Financial Advisor Success

Join Alex Lewis, owner of Blackbridge Financial, as he shares how he took a risk with a multi-million-dollar loan to transform his firm. Discover how he navigated financial challenges, redefined client service with personalized touches, categorized clients for growth potential, and systematized operations to achieve business success.

Kristopher Heck, Founding Partner of Tanager Wealth Management, shares insights on specializing in cross-border US-UK financial planning. He discusses navigating dual taxation for US citizens living abroad, firm growth strategies, and the importance of building a robust referral network. The podcast covers evaluating planners, evolving as a financial advisor, specializing in a narrow target market, and building a billion-dollar advisory firm while defining success and creating a lasting legacy in the business.

Guest Christopher Jones shares insights on efficiently running his solo practice, focusing on crucial financial planning tasks, using a curated tech stack, managing cash requests, and generating referrals. He also discusses transitioning to remote work, managing perfectionism by outsourcing tasks, and balancing client service with personal well-being.

Brent Carnduff, SEO specialist for financial advisors, shares tips on optimizing local SEO, starting with Google Business Profiles and client reviews. Discusses the importance of serving a specific niche, timelines for SEO results, and the benefits of hiring a coach to improve business practices.

Mark Berg, founder of Timothy Financial Counsel, scaled his firm to generate $5M in annual revenue through an hourly fee model. He shares insights on structuring his firm for success, implementing time-tracking software, using a client waitlist, and hiring a president without a financial planning background. Berg sees the hourly fee model as an opportunity to reach a broader client base and discusses strategic growth and pricing strategies.

Freeman Linde, cofounder of La Crosse Financial Planning, discusses launching his RIA with $7M AUM, utilizing local SEO for rapid growth, and offering lower client costs. Topics include transitioning to independent RIA, strategic client-conversion approach, local SEO acceleration, and expanding service offerings for recurring revenue.

Jenny Martella shares insights on growing her firm from $19M to $250M in AUM in 7 years, navigating merger with Modera Wealth, challenges of scaling, preserving brand identity, effective client communication, and personal growth post-merger.

Dann Ryan, Managing Partner at Sincerus Advisory, discusses overcoming imposter syndrome to drive client referrals and quintuple AUM. He shares insights on building lasting client relationships, using an AUM fee model, navigating entrepreneurship, client-centric portfolio management, team collaboration, managing client capacity, and defining success beyond firm ownership.

Danielle Howard, owner of Wealth By Design, discusses her unique approach to assisting clients with implementing financial plans by uncovering their money memories. She shares insights on structuring planning engagements, transitioning to a planning-centric business, and adapting client headcount to different life stages. The conversation also explores the contributions of women in the financial planning industry, evolving definitions of success, and personalized career paths for fulfillment.

Hannah Provost is a partner and financial advisor at Lomanto Provost Financial Advisors, a hybrid advisory firm based out of New York State that oversees approximately $150 million in assets under management for 380 households. Hannah's unique journey in finance began with retail banking, progressing from lending and teller roles to a bank-based financial advisor, before she decided to broaden her expertise by working as an assistant under a seasoned advisor. This strategic move enriched her skills and knowledge, eventually propelling her to become a lead advisor and later a joint partner in the firm. Listen in as Hannah shares her journey of balancing work, family, and education to advance her career, emphasizing how the CFP certification guided her path and how early participation in client meetings fast-tracked her to a lead advisor role. She also reveals how leveraging community visibility and smart automation tools has been key to managing a growing client base, the importance of seeking supportive mentors as "green flags" in the industry, and how her early investments have paid off in a successful practice and robust work-life balance. For show notes and more visit: https://www.kitces.com/384