While The College is no stranger to recognition in the financial services industry, the Gramercy Institute 2023 Financial Content Marketing Awards marked the first time a piece of its marketing content was singled out and recognized for a content award. The announcement came shortly before The College also took home an award for Industry Research Provider from the 2023 WealthManagement.com Wealthies Awards–the second in two years–for the very content piece honored by the Gramercy Institute.

Specifically, the Institute recognized The College’s efforts to reach out to independent financial advisors through its 2022 RIA Growth and Specialized Knowledge Survey, a part of The College’s RIA Resource Center. Through the survey, The College reached out to nearly 400 financial advisors who weighed in on their paths toward growth and provided invaluable insights into the state of the financial services industry, the pressures they face from changing client demands, and the solutions they’ve leveraged to increase earnings and grow their teams.

A Helping Hand to Independent Financial Advisors

In 2021, as part of a broad refocusing on education for specific segments of the financial services industry, The College undertook an effort to reach out to independent advisors and RIAs to understand the challenges they faced in competing with larger industry firms and the secrets to success that allowed them to grow and scale in a difficult environment. Initial conversations suggested a key component to success for independent financial advisors and their firms: in-depth, specialized knowledge of niche but critical components of financial planning.

These findings led to the launch of The College’s RIA Profitability Plan: a document pointing out the benefits of a specialized team of independent advisors, all working in concert, to keep financial advisors’ clients in-house and minimize the need for outside referrals. As financial industry research often shows clients prefer working with smaller advisory firms to large conglomerates, RIAs are in a unique position to customize their teams with financial advisors well-versed in specific areas of planning, from retirement and wealth management to insurance, taxation, special needs planning, and more. Additionally, as an institution with nearly 100 years of leading the financial services industry, The College is well-positioned to offer education in such areas with its acclaimed designation and degree programs, such as the Retirement Income Certified Professional® (RICP®), Wealth Management Certified Professional® (WMCP®), Chartered Life Underwriter® (CLU®), Chartered Special Needs Consultant® (ChSNC®), and others.

Taking the Pulse of the RIA Community

To further the impact of the RIA Profitability Plan, however, The College also needed real-time data from independent financial advisors on what the biggest challenges, obstacles, and questions were that they faced every day. In early 2022, The College began the RIA Growth and Specialized Knowledge Survey to get just those answers.

Over the course of several months, responses flooded in–and what was revealed was illuminating. Independent advisors reported that business growth was foremost on their minds, with 35% of respondents saying organic growth was their firm’s top priority and 64% saying they planned to add up to five new financial advisors to their team in the next three years. Independent financial advisors also largely recognized the importance of advanced financial services education, with over 75% saying the well-known CFP® certification was not enough to guarantee professional success alone.

Furthermore, independent financial advisors confirmed The College’s offerings as a financial educator were well in line with the areas they sought further instruction in: 71% desired more education in retirement planning; 64% in investment management; and 60% in estate planning. These focus areas align with multiple College designation and degree programs, including the aforementioned RICP® and the Chartered Financial Consultant® (ChFC®).

Perhaps most importantly, RIAs confirmed The College’s approach to specialized knowledge as the key to business growth and scaling, with nearly 80% of respondents reporting knowledge from designation programs supported service integration, improving their ability to hold onto clients with diverse needs. They also cited advanced financial education as a critical factor in their success, ranking it above even new technology as a top priority for independent financial advisors.

Iterating on RIA Success

Throughout 2022 and into 2023, The College has continued to build on the knowledge gathered from the response to the RIA Growth and Specialized Knowledge Survey with additional campaigns and content pieces. These include an “RIA Stories” video series in which independent financial advisors share how The College’s designation and degree programs have directly impacted their ability to serve clients better. Many RIAs shared similar experiences of how satisfying it was, when confronted by a client whose questions they didn’t feel qualified to answer, to simply send them down the hall to a colleague who specialized in their area of need rather than calling for an outside referral and potentially losing business.

The College also held an RIA-focused webinar in which WMCP® Program Director Michael Finke, PhD, CFP® spoke with a group of independent financial advisors about how they equipped their practices to adequately respond to clients’ needs in any market environment.

With one of its cornerstone initiatives now recognized by not one, but two prestigious marketing awards in a single year, The College plans to continue its drive to educate and empower RIAs and independent financial advisors in the years to come. The College also extends its thanks to the Gramercy Institute for their consideration!

Access the entire RIA Resource Center.

