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Financial advisors everywhere are celebrating the new SEC guidelines related to marketing communications. Ho, ho, ho and Happy New Year to all who have been asking for these updates - myself included. Sneaking in right after Christmas and just before a change of administration, the SEC has announced an important rule change that affects all financial advisors. In particular, the SEC has updated a rule that has not been touched in decades and was increasingly out of touch with reality. The change has to do with marketing communications, particularly those through Internet channels.
Sam Brownell, CFA, of Stratus Wealth Advisors, Robert Sofia of Snappy Kraken, and I (Marie Swift) provided comments for Ryan Neal, a reporter at Financial Planning magazine, but not all of them made it into that article so I am including the full comments from the three of us here on my blog because I think these are important distinctions. I'll also include a summary of the new rules below.
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Good news: The Special Report and Webinar Replay from the "Conversations That Matter" project are finally available. A PDF of the Special Report is available below. In addition to the official survey results (in the field in September/October, 2020), I added a page with the Live Poll results from the November 12, 2020 webinar that was hosted by RIA Channel, which I think is helpful in seeing how the landscape has changed for independent advisors.
On November 11, 2020, Coach Joe Lukacs of the Magellan Mastermind & Network joined Marketing Maven Marie Swift to discuss Best Practices for Writing a Business Plan. The webinar gave a sneak peek into some of the topics that will be covered during Joe's December multi-day virtual conference. This webinar provides great value and is provided without cost to friends of Impact Communications.
GOOD NEWS: Joe has WAIVED the timeframe in which you need to sign up for his multi-day Business Planning Workshop (happening virtually Tuesday Dec. 15, Wednesday Dec. 16, Thursday Dec. 17 and Friday Dec. 18, 2020). Friends of Impact can sign up without a hard deadline and still get the special price of $495 (full-price is $895). Did you miss yesterday's webinar where I shared an overview of the Conversations That Matter project? The replay and paper will be available soon, but meanwhile, here is a really nice recap from Lee Barney at PLANADVISER Magazine. Thank you, Lee, for joining us and for this excellent summary.
In this Swift Chat video conversation, I speak with author / speaker / thought leader Carl Richards. The topic: Why advisors should think of themselves as a guide in a changing landscape, not a seller of certainty or a defender of an outdated map.
Carl is a Certified Financial Planner™ and creator of the Sketch Guy column, appearing weekly in The New York Times since 2010. Carl has also been featured on Marketplace Money, Oprah.com, and Forbes.com. In addition, Carl has become a frequent keynote speaker at financial planning conferences and visual learning events around the world. In this blog post, you will find an excerpt from the forthcoming paper, Conversations That Matter, a video interview with Carl Richards, and an invitation to the webinar via RIA Channel where I'll be joined by Bob Veres, Shannon Stone, and Heather Kelly. In this Swift Chat video conversation, I speak with Heather Kelly of Allianz Life Insurance Company of North America.
We discuss:
Impact Communications is writing a Special Report called “Conversations That Matter: Addressing Client Concerns, Hopes and Dreams During Uncertain Times.”
In this Swift Chat video conversation, Josh Cutler of Bluestem Financial Advisors, LLC tells us why he is proud to be a member of the Alliance of Comprehensive Planners (ACP) and how he and the ACP annual conference task force planned for and shifted to a virtual event once the pandemic became a reality in 2020.
Conversations That Matter: Invitation to Participate in Survey for Independent Financial Advisors9/29/2020
Impact Communications is writing a Special Report called “Conversations That Matter: Addressing Client Concerns, Hopes and Dreams During Uncertain Times.” This is an opportunity for independent financial advisors to weigh in on 2020's pandemic and economic realities.
We are especially interested in hearing your stories:
Don't miss this opportunity to share your opinions. The survey will close October 13, 2020 at 10:00 am CT. 
Do you feel called to a greater purpose? Is there something you, like me, feel you were born to do, something that would make a positive impact on those around you?
So many of us wrestle with this feeling, yet we never get the clarity we need to move forward. Or we try to fill that void with financial success, only to discover that money doesn’t bring us fulfillment. Either way, we’re stuck wanting more for our lives. Mark Clure, CFP®, knows that feeling. It’s what set him on a journey that ultimately led him to create The GUIDE Process for identifying and then financing your ideal lifestyle. I asked Mark to visit with me via a video conference service and have included both the transcript and the video recording of our Swift Chat below. Every single one of us has had to adjust as the realities of the global pandemic became apparent this spring. But while these have been challenging times for us individually and as a nation, not every advisor is struggling. In fact, some advisors are thriving. You’ll meet three such advisors during this important webinar:
These accomplished fiduciary advisors will join me for the September webcast in the NAPFA Playbook 2020 series to share what’s working – and what’s not – when it comes to client communications and building your business as a fthrough thick and thin.
In this Swift Chat video conversation, Marie Swift of Impact Communications speaks with John Bowen of CEG Worldwide. The topic: How advisors who have positioned themselves as pandemic experts are getting an unfair, competitive advantage + how the opportunity to capture additional assets now has never been greater.
In this Swift Chat video conversation, I speak with Francesca McLin of Snappy Kraken. The topic: How communications have changed for financial advisors and their clients due to the coronavirus lock-downs - with special bonus material on the new Half-Time Report that Snappy Kraken will unveil via a webinar on July 28th at 3pm ET. There are lots of golden nuggets in this 15 minute video chat with Francesca!
