Latest ACP Blogs

Fighting Recency Bias

By #ACP ACP
"Recency bias" is giving undue weight to the most recent information. In financial planning, it often stems from headlines reporting the most recent volatility in the market and, by implication, investment returns. Recency bias is one of over 50 different types of cognitive biases listed in Wikipedia , which are defined as "…systematic patterns of deviation from norm and/or rationality in judgment." Recent information appeals to our natural instincts, likely a leftover from when we lived in caves and needed to know what was going on near us to survive (avoiding saber tooth tigers, looking for food, etc.). Even today, we need these instincts ...
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Creating a Scalable, Profitable Financial Planning Practice

By #ACP ACP
As an advisor, you may employ a variety of models in different capacities for receipt of compensation from clients. Knowing these formats may help you make your best decision as you build your own advising practice. It is important to remember that planning can be as quick or extensive as it fits your clients' needs, your business goals, and your lifestyle. You may choose to offer one-time planning events, sketching out the bones of an end goal and the steps along the way that will bring your clients to that destination. If there is interest in revisiting that plan over time, you will likely engage in an ongoing relationship of planning throughout the ...
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Adding Taxes to Your Service Model - And Loving It!

By #ACP ACP
Many financial planners start their practice with anything but tax preparation and planning in mind. They may have had a negative experience with tax prep in the past, or maybe taxes just don’t interest them as much as holistic financial planning strategy does. However, many ACP members have leaned toward incorporating tax services as part of their comprehensive model in recent years – and our team is expecting this trend to continue. Let’s dig into the “why” behind leveraging tax services in your fee-only financial planning practice, and how it can help you to uplevel your planning model. Is Tax Preparation an ACP Requirement? First and foremost, ...
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How To Jump-Start Your Financial Planning Business in 2022: Top Tips From Ten Fiduciary Fee-Only Planners

By #ACP ACP
Recorded on location at ACP's Annual Conference held October 2021 in Atlanta, Georgia, the latest episode of the ACP podcast series is a collage of ideas from a sampling of ACP financial planners. Advisors were asked to discuss a couple of things: A top challenge they faced and how they successfully resolved the issue; The most important lesson they’ve learned from running a successful advisory practice during the pandemic. Ten members were featured, offering thoughts on virtual client communications, working remotely, volatile markets, mindfulness, self-care, industry organizations, helpful software, recruiting solutions, ...
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ACP Secrets: Unique Advice and Insights from ACP Members

By #ACP ACP
In many ways, ACP member-owned financial planning firms operate very differently than traditional financial planners. As such, members often have unique tips and insights to share based on experience with ACP’s fee-only holistic planning model. In a recent webcast, we covered some ACP secrets, tips, and tricks that non-members might not know about, along with some of the unique benefits that come with ACP membership. Our panel of members shared insights and advice based on their experience as ACP members and owners of their own practices. 1. Tax Focus Adds Value for Clients One of the most significant differences between ACP members and ...
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Putting Your Own Stamp on an Existing Practice: A Conversation with Irfan Bhabhrawala

By #ACP ACP
ACP Insights is a webinar series that features ACP member advisors. The series provides a platform for members to share their ACP experiences with prospective members and other interested parties. We hope that hearing from our members will help you decide if the ACP methodology of fee-only comprehensive planning is right for you. In a recent episode, we spoke with Irfan Bhabhrawala, CFP®, Owner of Arbor Financial in Ann Arbor, Michigan. He described his experience taking over an existing ACP-affiliated firm. He discovered Arbor Financial when seeking a firm to advise his parents, and in time, he joined that same firm as an employee and then bought ...
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What "Tax-Focused" Means To A Financial Advisor

