Now is the time of year when it’s easy to get distracted with Holiday preparations, travel plans, social events and shopping. But for families with chronically ill children, it’s the farthest thing from their minds. Chances are you work with some of those families.

Our client, Mindy Neira, CFP®, Chartered Special Needs Consultant® at Modera Wealth Advisors in Westwood, New Jersey specializes in helping families with chronically ill children. She’ll be featured in the national media next month and here are some excerpts of her upcoming interviews. Please share this post with clients, friends and relatives who may be caring for a chronically ill child.

Many of you may be asking how families who care for an ill child can prepare themselves for the jaw-dropping costs of diagnosing and treating a child’s chronic disease?

According to Neira, it’s important to utilize the many resources available to you locally and virtually, finding support groups and therapy for your client’s family and allowing loved ones to help along the way. “The journey will be difficult. but you can also find times of joy,” observed Neira. “Ask a lot of questions, follow up on resources, and be proactive about caring for your own mental well-being. One of the first steps may be to join a support group for the child’s particular diagnosis,” Neira added.

Neira said she often sees parents (and grandparents) in this situation neglect their own personal health while caring for a chronically ill child and their siblings. “Caring for your own mental health should be a top priority for you as well,” she advises.

Deductible expenses

Neira said it’s also important to keep one’s financial realities in focus, even when caring responsibilities can seem overwhelming. When families incur significant health care expenses there is an opportunity to deduct a portion for their taxes. “Keep diligent receipts on all out of pocket costs, including travel and stay when traveling to a doctor or for an educational conference,” advised Neira. “There are specific tax considerations for families in your situation, so it’s beneficial to work with a tax advisor or accountant. Tax deductions, credits, and some special provisions on retirement plans could be financially impactful,” she added.

It’s also important for families caring for chronically ill children to know they’re not alone. There are nearly 10 million children enrolled in Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP). Neira said this program is through your state and can provide health coverage for children, if they are eligible. Find out more about how to apply in your state here.

Also, The Ronald McDonald House Program is a nationwide organization that helps families that need to travel for their child’s medical care with housing, support, and resources for families. The cost of food and housing is covered by the organization. The Ronald McDonald Care Mobile program provides medical and dental care for many communities as well, Neira added.

Choose the right health insurances

Neira recommends starting with employer benefits. Typically, your client will want a plan that provides the most coverage and lowest out of pocket costs. “This may mean that a high deductible plan is not going to be cost effective for the family. The employer may offer a Flexible Savings Account (FSA), an alternative to a Health Savings Account (HSA) which is only offered with a high deductible plan,” noted Neira. “This account allows you to contribute pre-tax money and can cover an array of out-of-pocket medical expenses, including co-pays and over the counter items at the local drugstore. Ask the health care provider to share a list of eligible expenses, prior to selecting this option. Note that the balance in the account must be spent by year end, or else the remaining value is forfeited.”

If your client’s employer doesn’t provide coverage, or your client is unemployed at present, they should check with their state insurance plans, said Neira. “In many states, there are resources on the website to find local assistance in reviewing the plans. Talking with someone about your options can help you navigate which plan is best for your situation. Your client may be eligible for financial assistance so it’s also beneficial to understand the eligibility within their state.”

In either case, Neira said always check that preferred doctors and prescriptions are covered with any plan you decide on. “Make a list and talk with the provider before signing up. This may take some time, especially when there are so many other competing priorities, but finding the right coverage will be impactful on your financial life.”

Conclusion

Remember you can only help someone else if your own “life vest is on,” said Neira. “Caring for a child with an illness is taxing on your physical and mental health. Take time to appreciate the positive moments when the light peaks through, while also building a community around you early and consistently to guide you through the difficult times.”

Excellent advice. And for clients who aren’t in this situation. Remind them to be thankful for their good fortune.

Reach Mindy directly for more.

What’s your take? I’d like to hear from you.

#chronicillness, #practicemanagement, #wealthmanagement, #chronicallyillchild

As we prepare to release our 5th annual CPA/Wealth Advisor Confidence Survey  to the media and general public, this much is clear. Financial advisors of all stripes have never been busier. But tons of billable hours and ample referrals don’t necessarily translate into satisfaction.

