The NTSA Elite Advisors possess a wealth of experience and insight, and two of them shared tips for achieving success in a Jan. 27 session at the NTSA Summit.
Walter “Wat” Keys of CAPTRUST and Robert Young of One2One Wealth Strategies, both 2019 Elite Advisor award winners, offered their insights.
Young advocated looking at the big picture. “Make sure you have a vision for what you want to build first,” he said. Young also argued for finding an area to make your own. “You want to have some niche,” he said.
People Power
Young stressed the importance of staffing, and of doing it well. “There’s only so much time in a day,” he cautioned attendees, adding that one can lengthen one’s work day – “which results in heart attacks or divorce” – or one can add support staff. Doing the latter, he said, can allow one to focus on providing advice and working with clients.
But simply hiring is only part of the equation, Young indicated. “Make sure your employees are in the right positions,” he said.
Young evinced little sympathy for anyone who says they cannot find the right people to fill openings on their staff. “Really? In a nation of 320 million?” he asked. “If you can’t find the right people, it’s your fault,” Young asserted, adding, “You have to not only hire, but also nurture.” If you don’t, he said, you can’t expand your business.
Technology
“Embrace technology, Keys told attendees. “It’s the way things are going,” he observed, and reported that he uses online platforms to deliver reviews of clients’ accounts and plans. “I don’t visit my clients. I have come to make the most of technology,” he said. Keys added that when he encounters someone who insists on meeting in person, he first suggests at least trying it online and sends a full-service advisor if they still are not receptive.
“If one follows such an approach, how does one compete with advisors who meet face to face?” asked session moderator Tamara Indianer, NTSA's 2018 President. Keys responded that one must “know your differentiation” and know what clients are interested in and what their concerns are.
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