By #ACP ACP
ACP Insights is a webinar series that features ACP member advisors. The series provides a platform for members to share their ACP experiences with prospective members and other interested parties. We hope that hearing from our members will help you decide if the ACP methodology of fee-only comprehensive planning is right for you. In a recent episode, we spoke with Zach Teutsch, owner of Values Added Financial. Zach is coming up on the two-year anniversary of his business. He has taken some time to reflect on his journey becoming an ACP-certified member, along with how he’s successfully incorporated ACP’s tax focus in his practice. For ACP-certified financial ...
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How Comprehensive Planning Makes You Indispensable

By #ACP ACP
ACP Insights is a webinar series that features ACP member advisors. The series provides a platform for members to share their ACP experiences with prospective members and other interested parties. We hope that hearing from our members will help you decide if the ACP methodology of fee-only comprehensive planning is right for you. In a recent episode , we spoke with ACP-certified advisor Kenneth Robinson, the president of Practical Financial Planning, who has been an ACP member for over 20 years. We discussed how consumers often find it frustrating to coordinate the various aspects of their finances and how financial planners can stand shoulder ...
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Life, Love, and Happiness: How This Advisor Emphasizes Personal Fulfilment in Financial Planning

By #ACP ACP
ACP is a community of tax-focused financial advisors operating under a unique retainer-based fiduciary business model. In our ACP Insights series, we discuss the process of creating and operating a successful financial planning practice with ACP members. We hope that hearing from our members will help you decide that the ACP methodology and fee-only comprehensive financial planning are right for you. On a recent episode of our podcast , we spoke with Laura Rotter, CFA, MBA, CFP®, a financial life planner and founder of True Abundance Advisors. After 30 years of successfully managing money for some of the country’s biggest institutions, ...
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Transitioning to Tax Focused Practice Webinar with Ross Schmidt

By #ACP ACP
Our ACP Insights series highlights ACP member advisors and provides a platform for our members to share their ACP experience with prospective members. We hope that hearing from our members will help you decide that the ACP methodology and fee-only comprehensive financial planning is right for you. In a recent episode, we spoke with Ross Schmidt, a financial planner with over twenty years of experience. While based in Colorado, Ross has clients from all over the country, from Maryland to Hawaii and everywhere in between. Ross has been an ACP member for over two decades and shared with us some of the benefits of ACP membership that have helped make his practice ...
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ACP Insights: Zero to Hero with Steve Cruice

By #ACP ACP
Our ACP Insights series highlights ACP member advisors and provides a platform for our members to share their ACP experience with prospective members. We hope that hearing from our members will help you decide that the ACP methodology and fee-only comprehensive financial planning approach is right for you. I n a recent episode , we spoke with Steve Cruice who founded Simply Steward in Highlands Ranch, Colorado. He transitioned from a career as a CPA at a large organization to start his own business as a fee-only fiduciary advisor and chose ACP to help him accomplish this goal. Steve needed help getting started with a financial planning ...
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Holistic Financial Planning: From Vision to Reality

By #ACP ACP
In our recent podcast , we spoke with guest Kristen Moosmiller, EA, CFP®, founder and managing partner of NorthAvenue Financial Advocates. She described the journey that's led her and her business partner to the kind of financial planning practice many professionals wish they had. At NorthAvenue Financial Advocates, Kristen and her colleagues offer holistic financial planning services . Rather than focusing solely on investments, holistic financial planning takes a broader perspective and includes elements of financial planning such as tax planning and preparation, retirement planning, insurance needs, estate planning, and budgeting and saving. ...
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How and Why to Add Measurable Value with Tax-Focused Financial Planning

By #ACP ACP
At the Alliance of Comprehensive Planners, we’re of the firm belief that tax-focused financial planning is an essential part of financial planning services. ACP operates under a fee-only retainer-based model that helps advisors deliver the best customer experience possible. In this presentation on tax-focused financial planning , we discuss the basics of tax-focused planning, along with strategies financial planners can use to create clear value and help their customers. Why offer tax planning services Offering tax planning services works to set you apart from the competition, deliver value to your clients, and help you adhere to ...
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Skills Not Taught In School: A Guide For New Advisors