First the good news: Four in five survey respondents (81%) told us they expect their firms to have positive revenue grow in 2021. That’s up from 75 percent who felt this buoyant at this time a year ago. Further, nearly two in five respondents (37%) expect to see double-digit revenue growth in 2021 (i.e. 10% or greater)–up from just one in four firms (28%) before the onset of the pandemic.

But when you start looking at the types of practices each of the 300-plus respondents run, the differences in growth expectations are striking. For instance, nearly all (98%) CFP/Wealth advisors survey expect to see topline revenue growth in 2021, compared to just 75 percent of CPAs and 71 percent of Estate Attorneys and Planned Giving Officers.

Further, Wealth Advisors were far more likely than other types of advisors to anticipate double-digit revenue growth over the next 12 months.

Our data indicates three in five Wealth Advisors (60%) expect to grow by 10-percent or more in 2021, compared to two in five (40%) Estate Attorneys/Planned Giving officers and less than one in four (23%) CPAs.

Expecting Double-Digit Revenue Growth in 2021

Source: CPA Trendlines, HB Publishing & Marketing Company, LLC; Investments & Wealth Institute, and The Financial Awareness Foundation, 2021. All rights reserved

“Wealth Managers, by their very nature, tend to be more optimistic than attorneys and CPAs,” observed Randy Hubschmidt, Partner, Fortis Family Wealth (Valley Forge, PA). “Attorneys are largely trained how to keep others (counterparties to contracts) from doing things. Similarly, CPAs tend to be backwards looking – they report history whether that is financial statement history or tax reporting history.” By contrast, Hubschmidt said wealth managers tend to be trained in finance, which is a forward-looking discipline and “less worried about the past.”

To a certain extent, CPA Karen Koch, Senior Director, Source Advisors (Louisville, KY) agreed. “Whether a CPA, wealth advisor, or attorney, we all struggle with how to grow the business even though our clients continually ask for more services.  We are uncertain how to incorporate client needs to a revenue stream.” According to Koch, the future growth of accounting firms is likely going to include strategic relationships with vendors that can offer expertise not typically found within a professional services firm. “We need to assure our clients we are the trusted advisor that knows how to deliver fully defensible services with a team approach,” Koch added.

While wealth advisors have been the most confident advisors throughout the five-year history of our survey, estate planners showed the largest uptick in optimism over the past year. Two in five estate planners/giving officers (40%) expect to grow their revenue by double-digits in 2021 To put that into perspective, less than three in 10 estate planners (29%) expected double-digit growth at this time a year ago.

Wakeup Call

Estate Planner Randy Fox, Founder, Two Hawks Consulting (Skokie, IL) told me recently that potential tax upheaval and likely lowering of the estate tax exemption is driving more clients to planners’ doors. Fox also said COVID-19 woke up a lot of people to the fragility of life. “When we see 40-year-old friends and 30-year-old coworkers dying in the hospital, there’s a heightened sense of one’s own mortality,” related Fox. “Everyone knows someone who died unexpectedly or was in crisis mode during the darkest days of the pandemic. It’s especially sad to see young and middle-aged adults gravely ill in the hospital without having health care powers of attorney identified. Talk about a huge wakeup call.”

Estate planner Hyman Darling, Partner, Bacon Wilson, PC (Springfield, MA) noted that more people than ever are aging in place and are concerned about their future financial situations. He also said parents are taking the initiative to plan for long term care, estate taxes and addressing the issue of possibly “outliving” their savings. “Financial planning companies are adding staff and developing new products to assist with these issues, thus more planners will be marketing these strategies to the clients.”

Kyle Walters, CIMA has the unique perspective of a wealth advisor who has merge with several regional accounting firms to form Dallas-based L&H CPAs. According to Walters, most CPAs are analytical numbers people who have been drawn to their profession because they like the sense of balance, order and control it demands (i.e., Debits = Credits).

However, with that mindset, Walters said it’s harder for CPAs than others to get inside their heads and modify their habits or behaviors. “There’s no standard, reg or best practice to follow when it comes to navigating the ‘gray areas’ in a client’s financial life. Instead of one or two tax deadlines per year, it’s an ongoing process in which they clients need their CPA all year round. Their expert advice—not their ability to fill out rows and columns for the government—is what clients increasingly value,” added Walters.