I like to ask class members, “What makes a leader?” The answers are usually the same. The number one answer is that a leader must be trustworthy. Trustworthy usually expands to: they are worthy of following, they have integrity, their values are clear, they respect transparency, their decisions are predictable and they lead with a clear vision.

Developing a “trust mindset” is crucial to developing a “change mindset.” Advisors help clients get from where they are now to where they need to go. To accomplish that, advisors invariably ask clients to change their behavior. Asking clients to make changes requires clients to trust the advisor. Trustworthy client leadership is critical to keeping an advisor-client relationship strong.

Before asking a client to make a change or to implement something new, the advisor needs to make sure that it’s within the client’s scope of ability. The foundation of a change mindset comes from understanding what a person can do, not what they can’t do, and building from their personal baseline. Ensuring that they can succeed and accomplish the goals that are set for them is critical to maintaining client engagement. Clients will not trust an advisor if the advisor has not accurately assessed the client’s scope of ability and has unintentionally sent them up to fail.

There are three conditions necessary for people to change: they must be willing, ready and able.

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She has etched her name in history as the inaugural female director to independently helm the hit film, Barbie, which achieved an unprecedented feat by amassing a remarkable $1 billion at the box office. This achievement is a testament to the relentless progress of professional women marking a momentous stride toward equality and recognition.

In a world where the narrative of female empowerment is evolving, Barbie, the iconic doll with impossible proportions and perpetual optimism, stands as a paradox in the minds of many career-driven women. The juxtaposition between Barbie's idealized aesthetic and the real-life aspirations of modern women creates a thought-provoking dichotomy that challenges societal norms and prompts us to delve deeper into the layers of perception, aspiration and empowerment.

Moreover, Barbie's paradox can be seen as a metaphor for the challenges career women face in a world that often pits femininity against professional aspirations. The pressure to project an image that adheres to society's expectations of beauty while simultaneously striving for professional excellence can lead to an unsettling and poignant cognitive dissonance. As career women grapple with these complexities, the Barbie doll becomes a mirror reflecting the intricate layers of their identities and societal perceptions.

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Advanced special needs planning requires a comprehensive and tailored approach to ensure long-term stability, quality of life and maximize benefits. At The American College of Financial Services’ recent Advanced Special Needs Planning Symposium, experts in this space delivered complex solutions—but what if you are a financial professional who is just starting your educational journey when it comes to special needs planning?

Typically, financial professionals assume they have no clients in the special needs community or may underestimate the amount. At the symposium, attendees learned from an industry expert, Pat Bergmaier, CFP, ChSNC that “Disabilities do not discriminate.” Bergmaier shared that a little more than one in four people living in the United States will experience disability in their lifetime. Statistically speaking, a financial professional is likely going to have some sort of special needs planning in their book of business. Thus, having foundational knowledge is paramount for financial professionals to ensure the best experience for all clients.

The symposium experts provided six initial steps to empower financial professionals to navigate the complexities of advanced special needs planning with confidence and expertise.

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However, they often face financial disparities throughout their employment, lower lifetime earnings, reduced retirement savings and higher healthcare costs than their male counterparts. While retirement is a phase many people look forward to, it can also bring unforeseen challenges, especially when someone faces significant medical needs for themselves or their partners. When it comes to retired women, who often have unique financial circumstances, it is crucial for financial advisors to be proactive and prepared—engaging these women in proactive discussions about strategies that can protect them from financial ruin and ensure their peace of mind about healthcare spending. These conversations should encompass health conditions and family health histories and address the realities of aging and declining health.

According to a report by the Employee Benefit Research Institute (EBRI), women spend more on healthcare in retirement than men. To ensure they have sufficient money to cover healthcare expenses in retirement, women planning to retire in 2021 should have saved $193,000. Compared with men of the same age, women need nearly $21,000 more when entering retirement. This discrepancy is primarily due to women’s longer life expectancy and their higher likelihood of experiencing chronic health conditions such as arthritis, osteoporosis and dementia. Furthermore, women are more prone to need long-term care, which can be financially devastating without proper planning.

Unfortunately, many consumers lack sufficient knowledge about the challenges of health deterioration and the expenses associated with healthcare, particularly end-of-life care. A 2020 study by the American College of Financial Services surveyed 1,500 individuals aged 50 to 75 to assess their knowledge about finances in retirement. The study found that fewer than one in five female respondents realized that 70% of the population will need long-term care at some point in their lives. The majority underestimated this reality, with approximately one in three female respondents believing that the percentage at risk is 25% or lower. This lack of knowledge likely contributes to the fact that only 8% of female consumers believe it is very likely they will require long-term care in their lifetime.