By #ACP ACP
“Practice is the hardest part of learning, and training is the essence of transformation.” Ann Voskamp Have you ever heard the saying “practice makes perfect”? In our industry, it’s more like practice makes progress. Our ACP advisors work every day to enhance their clients’ lives and breathe new life into financial planning. New advisors and career changers alike may be overwhelmed by the breadth of scholarship and practice it takes to find your space in the industry; our ACP community is here to help make that transition a little easier. Joining a professional organization is critical to building your expertise, confidence, and ...
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A Journey From Medicine to Financial Planning: How To Build A Career You Love

By #ACP ACP
A picture looks different depending on your vantage. Imagine being in an airplane, thousands of miles above the ground. Immense lakes look like quaint ponds, clouds become wispy cotton candy, and houses appear to be speckled dots like freckles on a nose. As financial advisors, we see our client’s financial plan as if from an airplane. We recognize how each piece works together and can map out a productive journey to help clients get where they want to go. At least that’s how ACP advisor Cordi Powell, CFP®, EA, and owner of Favored Financial, sees it. She says that serving clients in their financial lives is a lot like getting them to visualize the ...
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What Are the Three R's of the Retainer Model?

By #ACP ACP
If you’ve been following our blog, you know the central role the retainer model plays in our community philosophy. ACP member Chip Simon referred to the retainer model as the “heart and soul” of his practice and detailed how ACP shaped it immeasurably. We are fortunate to have built a system that fosters excellence, trust, care, and community in the financial space, and the retainer model is a significant part of that practice. Today, we are going to dive into the retainer model, extracting three central tenets it provides our advisors and the clients they serve. Information for our blog today came from an ACP member feature podcast on The American ...
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What Is a Niche? (And How ACP Can Help You Find One)

By #ACP ACP
What’s your niche? You’ve probably heard this question at conference tables, Zoom meetings, coaching sessions, and more. Developing a niche can help you hone in on your ideal audience and build a strategy that best serves them. The further you can refine your niche, the better you know your audience, and the more tailored and custom your services can be. Think about it like this. If you were shopping for luxury home decor, you’re likely not going to Target to find it. Target captures a different niche than Crate and Barel or Restoration Hardware. Each of these companies isn’t trying to serve everyone; they create specific products, experience, marketing ...
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How Can ACP Benefit Your Succession Plan?

By #ACP ACP
Succession planning is a meaningful step for any business owner. For advisors, the ability to find, hire, train, and inspire someone to take over your practice can seem like a daunting task. We are delighted to bring you a post that delves into the success a couple of our members found when building a succession plan and also seeing it through. Using the ACP System as a foundation for training and building a practice, they found that the community, resources, and education with ACP paved the way for the smooth transition as well as company growth. The insights in our blog post today come from our webinar series and features ACP member Jacob ...
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Tax Pros, How to Launch the Planning Arm of Your Business

By #ACP ACP
At the Alliance of Comprehensive Planners, tax is our middle name. We are a group of comprehensive, fee-only advisors who are committed to working in a client’s best interest. Many of our members apply a tax perspective to their planning, adding increased value to clients’ financial landscapes. This tax focus has led many CPAs and tax professionals to our doors. Running a successful CPA practice is no small feat, and adding a financial planning component can be difficult. But with the right resources, tools, and support in your corner, you could find that holistic planning enriches and enlivens your practice as well as the client experience. Today, ...
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Will Your Firm Really Benefit from the Retainer Model?

By #ACP ACP
Change is hard. It can be uncomfortable to shift the way you do things or how you approach a situation. Even a small change like taking a new route to work can seem frustrating. Diverting from the norm might not always be easy, but it can bring about some of the most important and valuable experiences of your life. Here at ACP, our advisors come from all aspects of the financial industry. Some started careers in sales, investments, and insurance, but, inspired by the drive to provide more value for their clients, they went in search of something more. That leads them to us. One type of transition we see advisors make a lot is moving from an assets under ...
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