The Motley Fool will endorse and promote the services of financial advisors affiliated with the Garrett Planning Network, a membership group of 300 fee-only advisors, the companies said on Thursday.
In an exclusive agreement that goes into effect later this month, the Garret Network will be mentioned in Motley Fool’s emails, newsletters and advertising on the its web site, Fool.com.
The agreement has a clear financial advantage for the Garrett Network, which spends just $10,000 a year marketing its coaching, educational and business development advice to financial advisors who might join the network, said Sheryl Garrett, CFP, founder of the Shawnee Mission, Ks.-based organization.
“I am very excited about the relationship,” Garrett said in a telephone interview. “I thoroughly admire what they stand for and what they’ve built, and I feel everything we’ve done today has led up to this tipping point.”
Garrett Planning Network will also be featured on a new Motley Fool web page called Labs, which is still under development, Garrett said. She will write a blog for the page, which will also publish educational articles for investors.
Garrett Planning Network and Motley Fool also plan to share content such as videos and articles on a range of topics, such as how to interview and select a financial advisor, how financial advisors are paid and the importance of upholding the fiduciary standard.
“The Motley Fool has advocated using fee-only financial planners,” said Kate Ward, senior vice president of new markets for Motley Fool. “We know some of our Motley Fool members want more hands-on help managing all the financial decisions they have to make, and we believe GPN offers the same trustworthy, community-driven advice that we offer our members.”
The Motley Fool, of Alexandria, Va., operates a Web site that attracts about 4.5 million visitors a day and has about 200,000 premium subscribers to its content, The organization’s reach is at least 100,000 times bigger than that of the GPN, according to Garrett.