That’s something that wealth advisors and estate planners long ago figured out.

*** Ping me any time if you’d like a copy of the 2021 survey findings or would like us to present the findings to your firm or professional organization.

Conclusion

Our 2021 survey is a joint initiative of CPA Trendlines, Elite Resource Team, The Financial Awareness Foundation, the Investments & Wealth Institute and HB Publishing & Marketing Company. A total of 309 financial advisors from throughout North America took part in a 25-question online survey during the first quarter of 2021. Respondents received no financial or in-kind incentives to complete the survey other than a promise to receive a pre-publication copy of the results. Sincere thanks to my co-authors Rick Telberg (CPA Trendlines) and Valentino Sabuco (The Financial Awareness Foundation).

What’s your take? I’d like to hear from you.

#practicemanagement, #wealthmanagement, #investorconfidence, #economy, #cpafuture

I was a financial journalist for many years before starting HB Publishing. You know how you feel when telemarketers call you just after you’ve sat down for dinner? Well that’s how I used to feel when a rookie PR person or fledgling entrepreneur would pitch me a completely off base story—typically when I was crashing on deadline.

I know this may come as a shocker, but the financial media does NOT exist to promote your firm or your personal brand. Time-pressed journalists are charged with informing their readers/viewers about the most important news, trends and best practices that impact their readers every day. Do their readers really care if you just opened a branch office, hired a new partner or now offer a new service? Not likely. It might be a big deal for you and your team, but is that news going to make the journalist’s readers more successful, more efficient or better informed? As President Biden would say: “C’mon man!”

But, these are the kinds of questions you (and your agency) should be asking yourself before you pitch. So, how do some advisors keep getting quoted, published and cited by the popular press?

Hint: they’re not buying their way in or taking out big advertising schedules in those media. Instead, they’ve learned to be a “Go-To” guy or gal for busy journalists—a reliable source the journalist can count on time and time again to explain complex topics to their audience in concise soundbites—without dumbing it down or pitching their firm’s services.

That’s actually the easy part.

The hard part is getting on the journalist’s radar in the first place. You can hire an expensive PR firm; you can spend lots of money blasting out press releases on a wire service. But “spray and pray PR” rarely works.

Instead, you and your team have to do some old-fashioned legwork. It doesn’t mean making cold calls (or e-blasts). You simply have to isolate 10-20 media outlets in which you’d most like to appear. Hint: these are the outlets where your clients, prospects and strategic partners spend their time keeping abreast of your industry. Next, familiarize yourself with the specific editors, writers, producers and bloggers who are most often covering the areas that map to your expertise.

Next reach out by phone, email, snail mail and social media with a brief, but carefully targeted “pitch” that shows you are familiar with the writer’s work (i.e. their beat) and why featuring you or your firm in an upcoming article can shed new light on a topic they frequently cover—or should be covering. It doesn’t hurt to cite references to recent stories the journalist has written about a topic on which you’re an expert.

Hint: Use a few of those keywords in the subject line of your pitch email.
Hint2: Don’t give up if your first attempt goes answered. You may need follow up three or four time before getting a response.

Better yet, let the journalist know you have research, presentations or articles that could enhance their coverage of a topic and to consider you a source the next time they cover that subject. While it’s hard to get journalists to have lunch, drinks or golf, if they like your angle, they will be receptive to a Zoom call, or at least an email exchange to discuss further.

Finally, don’t be afraid to pick up the phone and call. More often than not you’ll get a voice mail. That’s fine. Even with many journalists working from home, they check their voicemail regularly because heck, they don’t get many legit voice messages anymore, and when they do, it’s usually important.

For more about getting media attention that matters, see our recent posts:

• Don’t ‘Pitch’ Stories to the Media; Be a Problem Solver
• Getting Quoted in The Journal Is Not Impossible, But……

Conclusion

Newsrooms are a lot thinner than they used to be and the news cycle moves faster. While journalists can be cranky at times, they’re still human. They love a good story—and even better—a good story teller. You’re a pro. Why shouldn’t you be on of them?

What’s your take? I’d like to hear from you.

