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Paychecks for Life®
The Paychecks for Life book, scheduled for a June release, is designed to help American workers understand the value of their 401(k) plans and maximize its benefits to create the best possible retirement outcome. You can pre-order your book today and discover nine principles for turning a 401(k) plan into a personal Paycheck for Life Manufacturing Company.
"I have read dozens of books on financial and retirement planning. While most other books provide good technical knowledge, Paychecks for Life is the first book I have encountered that provides a clear, concise and systematic approach to reaching a successful retirement. Our industry has far overestimated the financial knowledge of the typical American. Charlie does a wonderful job making retirement planning less daunting for the uninformed investor."
-Jud Doherty, CFA
President
Stadion Money Management
All financial professionals need to read this book! Financial professionals can also sign up to be notified when the Paychecks for Life System™ becomes available. This System is designed to help financial professionals effectively grow their business by adopting the Paychecks for Life concepts and putting the nine principles to work for their plan participants.
We will keep you updated on upcoming Paychecks for Life workshops and webinars.
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401k Coach Apparel:
A Door Opener
Alex Dancy, Managing Director of Group Retirement Plans for 401k Turnaround and a 401k Coach alumni member, tells this story: "One afternoon, I had an open enrollment meeting. After the meeting, I was headed to the parking lot when I was stopped. The person asked me, "Do you work on 401(k) plans?" I replied, "Yes, of course, I do!" I was surprised by his question, and for a second, I could not figure out how he knew I was involved with 401(k) plans. I forgot that the blue oxford button down shirt I was wearing had the 401k Coach Program label on it. My shirt created new opportunity for me."
Click here to visit the Store to purchase 401k Coach merchandise.
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401k Coach Webinars
The 401k Coach hosts a variety of webinars throughout the year. These webcasts are always available for replay on the webcast page of our website.
Visit our Calendar of Events and subscribe to our newsfeed to keep up on all upcoming webinars hosted by The 401k Coach or by one of our partners.
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401k Coach Products
As with all our products, 401k Coach members receive a special rate. Be sure to look at all our helpful products, including:
The Bear Market Manager™ provides a series of tools and conversations designed to help participants take back their futures and re-engage their involvement in retirement planning.
ERISA Plan Fiduciary Indemnification System™ takes on the issues surrounding fiduciary exposures and liabilities. Use this formalized process to offer complete protection for ERISA plan fiduciaries.
The Problem Solver™ will support you and your team to overcome problems that may inhibit the success you seek to achieve.
The 5500 & Beyond™ is both a training and marketing tool created to help you understand the Form 5500 and its components while teaching you to uncover plan disrupters for successful prospecting.
DOWNLOAD A PRODUCT ORDER FORM HERE
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 The 401k Coach Blog: Revamped
The 401k Coach team members are now updating the blog, bringing our readers even more great articles and information.
The blog along with our news and calendar events are available to be added to your newsfeeds. |
Charlie's Bookshelf
Below is a recommended book from The 401k Coach's bookshelf:
The Long Tail
by Chris Anderson
To see more great recommendations, check out the 401k Coach Amazon Store.
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Take Your Business to the Next Level
Don't delay in creating a more successful 401(k) practice for yourself. Speak to a 401k Coach member to learn more about the tools, systems and processes we provide that help you bring your business to the next level.
Toll Free: (877)932-6236 x7
info@The401kCoach.com www.The401kCoach.com |
| Charlie Epstein, CLU, ChFC, AIF® is the founder of The 401k Coach Program, which offers expert training for financial professionals to develop the skills, systems and processes necessary to excel in the 401(k) industry and facilitate successful retirement outcomes for plan sponsors and participants. Charlie has frequently been named to 401kWire's Top 100 Most Influential People in the 401(k) Industry List and Top 300 Most Influential DC Advisor List and was recently named to the Legg Mason Retirement Advisory Council. |
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Greetings!
Here at the 401k Coach Program, we understand the importance of social media in today's technology-driven society. This is especially important for financial advisors. While Facebook and Twitter remain primarily social platforms, LinkedIn's mission has always been to connect professionals, originally for career opportunities. Today, LinkedIn is maturing from an online business card to a way for potential clients to connect with advisors. For more information on how to optimize your LinkedIn, see our article below.
If you have any questions or comments, please do not hesitate to call or email us today.
Warmest Regards,
Charlie Epstein, The 401k Coach®
Connect with Charlie on LinkedIn to receive updates on events and tips regarding legislative changes about 401(k)s.
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The 401k Coach Weighs in
On Social Media
In a session of the Year 2 Program, Marketing Consultant and Certified Social Media Strategist Barbara Lewis explained the benefits of using LinkedIn and how to optimize pages to attract potential clients. She is offering a white paper on Social Media Best Practices and detailed instructions on how to optimize your profile and increase your LI visibility. To obtain this white paper, visit our website's White Paper section.
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401k Coach Member Spotlight
Recently, a recommendation from Jim Sampson for The 401k Coach Program popped up on Charlie's LinkedIn:
 "I have been a 401k Coach
Program member since 2007, and my only regret is that I didn't do it earlier. When I joined the program, I already had more plans than most advisors, and had already received national industry recognition, so I wasn't looking for Charlie to teach me how to sell retirement plans. The most valuable things I learned from Charlie were the confidence to operate a practice on a fee-for-service level, having a clear plan to build a practice strategically and to create repeatable systems with a structure and process behind everything that I do. Since completing Year 2 of the program, I have started a new retirement plan practice, and add roughly 30 plans per year. Based on how The 401k Coach Program has impacted my success, I highly recommend it to anyone in the retirement plan industry who wants to take their game to the next level."
