Working Your Firm's Core for New Year's Success

To help firm owners avoid these and other “growth” mistakes, I encourage them to take a hard look at their “core” business. Even in the largest independent advisory firms, identifying the core business isn’t difficult — it’s where the majority of revenue comes from.

For the vast majority of independent firms, the fastest, easiest and safest way to grow is by expanding the “core business.” Whether it’s financial planning, investment management, insurance, etc., your core business is what you do best — and what you know the most about.

Therefore, before you even start thinking abut adding new products and/or services, focus your time and energy on growing your core business(es).  Take a hard look at all the services you offer, the client experience you provide and the kind of clients you provide them to.

Are all your services profitable? Are there services only a small portion of your clients are using? Are you missing any services that your clients need? And are there any other client groups who would benefit from your services?

Growth is not easy, and it requires change and risk — two things that some owner advisors aren’t comfortable with. But by focusing on growing your core business, you can minimize your need for both.

When most firm owners want to grow their businesses, they think about expanding into new areas and new services like 401(k)s, institutional investment management, etc. But these efforts could easily turn into big mistakes, since advisors who focus on these new endeavors then have less time for much safer and more successful growth tied to their expertise.

Once you’ve realized all the potential for success in your core business(es), you can start to consider moving into new areas. But most firms — both large and small — are a long way from that point.

Do yourself a favor: Set yourself up for success in 2019 by (re)focusing on your core business and stay focused on it.