#practicemanagement, #wealthmanagement, #PR, #credibilitymarketing, #thoughtleadership

Quality over quantity to build longstanding relationships

As our 5th annual CPA/Wealth Advisor Confidence Survey  draws to a close, several data points stand out. More than four out of five surveyed advisors (81%) told us they expect their practices to grow over the next 12 months. Even more encouraging, nearly two in five respondents (38%) expect their practices to grow by more than 10 percent in the year ahead—up from 21 percent who felt this buoyant in March of 2020.

What are high-growth firms doing differently in 2021?

For one, they’re working the press. They’re not just garnering press mentions; they’re leveraging those interviews into guest columns, background interviews and podcast appearances. Nearly half of respondents (47%), told us they find press mentions to be “very” or “extremely” effective for enhancing their status as thought leaders. And 46 percent said publishing bylined columns was a “very” or “extremely” effective thought leadership tactic. In fact, press mentions and bylined articles both ranked among the top 5 leadership tactics out of nearly 20 we asked respondents to rate.

The firms most optimistic about their growth prospects in 2021 were even more likely than average firms to seek press mentions and publishing opportunities. High growth firms were 5 percentage points more likely than average firms to rate press mentions a “very” or “extremely” effective thought leadership tactic (51% vs. 46%). They were 4 percentage points more likely than average firms to rate bylined articles “very” or “extremely” effective (50% vs. 46%).

Here are recent examples from our clients:

• Tax specialists BLAKE CHRISTIAN @taxcredits_CPA  and JAY DARBY  (HCVT, LLP) were published in Bloomberg Tax (O-Zone Alchemy: Turning Net 1231 Gains Into Gross 1231 Gains (and Losses)), which led to an appearance in the Millionacres/Motely Fool magazine and podcast (Bitcoin Boom Got You Facing Tax Hit? Consider Opportunity Zone Investing).

• Estate planner RANDY FOX (Two Hawks Consulting) @randyafox1 was published in WealthManagement.com (Why Are Aging Rockers Cashing Out Their Music Catalogs?) and featured in Medium.com/ Authority Magazine (Social Impact Heroes: Why & How Randy A. Fox of Two Hawks Consulting Is Helping To Change Our World). 

• Tax-centric wealth advisor @KYLEWALTERS (L&H CPAs) has earned a twice-monthly guest column spot in Accounting Today. Don’t miss his latest Tiered huddles help firms manage busy season 
• Wealth advisor DR. GUY BAKER, Ph.D (Insight Wealth Solutions) was featured in U.S News & World Report (When Do You Become a Senior Citizen?), Money Geek (Expert Insight on Conventional Loans) and Bank Rate.com (With rates so low, are CDs worth it in 2021?)
• Tax specialist RANDY CRABTREE (Tri Merit) was published in Accounting Today Down Economy Offers Great Opportunity for CPAs to Hit Restart

By the way, our clients don’t have to resort to “pay for play” (sorry Forbes Advisory Council) or “spray and pray” press releases. They take a highly targeted approach to becoming trusted go-to sources for top journalists on tight deadline. Next time, I’ll tell you more about how they do it.

*** NOTE: We’re keeping the survey open for another week. Give us five minutes of your time and we’ll send you a 20-page pre-publication summary of the findings. See how you stack up to your peers.

Conclusion

Our 2021 survey is a joint initiative of CPA Trendlines, Elite Resource Team, The Financial Awareness Foundation, the Investments & Wealth Institute and HB Publishing & Marketing Company. We don’t make money from the survey or share email addresses or individual responses of participants. We’re just trying to give back to the profession.

What’s your take? I’d like to hear from you.

 #practicemanagement, #wealthmanagement, #PR, #credibilitymarketing, #thoughtleadership

Most advisors we talked to are optimistic about their growth prospects in 2021. But they don’t seem as confident about their clients’ financial acumen.

Early results of our 5th annual CPA/Wealth Advisor Confidence Survey  showed more than half of advisors (55%) believe America’s financial literacy has NOT improved over the past year. More than half of advisors (53%) told us the majority of their clients lacked a clearly defined investment policy statement or asset allocation plan when they first started working with them. Further, 51 percent of advisors said the majority of their clients did not know how much retirement income they would need when they first started working with them. And nearly half (47%) of advisors said the plurality of their clients did not have current estate and gift plans in place when they first started working with them.