Jim is the Managing Principal of Cornerstone Retirement Advisors, LLC. He was recently named the #1 advisor in Micro Market for second year in a row by The 401kWire and named one of the top five advisors in the country by PLANSPONSOR Magazine in 2008.
In a recent interview, Jim, who attended The 401k Coach Year 1, Year 2 and Masters Programs, talks about how The 401k Coach Program content changed his business. "I had a lot of 401k plans when I went into the program, but I was always recreating the wheel and I felt like I was in a constant rat race. I was looking for guidance on how to escape that cycle and become more efficient." After completing The 401k Coach Year 1 Program, Jim changed the way he approached his business. "I shifted my business from a commission to fee basis advisory firm in order to take my business to the next level. The old way of doing things just doesn't work, and now when I explain my process to clients, it's a much more refreshing conversation." Jim says that this new approach has affected all of his current 401(k) plans and every prospective plan.
One of the largest impacts that The 401k Coach Program had on his business was the 6 Step Retirement Plan Solution, which he rebranded for his own practice. The Retirement Plan Solution includes the 6 steps of Evaluate, Optimize, Protect, Manage, Educate and Monitor. "Everything that I do revolves around the 6 Step process, which explains how we do things. My biggest takeaway from The 401k Coach Program was putting a repeatable process in place - it quantifies our efforts and allows me to be more efficient. Every client I have goes through the process each year, which has helped me transform to a fee basis business, because the client now sees the value in the work that we do. This has put me on another level against competitors."
Jim describes a specific example where the 6 Step Process helped him win the business. "The 401(k) plan had no interest in changing providers, but also knew their current broker wasn't doing anything except taking basis points. I explained my process, how other clients have improved the value for their employees and have seen better usage, and how sponsors are more confident from a compliance standpoint. Instead of a run of the mill service, I'll strip out the fees, charge a flat fee and deliver a process. The prospect hired me because they knew exactly what they were getting and what it was worth to them and their employees. Since I'm not paid a commission for getting participants' money into the plan, the conversation changes, and participants know that I have their interests at heart. Instead of a sales person, I become their trusted advisor."
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The Edu-Tainment Experience
When financial advisors speak to participants at plan sponsors' companies, they are seen as instant "experts," the go-to person for all the participants' 401(k) and investment needs. However, many financial advisors don't realize the financial potential of participants so they don't make the most of their meetings with plan participants. For every dollar made on 401(k)s, there are about seven more on the table that can be picked up from plan participants. All advisors have to do is to provide their audiences with an impressive presentation. The 401k Coach Edu-tainment Experience™ engages potential individual clients, giving them both the knowledge and the opportunity to begin an advisor-participant relationship with the financial advisor.
The 401(k) education process has become a rigid and lengthy presentation of charts, graphs and statistics accompanied by an enrollment kit with even more numbers and charts. This can leave participants feeling frustrated, anxious and hesitant to make decisions. Creating interactive presentations is the first step in alleviating the fatigue that participants feel at the end of an enrollment meeting. To encourage the participants to listen, financial advisors should: know the audience well, keep the message direct and straightforward, and entertain, in addition to enroll and educate. The attention span of society has been condensed into 30-second clips. Well-regarded 401(k) plan advisors know how to hold the attention of their participants, which begins with a well-defined education process.
Research has shown that 401(k) education is most beneficial if done on-site. However, education meetings are not enough. Understanding the audience and being creative will not only give financial advisors a head-start for enrollment, but it can also give them an edge over the competition. When looking for a financial advisor, plan participants will certainly remember the person who played their favorite song or who finally made sense out of their 401(k). By making enrollment meetings fun, as well as educational, financial advisors can increase their revenues by obtaining additional clients from among the plans' participants.
Watch Charlie take on a creative and innovative approach to 401(k) education through his Edu-tainment DVD and learn six steps to ensure successful retirement outcomes for a company's 401(k) Retirement Plan and it's employees. Download the order form here.
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The 401k Coach's
Published Editorials
Coach Charlie Epstein contributes to a number of industry newsletters, blogs and other publications to help financial professionals stay informed on the latest retirement industry regulations and to assist them in marketing their 401(k) business. We will continue to archive them on our 401k Coach website for the convenience of our readers. To keep up-to-date on recent posts, subscribe to the newsfeed.
Two recent articles highlighted how service level agreements can be used to explain fees and how client retention can be improved.
In the first article, which appeared in the DCPI Weekly Exchange newsletter, Charlie discusses the upcoming 2012 fee disclosure regulations. Advisors may find it difficult to calculate reasonable fees; however, by offering value added services, quantifying those activities and detailing the services, advisors can increase plan fees while differentiating their services from the competition. Read more.
The second article published by BenefitsPro.com is based on Charlie's decades of experience in developing and retaining 401(k) clients. Client retention involves two tasks: doing a great job and showing your clients that you appreciate them. The article suggests a number of ways to thank clients for their business, such as hosting a wine tasting or golfing event.
In addition, participants, whose accounts probably suffered during the past couple of years, need some attention too. Take Charlie's 401(k) Participant Gratitude Challenge this summer. Read more.
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