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And when looking at the rising generation of earners, 75% of women under 45 manage their own finances (Source: Merrill Lynch, Seeing the unseen: The role gender plays in wealth management, 2022). Considering women outlive men by an average of five years, these trends translate to significant and lasting gains in economic power, both in decision-making and investable assets.

So, what does this mean for wealth managers and advisory firms? While the core services that women need may not differ from their male counterparts, the approach must be nuanced in order to effectively support this important market segment.

The American College of Financial Services is excited to partner with Financial Advisor magazine to launch “Women In Planning,” a monthly column dedicated to the contemporary planning needs of modern women. The column is expected to launch late March 2023.

“Over the decades, women have steadily increased their financial power. Women are earning more, learning more and making more financial decisions than ever before,” says Hilary Fiorella, executive director of the Center for Women in Financial Services at The American College of Financial Services. “This initiative aims to arm the industry with the tools needed to better serve the significant market opportunity that women represent.”

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Created in 2004 by the industry education group Life Happens, Life Insurance Awareness Month seeks to educate Americans about life insurance and how it can help provide financial security for them and their families. In conjunction with LIMRA, Life Happens reports every year on the status of the American people with regard to life insurance in their Insurance Barometer Study–and their work appears to be paying dividends. Findings from the 2023 Study include:

• Self-reported life insurance ownership continued to rise from 50% of survey respondents in 2022 to 52% in 2023
• Non-insurance owners who say they want and need a policy hovered around 30%, a similar number to 2022
• Up to 48 million middle-income consumers could be interested in obtaining a life insurance policy

During the month of September, social media is flooded with calls by financial professionals and companies for the general public to consider the value of a good life insurance policy. In addition, with the holidays coming up and bringing with them family get-togethers, multigenerational discussions, and New Years resolutions, it can be a great time even after Life Insurance Awareness Month is over to talk about the need for life insurance.

As the preeminent designation program for financial professionals in the insurance field, The College’s CLU® designation proves its ongoing importance in these conversations.

Life Insurance: A Foundational Concern

The American College of Financial Services was founded in 1927 by pioneering financial services professional and educator Dr. Solomon Huebner. While Huebner had an expansive vision for improving the financial services industry for the betterment of society, he was an insurance field professional by trade–and this showed in The College’s first-ever designation program, the CLU®.

Over nearly a century, The College grew and expanded to cover such subjects as retirement income planning, wealth management, special needs and philanthropic planning, diversity, equity, and inclusion initiatives, and more, but the CLU® designation remains a fundamental part of its legacy. The CLU® is still recognized as the gold standard in the financial services industry for life insurance education.

The CLU® designation program offers financial services professionals an in-depth understanding of the practical, legal, and ethical aspects of life insurance and its techniques and tools, accepting life insurance as a vital part of a holistic financial plan. The CLU® curriculum includes not only concepts and law within overall risk management, but also the necessary knowledge to help clients address estate planning needs and to gain an understanding of solutions that address life insurance for business owners and professionals. These include key person insurance and other related employer and employee benefits.

A Personal Appeal for Life Insurance Planning

While life insurance may not capture public or professional attention the way the stock market, investment management, or retirement planning sometimes do, the importance of life insurance planning and the insurance field in general is something many financial advisors deeply believe in.

In a video posted for Life Insurance Awareness Month in September 2023, College Business Development representative Anthony “Tony” Boquet reflected on the financial security a life insurance policy can bring to clients no matter what stage of life they are in. He also shared a deeply personal story from his own experience as a life insurance professional.

Boquet related that years ago, he had visited two recently married friends with the goal of selling them additional life insurance policies. The husband repeatedly declined to apply, jokingly citing his youth as evidence that he had no need of a life insurance policy. Tragically, within 24 hours of that conversation, he was killed in a freak accident when a car ran off the highway and struck him while he was cutting grass in his front yard. He was only 22 years old.

“If you’re a life insurance planner or a financial professional, you owe it to your clients to make sure they’re aware that our future is not guaranteed,” Boquet said. “My friend didn’t plan on dying that weekend, and his wife later told me he was planning on buying the life insurance policy from me when I returned to work on Monday.”

Boquet said this story constantly reminds him about the importance of Life Insurance Awareness Month, and how people of all ages and backgrounds need to be prepared for anything.

“He may be gone, but his story has lived on in me and helped protect countless others over the years,” he said. “Please take the time to talk to your clients and those you love about the importance of life insurance planning during this Life Insurance Awareness Month.”

You can also see another video story from Boquet here.