*** NOTE: We’re keeping the survey open for another week. Give us five minutes of your time and we’ll send you a 20-page pre-publication summary of the findings. See how you stack up to your peers.

This data is even more concerning when you consider the affluence and educational attainment of clients working with high-end financial advisors.

“Some people do not consider financial planning a high priority in their busy lives,” explained respondent Lionel Shipman, a financial and life empowerment professional. “Unfortunately, as life events happen, many will regret not having a financial plan in place and will have to endure the consequences of their lack of prioritization,” Shipman added.

According to our respondents, the biggest reason why Americans don’t update their estate and gift plans are because:

• They don’t see it as a priority (76%).
• They think it’s too expensive (55%).
• They don’t know where to turn for advice (52%).
• They don’t think they’re old enough (50%).

“People are reluctant to keep a financial, estate and gift plan in place because they mistakenly feel it limits their day to day lifestyle,” observed respondent Jim Stovall. “In reality proper planning brings freedom,” Stovall added.

Survey respondents also revealed that most of their clients did not realize how much their home equity worked against them when it came to financing college tuition. Hypothetically speaking, if families could no longer tap their home equity to pay for higher education, how would higher education costs be impacted?

• Two thirds of respondents (65%) believed tuition rates would stabilize or start to decline.
• Only one third (35%) thought tuition would continue rising faster than inflation.

So, what actions can advisors take to help clients feel more confident about reaching their financial goals?

• Nearly all (95%) said go beyond investments.
• More than nine out of ten respondents (91%) said helping clients focus on the long-term and doing more frequent reviews.
• Seven out of eight (88%) said delivering on core expectations.

Perhaps that’s why advisors are contacting their clients more frequently than ever before. Nearly half of respondents (45%) indicated they are communicating with clients multiple times per month, (up from 43% who said so in 2020, 38% in 2019 and 35% in 2018).

Conclusion

Our 2021 survey is a joint initiative of CPA Trendlines, Elite Resource Team, The Financial Awareness Foundation, the Investments & Wealth Institute and HB Publishing & Marketing Company. We don’t make money from the survey or share email addresses or individual responses of participants. We’re just trying to give back to the profession.

What’s your take? I’d like to hear from you.

#practicemanagement, #wealthmanagement, #investorconfidence #economy

Reasons for optimism may surprise you

Preliminary results of our 5th annual CPA/Wealth Advisor Confidence Survey  show the vast majority of U.S. financial advisory firms (92%) expect to grow in 2021. In fact, nearly two in five (39%) are expecting to grow by double digits or more this year—comparable to pre-COVID levels.

While more than half of advisors (52%) expect to see at least one sharp market correction in 2021, less than one in five (19%) expect to see a continued recession this year (i.e. two consecutive quarters of negative GDP growth).

*** NOTE: We’re keeping the survey open for another week. Give us five minutes of your time and we’ll send you a 20-page pre-publication summary of the findings. See how you stack up to your peers.

What’s keeping affluent Americans up at night?

In addition to the pandemic, nearly three in four respondents (74%) cited “turbulence in Washington DC” and an equal amount (73%) cited “changes in tax laws.”  Nearly two-thirds (62%) pointed to “concerns about the federal budget deficit” and nearly half (45%) cited “lifestyle changes post COVID.”

The young generation and financial literacy

As has been the case since we launched the survey in 2016, Millennials (42%) where overwhelmingly cited as the generation most pessimistic about its financial future. Generation Y (age 36-52) was the next most pessimistic cohort (23%) followed by seniors (19%) and Boomers (16%).

Less than half of respondents (45%) felt America’s financial literacy has improved over the past year. About one third (35%) believe our nation’s financial literacy has remained the same and nearly one in five (19%) worry that it has fallen behind.

*** Please share this survey link with professional colleagues who might be able to benefit from our findings https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/3T836CB

Conclusion

Our 2021 survey is a joint initiative of CPA Trendlines, Elite Resource Team, The Financial Awareness Foundation, the Investments & Wealth Institute and HB Publishing & Marketing Company. We don’t make money from the survey or share email addresses or individual responses of participants. We’re just trying to give back to the profession.

What’s your take? I’d like to hear from you.

#practicemanagement, #wealthmanagement #investorconfidence #economy