In this Swift Chat video conversation, Marie Swift of Impact Communications speaks with Victor Gaxiola, co-founder of TechGirl Financial. The topic: How communications have changed for financial advisors and their clients due to the coronavirus lock-downs and why TechGirl Financial decided to double-down on their communications.
 Every single one of us has had to adjust our expectations of what is “normal” now. While some have used the term “new normal” to describe the work-from-home and shelter-in-place realities we are all experiencing, others continue to point out that things are changing quickly enough that now there is really just the “next normal” followed by the “next normal.” Sometimes it can feel like pushing through a patch of fog.
But while these have been challenging times for us individually and as a nation, not every advisor is struggling. In fact, some advisors are thriving. You’ll meet three such advisors during this important webinar: Pushing through the Fog: Marketing that Works for Advisors Today Thursday, July 23, 2020 at 4:00 pm ET Research shows that engaging your clients in co-creating the experience improves engagement, loyalty, and referrals. Stephen Wershing, The Client Driven Practice, and Marie Swift, Impact Communications, will discuss the principles of success behind feedback exercises that produce real results. Two advisors, Brian Fricke, CFP®, Financial Management Concepts, and Howard Lutz, Intercontinental Wealth Advisors, will describe their experiences and insights gleaned from working with their own client advisory boards. 
In this Swift Chat video conversation, I speak with Joe Lukacs, founder of Magellan Mastermind & Network. We discuss client communications and marketing financial services in a digital world where so many more people are working from home, seeking good information and advice, and feeling the stress that has come with the COVID-19 lock-downs.
Joe and I talk about the best ways for advisors to "create their own economies" during these challenging times -- and beyond.
Professional journalists and a small group of interested others (special invitations extended by the panelists) were invited to join a group of investor advocates and fiduciary leaders for a virtual discussion on May 5, 2020 at 3:00 pm ET.
Organized by the Institute for the Fiduciary Standard and “Friends of Jack” and hosted by Impact Communications, this virtual conversation brought leading fiduciary voices and investor advocates together to discuss the legacy of John C. "Jack" Bogle. How the ACP System™ Reduces Anxiety – for Advisors and Their Clients – During Market Downturns5/4/2020
In this Swift Chat video conversation, I speak with financial advisors Hannah Basil Bryant, CFP®, and Chip Simon, CFP®, who explain how the ACP System™ helps advisors maintain their client base (and their revenue) and why their clients feel safe and secure through market downturns, even during the current worldwide health and financial crisis.
Reviewing Tax Returns Can Help Financial Advisors Reassure Clients and Find Planning Opportunities4/13/2020
Providing insights on tax strategies could be especially helpful for financial planners and their clients right now. No matter what happens with the pandemic and the markets, taxes will be due this year, next year, every year. Reviewing tax returns and providing advice on related planning opportunities can set you apart from the competition. And the good news is that you, as a professional financial advisor, don’t have to become an expert in every little bit of the new and ever-evolving tax code. Nor do you have to maintain a spreadsheet of your own. Now, with the advent of Holistiplan, you can focus more on advising your clients and reassuring them that you are watching out for them, not inputting data and crunching numbers the old fashioned way.
Snappy Kraken continues to be proactive on behalf of advisors during these challenging times, retooling their business model to ensure that advisors can benefit from their offerings to better serve clients amidst the current pandemic.
On Thursday, March 26, 2020, Snappy Kraken sent an open letter to all advisors and to WealthTech firms, describing the changes and encouraging the other tech companies to similarly help advisors address their challenges.
Every investment advisor is facing it: How to stay in contact with their clients and help them to avoid panic and sell off at a market low – especially during this extraordinary time.
With anxiety levels high, advisors have been called on to communicate with their clients to provide them with factual information and calm fears. But how much communication is too much or too technical; or causes more, not less anxiety?
Here’s your answer: Conduct a virtual focus group.
Better yet, let a professional conduct a virtual focus group for you. Financial advisors who want to understand the changes they will need to make to be a more effective marketer in 2020 will want to attend this webinar and learn:
The Latest Advisor Marketing Trends Revealed in New Study: Over 9.3 Million Data Points Analyzed Prove What Motivates Prospects and Clients to Take Action This is the most comprehensive report and data analysis ever conducted on advisor-specific digital marketing, and the results set benchmark standards for the 2020 marketing landscape. For the first time ever, we will be seeing the scientific findings and objective data analysis mined from 14,229 marketing campaigns deployed by financial advisors in 2019. Our long-time friend and client Ed Jacobson, Ph.D. passed away on Thursday night due to a sudden and severe heart attack. Ed's wife Jody Jacobson, Ph.D. will, of course, continue to carry the torch with the positive psychology and appreciative listening methodology that Ed created and published in his book "Appreciative Moments." Please help us remember Ed by visiting the Memorial Site below: https://www.gatheringus.com/memorial/edward-a-jacobson-ph-d/1526 
 A few weeks ago, Claire Aiken of Indigo Marketing asked me to be her guest on her marketing podcast. I was delighted to accept. In this 20-minute conversation we discuss:
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