Archives

Web exclusive content can now be found on the AT Blog.

Search the full archives below or chose any year to list all articles by month. To find all articles by a specific author, just enter their last name.

December 2001

• Deep Background
  Use references to reveal insights into job candidates.
  
  
• A Holiday Letter
  With planning, life could be fulfilling again for those left behind.
  
  
• Managing Gold Mines
  With proper asset allocation, your client’s retirement money will last a long time.
  
  
• Estate Planning for Non-U.S. Citizens
  Estate planners need to be careful when dealing with spouses that are not U.S. citizens.
  
  
• Is Your Family Business A Sitting Duck?
  Careful succession planning will ensure a smooth transition.
  
  
• Weathering the Uncertainty: Generation Skipping After Tax Reform
  Effective planning will help your clients cut taxes.
  
  

November 2001

• How to Communicate During Times of Crisis
  Anyone can be a leader in times of need.
  
  
• Should You Retire Early?
  In most cases, it makes sense to take the benefits earlier rather than later.
  
  
• What Is Your Risk Tolerance?
  Asking clients this question can place them in jeopardy.
  
  
• Selling VULs in a Volatile Market
  Choose the path to success by targeting sales, offering flexible products and conducting thorough risk assessments.
  
  

October 2001

• Critical Illness Sales Ideas From Around the World
  What happens to those who don’t have a critical illness policy and those who do.
  
  
• All in the Family
  Handing over the business to family members can be fraught with difficulties.
  
  
• A Financial Advisor’s Guide to the Loyalty Ladder
  The best prospects are at the top of the ladder.
  
  
• Making Clients’ Money Last
  Software can help them project future income.
  
  

September 2001

• From Acorns to Oak Trees
  Sow quality time with quality people and thus develop quality relationships that produce quality results.
  
  
• Getting and Keeping Customers
  You need to adopt a high-tech, high-touch approach if you want to attract new clients and successfully manage your existing customer base.
  
  
• Redefining Retirement
  You still own the “farm” and control how you’ll live.
  
  

August 2001

• Assessing Retirement Income
  You can use replacement ratio and actual-expense methods to assess retirement income.
  
  
• Secrets of Successful Prospecting
  A child’s shoe or a canoe paddle may be your ticket into a potential client’s office.
  
  

July 2001

• Employee Benefits: Ensuring the Right Fit
  The growing complexity of employee benefits creates opportunities for administrative and consulting services.
  
  
• Clinch the Sale: Take the High Road
  Salespeople who close the big deals know the value of their time. They also know how to project that value in what they are selling and use it to clinch the sale.
  
  
• The Middle Market Equals Opportunity
  Reach this untapped group with innovative voluntary workplace benefits.
  
  
• How to Make Retirement Money Last
  For your client, a key strategy is a realistic view of life expectancy.
  
  

June 2001

• Building a Better Agency
  Growing a multiline agency demands thinking holistically about the enterprise.
  
  
• Advisor Today Fiction: House Call
  Sometimes you meet the most heartwarming characters when you go on a service call.
  
  
• Profiting From Retirement Planning
  Advisors with comprehensive, easy-to-understand plans will get most of the business.
  
  
• Depressing Releases
  Want to talk to the media? Get your message out effectively with this how-to.
  
  

May 2001

• What the Future Holds for Health Insurance
  The market will be shaped by insurers, the medical profession and the government.
  
  
• When and How to Hire Staff
  A good staff is the essence of a successful growing practice.
  
  
• Succession Planning Strategies
  A sound plan will ensure continuity for your practice.
  
  

April 2001

• The New Old Ways of Prospecting
  Perhaps the best ways to reach customers are the ways you?ve always reached them.
  
  
• I’m Successful. So Why Change?
  Because if you don’t, you may have trouble catching up later.
  
  

March 2001

• Last Steps in Financial Planning
  For an advisor, the best reward is seeing clients financially succeed.
  
  
• Sheltering Your Clients’ Nest Egg
  Annuities are sound investments, but they must be properly structured to achieve their fullest potential.
  
  
• Recipe for Retirement
  Investment diversification is the key to a lengthy retirement
  
  

February 2001

• Financial Advising: The Fun Part
  Creating solutions for your clients’ needs is challenging and fulfilling.
  
  
• Taking the Sting Out of an Audit
  Here's how to get organized when the SEC or NASD or your broker-dealer visits.
  
  

January 2001

• How Do It Know?
  The investment portfolio won’t keep hot things hot or cold things cold forever.
  
  
• Protecting the Family
  Parents want to provide opportunities, not an unearned lifestyle.