financial advice profession. Change on a level never seen before in the industry is taking place right now.

But many will see Social Media as theoretical nonsense that might have an impact at some point in the future, but it was loud and clear to anyone in attendance that its impact is being felt right now.

And those IFAs who don’t feel that Social Media has any relevance to their business or to the lives of their clients were in for a shock too. Figures emerged which clearly showed that people of all ages now actively engage with sites such as Facebook. The short message was that those IFAs who ignore this will miss out on exciting new ways to enhance their reputation, attract new clients and to engage with existing clients and professional introducers.

What happens next?

The wealth of material presented at the conference was staggering. One delegate reported writing thirty five pages of notes and others are proclaiming the event as the best conference they have ever attended.

Over the coming days and weeks, IFA Life will be publishing notes, speakers’ slides additional materials and more. Watch this space!

You will also shortly be hearing about the next Social Media in Financial Services conference, plus a series of Breakfast Briefings in conjunction with The Gate.

The good news is that the next conference will be this year, and you can register to receive discounted tickets if you act now. Simply send an email to philip@ifalife.com asking to be put on the list, and you will be at the front of the queue for tickets.

Were YOU at Social Media in Financial Services? If so, please follow this link and share your thoughts on the event.

If you missed out, take a look to see what has been said already:

http://www.ifalife.com/forum/replies.asp?ForumID=3&TopicID=2579

IFA Life is producing a special PDF magazine containing notes, interviews, bonus materials and Social Media resources. Providers are already asking about advertising opportunities. Please contact Nick Page for details: page@pagemedia.co.uk

Philip Calvert
IFA Life

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