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Weekend Reading For Financial Planners (February 28–March 1)

February 27, 2026 01:58 pm 0 Comments CATEGORY: Weekend Reading

Enjoy the current installment of “Weekend Reading For Financial Planners” - this week’s edition kicks off with the news that a recent survey of financial advisors across industry channels finds that three-quarters of respondents are using Artificial Intelligence (AI) technology in some form in their practices, with automating administrative work and preparing for client meetings amongst the top use cases. Nonetheless, a number of advisors expressed ongoing concerns with the use of AI, including around compliance, accuracy, and client trust. The latter point appears to be well-founded, as a separate survey found that only 38% of affluent investors are at least somewhat comfortable with AI technology (with older respondents being significantly less likely to express comfort with it), suggesting that advisors who do incorporate in their practices could build trust with their clients by being clear about how AI is used and what their firm is doing to keep client data secure.

Also in industry news this week:

A recent survey suggests that while there are positive returns to be gained by engaging in legacy planning conversations with clients, some advisors and clients are unsure whether the other party is interested in discussing this planning topic
How a piece of legislation introduced in Congress could reduce mutual funds’ tax efficiency disadvantage (compared to ETFs) when it comes to capital gains distributions

From there, we have several articles on investment planning:

An analysis finds that accessing the returns of fixed income and other high-yielding assets without receiving taxable dividends and capital gains distributions (in taxable accounts) could be worth up to 1% or more annually for a typical high-income investor
While some clients might be attracted by the high yields of certain dividend-paying stocks and newer fund products, these can potentially lead to “traps” (in the case of the former) or underperformance compared to the underlying index (in the case of the latter)
How a “yield-split” approach to asset location could help clients get even greater tax efficiency from their index fund investments

We also have a number of articles on estate planning:

How advisors can help clients close the “Bank of Mom and Dad” when financial support for adult children is leading to dependency and/or are straining their finances
The potential benefits of lifetime giving for wealthy individuals, from giving money when it’s more impactful to the ability to witness the benefits of their generosity
How intra-family loans can be used as a planning tool for individuals to financially support family members while still earning a return and avoiding gift tax exposure

We wrap up with three final articles, all about AI and the job market:

Why previous hypotheses about why human financial advisors will remain in high demand amidst technological innovations might not hold up in the case of advanced AI capabilities
Why a desire for a “human touch” has led to continued employment for a range of occupations whose jobs could have been automated by available technology
How “vibe reporting” about AI (particularly when it comes to company layoff announcements) can lead to the mistaken impression that certain changes were caused by AI (rather than by other factors, such as previous over-hiring)

Enjoy the ‘light’ reading!Read More...

Reducing Retirement Income Volatility With The Modified RMD Safe Withdrawal Method

February 25, 2026 07:02 am 0 Comments CATEGORY: Retirement Planning

One of the most pressing questions for individuals nearing retirement is how much they will be able to withdraw from their portfolio each year without exhausting their retirement savings. But the problem is that almost all the variables involved in making that calculation, from market returns to life expectancy to the client's spending needs, are uncertain. This conundrum has spawned an entire field of research into Safe Withdrawal Rates (SWRs), seeking methods to thread the needle between over- and under-withdrawing the portfolio that are also flexible enough to adapt to clients' life circumstances – all while being simple enough to explain and apply in practice.

Several types of withdrawal strategies have arisen out of this research, each with its own benefits and drawbacks. Some 'fixed' SWR strategies, like the "4% Rule" developed by Bill Bengen, are relatively simple to apply – but because they're premised on having the client's portfolio survive the worst-case market return scenario, the vast majority of the time they'll result in the client having significant unspent (and unenjoyed) portfolio assets at the end of their lives. Other 'dynamic' withdrawal strategies, like the Guyton-Klinger guardrail method, can more precisely match portfolio withdrawals to market conditions (and often allow for higher total withdrawals), but the withdrawals under these strategies can vary significantly from year to year, leading to uncertainty and anxiety for some clients who use them.

