John J. Bowen Jr.

Following up

(Februaru 2006) In recent months, we’ve looked at how to implement a consultative wealth management process, using a series of five client meetings. Each of these — a discovery meeting, a wealth management plan meeting, a mutual commitment meeting, a 45-day follow-up meeting, and then regular progress meetings — is designed to build a lasting […]

By John J. Bowen Jr. |February 24, 2006

3 min read

Planning and Advice

Ink the deal

Few things will boost an advisor’s level of success as efficiently as shifting to a wealth-management approach, because it’s grounded in an in-depth consultative process that gives you a deep understanding of clients’ values and goals. And that enables you to tailor solutions to each of them. The process I recommend revolves around a series […]

By John J. Bowen Jr. |January 20, 2006

3 min read

Planning and Advice

Presenting the Plan

(December 2005) Financial advisors who wish to become true wealth managers need a defined consultative process that enables them to fully understand their prospects and clients, and recommend appropriate solutions to address all aspects oftheir financial lives. This is clearly a big jump up from just providing investment management or financial planning. To make this […]

By John J. Bowen Jr. |December 12, 2005

3 min read

Planning and Advice

Managing change

(September 2005) Competition’s increasing, and not just from other financial advisors. You’re also faced with losing business to a range of professional specialists, including accountants, lawyers and insurance professionals, who have incorporated investment advice into their practices. According to a study of 579 Canadian financial advisors (see chart) nearly nine in 10 top advisors believe […]

By John J. Bowen Jr. |September 12, 2005

2 min read

Planning and Advice

Taking your practice to the next level: Rich friends

One way to successfully cultivate a market is to know it inside and out. For advisors seeking to reach the elite level, this means developing a deep knowledge of affluent investors. North America has seen a substantial increase in the number of affluent individuals in recent years. Estimates on the size and growth of the […]

By John J. Bowen Jr. |August 12, 2005

4 min read

Planning and Advice

Fee-dom

(July 2005) Slowly, but surely, our industry is experiencing a persistent shift away from upfront commissions and toward asset-based fees. Every year, more and more advisors are earning at least some of their keep through fees. Advisors at all income levels project they’ll be working on a fee basis by 2007 (see chart below). As […]

By John J. Bowen Jr. |July 19, 2005

2 min read

Planning and Advice

Relationship marketing

(June 2005) Attracting new clients comes with plenty of options. There are so many, in fact, your real challenge will be to sort through the marketing techniques that don’t work and zero in on the most effective handful. Consider the three major channels for marketing to prospects: • Mass marketing, which relies on things like […]

By John J. Bowen Jr. |June 14, 2005

2 min read

Planning and Advice

Institutional leverage

(May 2005) Elite advisors know what they’re good at, and then strive to focus on those core competencies while outsourcing tasks they don’t perform as effectively. They leverage their talents and expertise by partnering with financial institutions that support them so they can fully focus on providing worldclass service to affluent clients. That trait, more […]

By John J. Bowen Jr. |May 26, 2005

2 min read

Planning and Advice

Wake-up call

(January 2005) As a financial advisor, you work hard every day to grow your business, take care of your employees and do well by your clients. But is all that work paying off? Are you satisfied with your income? Are you happy with your level of success? Unfortunately, if you’re like many advisors, the answer […]

By John J. Bowen Jr. |January 27, 2005

3 min read