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It is gratifying when others reinforce your work. Maya Ivanova explains in Investment Advisor Magazine that the best RIA/FA Firms (Teams) have several things in common — in a study of all RIAs, her firm Rydex AdvisorBenchmarking concluded that the top 26 were rather unique in the difficult year of 2008:

• They grew their practices by 6% on AUM (Assets Under Management) versus the average, where assets slid by 12%.

• They were proactive in contacting their clients, spending between 40 and 50 hours per week with clients versus 11-15 hours for the average. The results were dramatic. The best lost only 1% of their clients versus 21% for the average.

• The top firms had much larger clients but fewer of them. The top firms served on average 126 clients with $1.3 million in AUM versus 140 clients with $485,000 AUM. The results were not only higher customer retention and satisfaction, but higher profitability for the firm.

The Supernova Program systematically provides the plan, process, and rituals to perpetuate this type of success.

The author’s conclusions were simple:

1. Spend as much time as you can with your clients. Firms that spend 60% of their time with clients are eight times more profitable than the average firm.

2. Focus on fewer clients with higher net worths.

3. Focus client acquisition efforts on specific market niches. Every single top firm focuses on market niches.

4. Measure your activity. The top firms know where their teams’ time is being spent. Determine your critical criteria, measure it against the best, and you will improve.

http://www.investmentadvisor.com/News/2009/8/Pages/From-Good-to-Best.aspx

 

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