An RIABiz advertising exec derives hard meanings from soft comments made by big shots at MarketCounsel Summit

Wealth management conferences can seem like a online dating site. We are ALL above average and choose me if you want to find happiness.

That's hilarious Jeff Spears!

“Typically talks are neither about wealth management nor the future, unless platitudes about digital wealth count” (Insert crying laughing emoji) Brooke - You are unquestionably the very best in the industry coverage game today, keep doing what you are doing!

The take-aways from the observations garnered by Graham provide rare insight into how the advisory services industry is evolving in a distinctly different manner than that entailing Wall Street's conventional wisdom as it must: (1) Ric Edelman's observation that he is relying on his vendors to advance technological <a href="http://innovation.as" rel="nofollow">innovation.as</a> a means to win market share rather than the advisor having to directly advance blockchain and the digitization of financial products. and financial services. This puts immense pressure on vendors to be proactive in innovation to advance expert professional standing in advisory services, in order to earn market share. (2) Marty Bicknell points out that 80% of advisory firms are growing at low single digits which means that buying AUM is no indicator of economic merit of an acquisition. the ability to grow an advisor is a most important determinant of success. (3) Matt Brinker emphasized the importance of establishing a common culture (value proposition/ centralized portfolio construction, etc.) and the humility of the advisor in wanting to be outstanding as being essential to success. (4) Rusty Benton focused on the importance of leadership discipline.that led CapTrust to focus on serving the retirement business with none of the inhibitions of a brokerage business model. (5) Ongoing advisory services command a far higher valuation than transactions where relationships and value are not necessarily as transferable. For those who are torn about the direction of the advisory services business is taking, all these observations point us in the right direction. If are aggressively growing your practice, have an attractive ongoing value proposition advancing expert fiduciary standing, have wonderful vendors with supporting resources, you will meet with extraordinary success while others are still figuring things out and thus are a top advisory with a license to steal market share as a low cost, high value=added, expert advisor. SCW

As Geoffrey Moore (Crossing the Chasm, which has become the bible for VCs in explaining the innovation lifecycle) tells us innovation starts with a small number of "early adopters" that become the "early majority". The advisors cited are well beyond the early adopter phase which tells us we just at the beginning of the evolution of the financial services industry's evolution from transactions to fee for service. So ignore these market leaders invaluable insight at your own risk. Harvard's Clayton Christensen (Innovators Dilemma) tells us the most common mistake made by industries facing industry redefining innovation is looking at innovation in the context of their existing business model when a new business model is in order. SCW