Wealth Think

Marketing expert Marie Swift says basic seminars are no longer a client magnet. Successful financial planners must be educators, networkers, and online trailblazers. Here are some ideas to get you started.

Chris Kirby says financial advisors often become hostages of their own "to-do" lists. That's why it's so important to create and adhere to a list of things that you're not going to handle so you can focus on the most important (and revenue-generating) tasks.

Starting a hedge fund is much different from launching other kinds of companies. Most significantly, there is almost no chance that you will be able to start this business out of a garage. No -- to get a hedge fund up and running, you need buckets and buckets of cash.

Ask Ed Slott: Your IRA Expert answers readers' questions about how to manage and account for excess contributions made to IRAs for tax purposes.

As the trend toward independence continues, the opportunities raise questions from those advisors who are considering making the move. Dynasty Financial Partners' Shirl Penney provides some answers.

Steve Wershing, "The Referral Doctor," says one of the great misconceptions in our business is that clients "give" us referrals. If advisors want to learn how to attract a significant number of ongoing referrals, they must understand the dynamic that causes people to make referrals in the first place.

There has been an ongoing discussion surrounding hedge funds and their ability - or lack thereof - to create jobs. Do they really have the capacity to help the job market? And if they do, what jobs are hedge funds producing?

Ask Ed Slott: Your IRA Expert answers readers' questions about naming contingent beneficiaries for IRAs.

Steve Wershing, "The Referral Doctor," says the client advisory board is every firm's most important tool for gathering detailed client feedback. But to take advantage of this wealth of information, your board's preparation is critical.

As equity markets sputter along at an uneven pace, many investors are looking at alternatives to help manage volatility and potentially generate more predictable income. One alternative investment has been commercial real estate, which during the late '90s and early '00s was an attractive asset class.