Building a Lifestyle Practice to Find Balance

Could you take 100 days off a year and still meet your goals? Many of us would love to have that kind of lifestyle firm, but Benjamin Brandt, CFP®, podcast junkie, president/founder of Capital City Wealth Management, actually made that dream into a reality. 

 

Learn how in this episode of YAFPNW, where Benjamin and I also discussed the ins and outs of hosting a successful podcast, marketing tactics, and how running a lifestyle practice works.

How Benjamin built a successful lifestyle practice

Benjamin’s firm, Capital City Wealth Management, was the first ever fee-only firm in the history of the state of North Dakota. The firm serves about 75 households, clients who are living off their money with a $1 million asset minimum. By serving this niche clientele of retirees and making the most of scheduling and business hours, Benjamin has been able to create a “lifestyle practice,” a profitable business that allows him to spend time with his family now, especially as his kids are growing up.  

 

“A few years ago, my oldest daughter turned 10, and I had this feeling of dread, realizing that her time with me was more than half over,” said Benjamin. “And I knew that I wanted to create a successful business… I have six kids now, but I didn't want to miss their lives in order to do so. So I knew I needed to achieve balance.” 

 

How did he do it? First, he eliminated client meetings during the month of December in 2018, instead pushing those appointment slots to October or November. The following year, he changed client meetings to every other month. His goal for 2020 is to only meet with clients in May or November. It sounds limiting, but Benjamin explained that his firm ends up filtering out a lot of prospects and working with clients “we felt good about, and they felt good about hiring us.” 

Why podcasting is essential for financial planners today

How do prospects hear about Capital City Wealth Management? All of their clients either come from “the internet” or Benjamin’s podcast specifically, he said. Through the Retirement Starts Today Radio podcast, Benjamin not only finds clients for his firm organically, but he also builds a rapport with his audience by talking about different topics and sharing personal anecdotes about his life. And the great thing about growing an audience through a podcast, Benjamin said, is “the more people know about you, the easier it is for you to market. The likelihood of you closing that business is very strong.”

 

People are tuning in to these kinds of podcasts because they’re thirsty for wisdom. Not knowledge, or information that you can easily find on Google, Benjamin said. But wisdom: personal experiences that can explain concepts of financial planning to people in a way that they understand. 

Know thyself and grow your audience

If you’re new to the profession and wondering if you could start your own podcast, do it! “As long as you have something unique to say, every advisor should have a podcast,” said Benjamin. Now that the hard part is over, how do you actually go about starting one? Benjamin had tons of resources and bits of...well, wisdom, to share on that topic. We linked Benjamin’s resources that he mentions in the show notes below.  

 

To really get started, you have to find something to say, and learn what your opinions are on financial planning. Don’t be afraid to share those opinions (because your clients are going to find out what they are anyway). Just share them in a tactful way, without being deceptive or provocative. Answer questions that people are already asking on online forums or message boards. Once people resonate with your message, your audience will grow naturally. And you’ll find your podcast audience start to overlap with your book of business.

 

What You’ll Learn:

  • How Benjamin created a successful lifestyle firm
  • Where Capital City Wealth Management finds most of its clients
  • How Benjamin would start over today
  • Thoughts on sharing personal details with your audience
  • What goes into creating the Retirement Starts Today Radio podcast
  • Knowledge vs. wisdom
  • Benjamin’s advice on SEO and starting a podcast
  • Paid traffic vs. content marketing
  • Benjamin’s goals for the future
  • Advice for new planners getting into the profession

Show Notes:

In this episode of YAFPNW, Benjamin and I talk about:


Want to follow Benjamin on social media? Stay up to date with his LinkedIn and Twitter at @RetireMeASAP.