For decades commencing in the 1980s, life companies and more recently regulators have been obsessed with finding ways to displace the role of the adviser as the ‘glue’ that connects the consumer to the institution. It first started at the height of the Readers Digest era when direct mail suddenly became flavour of the month by a... Read more continue reading
17
Nov
2020
When 5 becomes 95 Client retention is regarded by many as the cornerstone of a successful, sustainable advice practice. And with good reason(s). The Harvard Business Review[1] tells us the cost of acquiring new customers is at least 5 times more expensive than keep existing ones. Furthermore, research by Bain and Company[2] (founders of the... Read more continue reading
04
Nov
2020
CountPlus has continued its focus on strategic growth, with Brisbane-based Member firm Cooper Reeves Pty Ltd (Cooper Reeves) announcing it has completed a tuck-in acquisition to acquire the financial planning services of CBD Wealth Solutions Pty Ltd (CBD Wealth). Both Cooper Reeves and CBD Wealth are Member firms of the CountPlus-owned Count Financial. As part... Read more continue reading
02
Oct
2020
Australian small cap investors have an unprecedented opportunity to gain exposure to new company floats, according to small companies specialist OC Funds Management (OC). At its September investor briefing, OC Head of Investments Rob Frost highlighted that the concentration of Initial Public Offerings (IPOs) seeking to list in the final stretch of 2020 was probably... Read more continue reading
30
Sep
2020
The modern workplace is increasingly flexible, collaborative and dynamic, and new technologies afford us the opportunity to collaborate and communicate effectively while working from home. However, for many employers and workers, that parity between effectiveness in an office environment versus a working from home scenario had not been fully tested until recently. That all changed... Read more continue reading
25
Sep
2020
The last six months have been profoundly transformational, with the COVID-19 shock acting as an accelerant for the digitisation of the economy. This radical transition is especially advantageous for asset-light business models in the tech, health care and communications sectors. This article, from GSFM’s investment partner Epoch Investment Partners, outlines its firm conviction that “data... Read more continue reading
01
Sep
2020
Often professionals forget how valuable the service bit is in a “professional service” business. Everyone has heard some story about how a business did well from going the extra mile for a customer…but rarely do you hear about a professional services business that has a standing process for going the extra mile because they know that it... Read more continue reading
22
Jul
2020
The most frequent thing I see that prevents great practice growth and holds advisers back from developing their dream business is a lack of vision. I don’t mean “vision” in the namby-pamby buzz-word sense of having a beautiful set of words on a plaque on a wall that nobody really cares about. A clear vision... Read more continue reading
01
Jul
2020
To commercialise and grow, your business needs capital. But the ongoing fallout from COVID-19 means this may be easier said than done. For a variety of reasons debt may also not be affordable or attainable. Waiting it out may not be viable for your cashflow, could be detrimental to your strategy or put your first... Read more continue reading
24
Jun
2020
For those wanting to ensure that a particular family member becomes the director of a family company when the current director passes, it’s a minefield. So, you have a private company (that’s one with ‘Pty Ltd’ after its name). It might be the trustee of your family trust or your self-managed super fund or it... Read more continue reading
18
Jun
2020
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