"We have always had fee only and fiduciary at our core, but we were looking for something new,” Napfa Chair Susan John said at Napfa's annual conference in Salt Lake City last week. “We take the client-first approach very seriously. We put all the clients’ needs first.”  

Tom Bradley, president of TD Ameritrade Institutional, spoke at the conference about his firm’s effort to move the fiduciary standard forward. He drew a line between sales individuals from brokerage firms and the advisors in attendance. who are fiduciaries for their clients.  The essence of his message, and what he hopes will be in the core of the eventual changes in Washington, D.C., is that it all comes down to doing what is best for the client.

Martin Kurtz, president of the Financial Planning Association (FPA) and a Napfa member, was also in attendance. He said the trust that is earned in client relationships is extremely valuable, saying, “Trust is a gift and clients do not have to give it to anyone.”  

Bob Veres, a commentator, author and consultant in the industry, said trust needs to be genuine rather than a marketing buzzword.  “I have a lot of suspicion for the way trust is used by some. It is the stock and trade of a con artist, he said, noting that Bernie Madoff probably had the trust of his clients.

“Trust is absolutely essential to get a client to make some type of change," Veres said. "You have to have trust. Getting it is an essential skill of anyone helping people change for the better.”

Taylor Payne, president at Payne Wealth Partners, said, “Trust is the bedrock of every important relationship.”  Speaking of Napfa's new marketing campaign, he said, “It is the fee-only, fiduciary business model of the Napfa members that creates the ‘power of trust.’”

John K. Ritter, co-owner at Ritter Daniher Financial Advisory LLC, helped unveil the new signage. “It got people excited again," he said. "That was our hope.” He said Napfa wants to create “the standard for the profession,” while adding, “It is ambitious.”

Mike Byrnes founded Byrnes Consulting to provide consulting services to help advisors become even more successful.  His expertise is in business planning, marketing strategy, business development, client service and management effectiveness, along with several other areas.  Read more at www.byrnesconsulting.com.