One strategy that can serve as a happy medium between fixed and dynamic withdrawals borrows from the IRS's method of calculating Required Minimum Distributions (RMDs) from retirement accounts. Under the RMD method, the client's total portfolio value as of the end of the previous year is divided by a factor based on the client's remaining life expectancy (provided by IRS tables for RMD calculations). As a result, each year the client withdraws only a certain percentage of their portfolio, preventing over-withdrawals – but because the withdrawal percentage increases each year incrementally, there's a lower likelihood of leaving significant funds behind. And because the IRS publishes RMD tables for all ages (since, for example, a child who inherits an IRA may be subject to RMDs), the RMD method can be applied regardless of when the client decides to retire.

Furthermore, the RMD approach can be modified to reduce the volatility of annual withdrawals (e.g., if market movements cause a temporary drop or spike in the portfolio's value at year-end). Under this modified approach, the annual withdrawal is calculated based not just on the previous year-end portfolio balance, but on the average of the past three years. This helps smooth out year-to-year variations in annual withdrawals and can help keep clients from focusing too much on market conditions that could affect their 'paycheck' the next year.

The key point is that because the IRS has already done the work of calculating withdrawal tables meant to gradually deplete a portfolio throughout retirement, the RMD method presents a relatively easy-to-understand strategy that doesn't require special software or decision trees to implement. And with a few simple modifications – e.g., using the three-year average portfolio value to reduce withdrawal volatility and carving out specific amounts to set aside for legacy and other goals – advisors can help their clients customize the RMD method to meet their own needs and ultimately reduce the uncertainty around drawing down their portfolio in retirement!Read More...

Fixing Advisory Firm Marketing Funnels So The Phone Actually Rings With Prospects: #FASuccess Ep 478 With Kendra Wright

February 24, 2026 07:04 am 0 Comments CATEGORY: Financial Advisor Success Podcast

Kendra Wright Podcast Featured Image FAS

Welcome everyone! Welcome to the 478th episode of the Financial Advisor Success Podcast!

My guest on today's podcast is Kendra Wright. Kendra is the owner of Rebel Media Agency, a marketing firm based in Austin, Texas, that helps RIAs establish and execute clear marketing strategies.

What's unique about Kendra, though, is how her experience working with a range of financial advisory firms has allowed her to identify four ways that advisor marketing funnels break and the solutions that can help firms establish more effective marketing practices.

In this episode, we talk in-depth about how Kendra finds that many advisors lack what she calls "ideal client clarity" and attempt to market themselves to a broad audience (making it harder for potential clients to understand whether the advisor can solve their particular pain points), why Kendra thinks that getting "ideal client clarity" doesn't necessarily require an advisor to adopt a single hyper-specific niche, but rather the ability to identify one (or more) profiles of the clients they most enjoy working with and who can afford to pay for the advisor's services, and how Kendra completed this exercise with her own firm, zeroing in on working with particular types of RIAs instead of a broader pool of potential advisor clients.

We also talk about how Kendra finds that advisors can improve their marketing funnels by engaging in what she calls "channel focus", identifying the marketing channels (for example, YouTube or in-person seminars) where their ideal clients are most likely to engage with the advisor's content (and why having multiple ideal client types might require focusing on separate channels for each), why Kendra thinks that "channel focus" is also a function of identifying a medium that reflects an advisor's strengths when it comes to content creation (for instance, advisors who are strong writers might choose to create a blog or long LinkedIn posts, while those who prefer verbal communication might start a podcast), and how Kendra finds that focusing on creating content tailored for a particular marketing channel can help advisors differentiate themselves from those who cast a wider net across channels (but not stand out in any particular one).

And be certain to listen to the end, where Kendra shares why she thinks the best advisor content talks about painful, urgent problems their ideal client is likely to face (rather than more general "helpful" content that could otherwise be found through a Google search or AI prompt), why Kendra thinks it's important for advisory firms to have effective calls to action in their marketing and on their websites that make it easy for prospective clients to take the next step (and to make it clear that the firm is currently accepting new clients in the first place), and how Kendra has ultimately found success not by growing her marketing agency as large as possible but rather by gaining flexibility (and greater satisfaction) by focusing on a smaller number of (profitable) clients she enjoys working with.

