News You Can Use
This issue's article is by David Lawrence, a practice efficiency consultant and President of David Lawrence and Associates, a practice consulting firm based in Lutz, Florida. 

"Is Remote Advising Becoming a Reality?" By David L. Lawrence If you live and work in an area of the country that supports part-time residents (winter or summer), you may have considered how to better serve those clients. Well, guess what? There is a host of new technology offerings out there to help you. Not the least of which is an interactive website technology.   Websites can and probably should do more than just deliver information. Interactive websites give your clients the opportunity to interact with various features such as account lookup, goal calculators, and the ability to send messages to you. But, there is a new trend emerging, instant messaging, and it goes way beyond the old AOL type technology.   Advisor square (www.advisorsquare.com) has added cool tools to enhance your website, including instant message conferencing. Their new service, IMConferencing touts a feature-rich interface with the ability to show a PowerPoint presentation, use a white board, with the ability of the client to draw on it as well and tie the conversation to a VOIP phone system or traditional phone conferencing. The advantage is an interactive experience with the client that is almost like you are sitting there in front of them. You can even show a live video of yourself to your clients. If they have a webcam, you can see them as well.   It is likely that we will see more offerings in the near future. For now, Microsoft offers a similar service for business owners with flexible pricing options, including per minute type charges. But, beware that this could become quite costly as you are paying minute charges for each participant in a web conference.   David Lawrence is President of David Lawrence and Associates, your practice efficiency consultant. He also writes a monthly column on practice efficiency for Financial Advisor Magazine. For further information or to inquire about his services, please visit www.efficientpractice.com or email David at: dLawrence@efficienpracticecom. Here Are A Few of the Benefits of "Going Independent": ·         Payouts on all your business, including fee based accounts of 90% plus. ·         The opportunity for you, not someone at the home office, to control your bottom line and the profitability of your practice. ·         The opportunity to build related businesses such as insurance, qualified plans, or trust companies, and keep those revenues. ·         The opportunity to eliminate your clients' perceptions of conflicts of interest with research departments and corporate finance groups - TRUE OBJECTIVITY. ·         The opportunity to charge and keep substantial fee income for planning, analysis and other services to your clients. ·         The availability of technology that is as good or better than anything you have now. The list goes on... If you know someone who might be ready to go Independent, please have them visit www.goingindependent.com (go to our Opportunities section and click on Hotjobs) or contact Jason Burke directly at 727-725-8876. This month's Registered Representative Opportunity: This broker-dealer is owned by a substantial financial institution and expanding its team of top Financial Consultants to work with its high net-worth clients. They want individuals who challenge themselves to achieve professional growth beyond past successes. They are seeking proven performers looking to advance their career who have a client needs/financial planning approach. Not looking for "stock-jockeys." They have Financial Consultant positions available for their downtown Chicago office and other affluent suburban locations such as Highland Park, Libertyville, Barrington, Hoffman Estates, Northbrook, Skokie, Madison, WI. They offer a competitive compensation and benefits package along with the essential tools needed to be successful in today's financial industry, including a banker referral program to fee-based accounts. CFP is a plus. If you know someone who might be ready to go Independent, please have them visit www.goingindependent.com (go to our Opportunities section and click on Hotjobs) or contact Jason Burke directly at 727-725-8876.

Here's some additional information from Turning Point, Inc...

TURNING POINT PLACEMENTS!
Congratulations to Peter A. who recently made the switch to WRP Investments!  We hope you'll be very happy with your new affiliation!

TURNING POINT in the MEDIA!
Mitch Vigeveno of Turning Point, Inc has been quoted in several articles in 2005 (including Investment News and Horsesmouth.com).  Please visit our Media page to read what Mitch had to say!

TURNING POINT PARTNERS:
Are you getting the most out of your business?  Are you operating at peak efficiency?  How about your marketing, your compliance,  or your HR?  We have some friends who can help you out.  Just visit our Partners section in our website for links to a variety of services that are helpful to building your business!

Quote of the day:
"There is no security on this earth - there is only opportunity."
Gen. Douglas MacArthur (1880-1964)