I participated in a webinar on June 9 hosted by InvestmentNews titled “50 Cost-Saving and Money-Making Ideas in 50 Minutes” (blogged about here).
The replay of that webinar is available here or use the embedded player below (my portion begins at the -27:50 time point).
I highlighted the following 10 technology tips to help advisers cut costs and increase revenue:
Following on Monday’s post regarding LifestreamBackup, I learned of another service that is designed to capture and archive messages posted through Twitter.
CagedTweets is another utility that captures and archives comments posted on Twitter. Customers have three options of service depending on the number of Twitter accounts to be archived. Archiving of one account runs $50 and covers 3 years of service (I think), ten accounts runs $100, and firm-wide archiving runs $500.
Unfortunately their website does not have a demonstration of how the service works, nor is a free trial offered to test the service. Yet I have to hand it to the folks behind CagedTweets; they are offering this service through rapid development after being inspired by an April 27 Wall Street Journal article on compliance requirements involving social media.
Still, I’m inclined to endorse LifestremBackup over CagedTweets for two main reasons. First, the former tool features connections to other social media services in addition to Twitter, and second, the service is offered for a very similar price as CagedTweets.
However, according to their website, users who sign up for CagedTweets before the end of July will receive free archiving for all social media applications added to the service.
Check out CagedTweets through this link.
(Hat tip to @jrueckert for mentioning CagedTweets to me)
Update: LifestreamBackup recently changed its name to Backupify. The points in this post are still applicable despite the name change!
Many advisers who consult with me regarding the use of social media are justifiably concerned about compliance when it comes to using such services. Advisers can use outlets like Twitter, Facebook, and LinkedIn to communicate with others and to broadcast information to targeted niche markets. These tools are fantastic ways to build brand recognition for an adviser or a firm and to identify the level of services offered to the public.
I’ve written here previously how FINRA and the SEC may determine that any message disseminated through social media services constitutes marketing and/or advertising and at the very least should be archived and retained in a compliance file. If you are a representative regulated under FINRA, you likely need pre-approval from compliance before posting any messages through social media services. SEC-registered advisers should consult with their Chief Compliance Officer before posting messages as well.
Now let’s assume that an adviser decides to use social media to grow the business. Terrific! But what can be done to efficiently archive and retain those messages sent through social media services?
In an open letter to NAPFA members and friends, Diahann Lassus, National Chair of NAPFA, addresses what the organization of fee-only planners is doing in light of recent accusations brought against several former members.
In the letter, Lassus writes:
Rest assured, NAPFA is not ignoring the accusations made against our former members, and we will continue to do what is right for our members, for our industry, and for the consumers we all serve. This commitment has guided us for more than 26 years and will continue to guide us well into the future.
This is a quick follow up to my post Anti-Fraud Measures Your Practice Needs where news of “irregularities” in accounts managed by Matthew Weitzman of AFW Wealth Advisers was highlighted in the New York Times.
It turns out the Mr. Weitzman is facing very serious charges. Here’s a snip from an InvestmentNews article released today:
Earlier today, the U.S. attorney’s office for the Southern District of New York in Manhattan and the New York office of the FBI said they charged Matthew Weitzman, 43, of Armonk, N.Y., with one count of investment adviser fraud and six counts each of securities fraud and wire fraud.
He also faces charges from the Securities and Exchange Commission over the alleged theft of client funds.
Click here to view the full story at InvestmentNews.
It’s unfortunate to see anyone take advantage of clients, and it’s even worse when the individual in this case once had an affiliation with NAPFA, a group of respected fee-only financial advisers.
So again, take this opportunity to communicate to your clients about the processes and procedures you have in place to prevent fraud and protect your clients’ interests.
Thanks to Andy Gluck at Advisor Products who hosted the webinar Advisors Using Social Networking Successfully. I really enjoyed the opportunity and have been overwhelmed by the positive feedback I’ve received about the content.
If you were not able to attend the live presentation, click here to register at Advisor Products and view the replay.
Also, you have a little more than 24 hours to register for the upcoming webinar 50 Cost-Saving and Money-Making Ideas in 50 Minutes hosted by InvestmentNews.
Over the next week, I’ll be participating in two webinars that I hope you will attend.
First, Andrew Gluck at Advisor Products, Inc. has asked me to participate in Friday’s Financial Crisis Webinar Series. The topic is Advisors Using Social Networking Successfully. I will share some of the experiences I’ve had through the use of Twitter, LinkedIn, and Facebook mediums that have personally resulted in new connections and new business.
Click here to register for the Friday, June 5 webinar Advisors Using Social Networking Successfully.
Second, I’ll be part of a panel hosted by InvestmentNews to offer 50 Cost-Saving and Money-Making Ideas in 50 Minutes. I have a list of my top 10 technologies that I believe financial advisers can use to save money, make money, and sometimes both simultaneously. There should be at least one good tip for every adviser listening to the webinar.
Hope to “see” you on the web.
Last week I wrote about the proposed changes published by the SEC to require surprise audits of investment advisers who debit fees directly from clients’ accounts, falling under the requirements of custody. The proposed changes were estimated to cost each adviser office on average of $8,100 a year in compliance costs.
This proposal, just barely three weeks old, seems likely to be rescinded according to this Financial Planning article published by Donna Mitchell. In it she writes:
Unofficial reports from the SEC, however, now suggest that the regulator is dropping the third-party compliance audit requirement for advisors, according to the Financial Planning Association’s Web site.
Smarsh continues to impress me as an innovative force and market leader in email archiving and compliance. They recently announced a Smarsh CRM product to help users be more efficient and productive (a post I’ve had in my drafts section ever since my son was born!).
Today I read an article on a new service that may prove to be very useful and timely to the adviser community.
Smarsh has announced a social media (a.k.a.Twitter) message archiving service at a Twitter conference this week.
Update: See the article FPA, NAPFA and IAA to fight SEC’s pop-quiz proposal from InvestmentNews.com where group officials say “that the proposal is misguided and would saddle advisers with unnecessary costs.”
It should be no surprise to financial advisers following the Madoff Ponzi scandal that the SEC recently issued proposed rule changes to custody requirements. The release, IA-2876 (click to view PDF from SEC.gov), addresses custody requirements of client funds and securities and is open for a 60-day comment period through July 28, 2009. Should the proposed rules be adopted, advisers may face additional compliance fees of $8,100 on average.
Surprise Examination Proposal
The SEC proposes that advisers with custody of client assets must undergo an annual surprise examination by an independent public accountant, regardless of whether or not assets are held by a qualified custodian. The premise behind the surprise examination requirement is to provide “another set of eyes” on client assets to prevent fraud and misappropriation of client funds by registered advisers. Reports of theft and fraud by advisers have plagued the SEC since the Madoff scandal erupted in late 2008. So what does this mean for advisers meeting the custody definition?