So, whether you're interested in learning about the different ways marketing funnels can "break", how to create "ideal client clarity" to get your marketing off on the right foot, or how to better move consumers from content to client, then we hope you enjoy this episode of the Financial Advisor Success podcast, with Kendra Wright.

How Prospects Choose A Financial Advisor: 3 Key Methods To Communicate Your Value

February 23, 2026 07:01 am 0 Comments CATEGORY: Marketing, Research

Prospective clients face a complex and high-stakes decision when selecting a financial advisory firm. They're not only seeking credentials to trust, but also an individual they can genuinely trust to solve their specific financial challenges. However, the landscape of financial advice can be dense, and these decisions are high-stakes for prospects – a traditional advisor/client relationship involves nearly all of their life savings and can span years. For the prospect, this poses the challenge of how to determine who to trust, given their lack of understanding of the broader landscape of financial advice. For advisory firms, this poses a challenge of how to stand out to the (right) prospects and communicate their value effectively.

In this article, Sydney Squires, Senior Financial Planning Nerd, discusses how financial advisors can mold their existing marketing and value propositions to fit a prospect's emotional and practical decision-making process. Most decision-making processes are two-part: first, the divergent phase (gathering a wide array of qualified options), then the convergent phase (of narrowing down the list). This process often cycles multiple times as prospects refine their understanding of what they need and who can best provide it.

For prospects, the initial divergent phase involves looking for indicators of general trustworthiness and expertise. This typically includes checking an advisor's professional designations or seeking peer validation of the firm, such as asking for referrals or looking for online reviews. Referrals remain the most influential factor in how prospects find advisors… yet Wealthtender's research shows that 96% of prospects will conduct further online research before reaching out, typically visiting the advisor's website and evaluating credentials, pricing transparency, and communication style.

This highlights the importance of 'supporting tactics' such as SEO, social media, and newsletters – tactics that help reinforce the positive perception initiated by referrals. Even strong referrals can falter if a firm's website is outdated, difficult to navigate, or overly generic. Design, clarity, and messaging matter; poorly executed online experiences can erode trust, while effective ones help convert curiosity into inquiry. The challenge for advisors is to strike a balance between providing general signals of trust and competence to ensure visibility… while also providing specific evidence and information to withstand the convergent phases.

In the end, prospective clients are looking for two things: someone they can trust and someone who can solve their problem. And prospects generally look for that information in multiple steps. Financial advisors who recognize the nuances of the prospect decision-making process – and who intentionally align their marketing, online presence, and messaging to meet those needs – are better positioned to attract and convert right-fit clients. By layering in both general trust signals and information about the specific value they provide, advisors can effectively differentiate themselves in a crowded, often confusing marketplace, creating clarity and confidence for the people they are best suited to serve!

Weekend Reading For Financial Planners (February 21–22)

February 20, 2026 02:00 pm 0 Comments CATEGORY: Weekend Reading

Enjoy the current installment of "Weekend Reading For Financial Planners" – this week's edition kicks off with the news that research from Morningstar finds that the vast majority of actively managed funds underperformed their passively managed peers in 2025, with even fewer active funds outperforming over 5-, 10- and 20-year periods. Nevertheless, the research did identify a few market segments (including certain bonds and real estate) where actively managed funds (particularly those with relatively lower costs) tend to fare relatively better, suggesting that there could be room for advisors to add value by identifying funds in these areas that might be supportive of their clients' portfolio needs and investment goals (though, as always, past performance isn't indicative of future results!).

