Page 19 - Investment Advisor September 2022

6. There’s no such thing as and over 5 years of work before we expe- out for advisors who want to climb the
free custody. rienced that phenomenon.” corporate ladder on their way to leader-
Noting that advisory firms want their cus- ship positions in the firm,” he explained.
todians to make money, Sonnen said: “I’m 8. Vendors and consultants can’t do “This is not the case for operations staff,
always shocked to hear RIAs expecting the push-ups for you. which is why many RIAs are lamenting,
to pay nothing for custodial services. It’s As Sonnen put it: “You bought the ‘Why can’t we find any good employees
like a widget-making business demand- juicer, got the supplement subscrip- right now!?’”
ing free warehousing. Why wouldn’t tion plan, have your personal trainer
Apple expect to pay for the warehouse auto debiting your account monthly, 10. Organic growth is always more
where they build their iPhones?” and yet, you still don’t have six-pack valuable than inorganic growth.
abs! You can put everything in place “The profit margin on clients attained
7. Content marketing does lead with the best and most personalized through business development efforts is
to clients, but it takes years of setup but the actual sweat work still always greater than the profitability of
consistent effort before you see the needs to be done by you if you expect client accounts attained through an M&A
fruits of your labor. to see improvement.” transaction,” said Sonnen. “Furthermore,
“People hear, ‘If you write a blog and/or acquired clients often don’t fit your spe-
host a podcast, your phone will start to 9. The industry must do better cialized service offering.”
ring with people wanting to do business at creating career paths for
with you!’” he explained. But “it took non-advisors. Staff reporter Jeff Berman can be reached at
200+ blog posts, 35+ podcast episodes, “Most RIAs have specific criteria laid [email protected].

Looking to switch custodians or start

an advisor business?

No ticket charges, minimums, CUSTODY fees, or technology fees

Free CRM and portfolio management tools
We don’t compete with you for clients

ibkr.com/in-switch
FOR INSTITUTIONS
Member NYSE, FINRA, SIPC 05-IB22-1541

SEPTEMBER 2022 INVESTMENT ADVISOR 15