Also in industry news this week:

A review of financial advisor salaries finds that lead advisors (and those living in certain states in the Northeast) tend to see the highest pay
A survey finds that financial advisors are seeing more success converting defined contribution retirement plan participants into wealth management clients, suggesting that advising on plans not only could be a profitable business line itself but also serve as a valuable marketing tactic

From there, we have several articles on retirement planning:

Why the 'guaranteed' returns of delaying Social Security benefits (and the unknown returns of a broadly invested portfolio) could make waiting to claim benefits a valuable way to mitigate against longevity risk
How certain client preferences (such as being able to spend more earlier in retirement when they are relatively healthier) could shift their optimal Social Security claiming age earlier than what a purely math-based calculation might prescribe
Why it rarely pays for both spouses to delay Social Security benefits (with an 'optimal' strategy often being for the higher-earning spouse to delay benefits as long as possible and the lower-earning spouse to claim as soon as they can)

We also have a number of articles on estate planning:

The many complications involved when transferring real estate to heirs and how financial advisors can support clients by getting this conversation started early (to help avoid potential tax issues and family conflicts)
While more states are allowing for "transfer on death deeds" that allow real estate to be transferred to heirs without going through the probate process, care must be taken when applying for this structure to avoid legal headaches down the line
Four tax-aware strategies for clients looking to give a primary or vacation home to their children or to charity

We wrap up with three final articles, all about college planning:

Why 529 plans can be particularly attractive for college saving, not only for their tax benefits but also for their superior treatment compared to certain other account types (including Roth IRAs) when it comes to income counted in financial aid calculations
Eight tips for appealing financial aid awards, including the ability to make colleges compete directly against one another (particularly if they're peer institutions)
How algorithmic pricing has become embedded in the college aid landscape and how students and their families can benefit by reading between the lines on the aid offers they receive

Enjoy the 'light' reading!

The (Unexpected) Ways AI Is Changing Content Marketing For Financial Advisors: Kitces & Carl 184

February 19, 2026 07:03 am 0 Comments CATEGORY: Kitces & Carl Podcast

The advent of artificial intelligence (AI) initially seemed like a breakthrough for advisors who liked doing content marketing yet struggled to find the time and focus to do so. However, the very technology that enhanced creation and distribution for advisors did the same for everyone. In an environment oversaturated with low-effort AI-generated content, financial advisors are finding that content marketing no longer delivers the impact it once did. What was once an effective way to connect with prospects and demonstrate expertise is increasingly becoming a source of noise – undermined by the very technology that was supposed to enhance it.

The widespread availability of AI tools has made it easier than ever to produce blog posts, newsletters, and social media content. But as the barriers to creation fall, the flood of undifferentiated, mediocre content has overwhelmed audiences, eroding trust, reducing engagement, and forcing advisors to rethink how they communicate value. As a result, many advisors now report declining engagement and fewer client conversions.

In this 184th episode of Kitces & Carl, Michael Kitces and client communication expert Carl Richards discuss how financial advisors' content marketing can continue to stand out amongst a saturated world. When everyone has access to the same tools, the signal-to-noise ratio plummets. Unless content is either outrageously bold or hyper-relevant to a clearly defined audience, it gets deleted, ignored, or filtered out.

What remains are two angles: outrageousness (provoking anger or 'spirited discussions') or relevance (deep, authentic, and personalized content). The latter is more sustainable than the former. But through that relevance, advisors must be ruthlessly specific about who their work is for and what it does. Broad content aimed at 'everyone' no longer cuts through the noise, but high-quality, consistent, and uniquely human content still stands out! Whether through long-form writing, clear idea distillation, or curated content, advisors can reassert their value through thoughtfulness and craftsmanship. AI can still be a powerful ally, but only when used strategically – as a tool for ideation, editing, and refinement – not as a substitute for the advisor's authentic voice.

As the marketing landscape shifts, substance, not volume, becomes the marker of distinction. Ultimately, the path forward requires advisors to either be radically unique or hyper-relevant – ideally both. AI isn't the enemy of content marketing, but a reminder that the human element is now more important than ever. By doubling down on quality, clarity, and audience fit, advisors can continue to use content to build trust, demonstrate expertise, and drive meaningful engagement. The firms that thrive will be those that resist the temptation to automate everything and instead focus on doing the deep work of creating content that truly matters.