Business Marketing Magazine Summer 2017 December 2015 The best of 2015 | Page 37

coming to market in droves and very few of
the agents have a clue what to do with them,
except to mirror some glib sales data based
on numbers from the age of the dinosaurs on
how great they are. Business as usual.

requires knowledge or use of a personal
financial calculator. If you do not see that
(financial calculator) when you sit down with
an adviser- just get up and leave. Run away.
Be afraid- be very afraid.

Of course there are statistics galore that
show that the average consumer is not saving enough (we all know that) and that certain advice will unquestionably help American workers. But if it was all so beneficial,
why are so many elderly fearful of investing.
The millennials (age 18 to 34) are searching
for direction but how does one feel comfortable with 44% losses in 2000 (S&P500) and
57% in 2008? The industry’s rule of thumb to
stay the course
and suck it up
did nothing
to protect the
average family
from ruin. And
the bulk of the
in the middle
class- who have
watched the
decline of their
numbers for the
past four decades- are unquestionably stymied in moving forward. Few know where
to look for answers. Recent history is a poor
guide for investing

You may be aware that the Department of
Labor and the SEC are currently in the throws
of devising new rules for ‘doing the right
thing’ by advisors/agents/brokers. This is
being fought tooth and nail by the securities
industry rife with commissionable brokers
and agents who do not have a fiduciary obligation to customers- they can do the best
for themselves. Insurance agents say they
are not obligated to do the best thing for
clients since their
first obligation is
to the company. I
will address that
separately later
on but the overall
problem hinges on
the most important element for all
industries- knowledge, ii is missing in licensing
instruction and never reaches a high point
after that.

Unfortunately, there are certain gurus and
authors who offer glib advice for retirement
success. True that some of the rhetoric is
valid (high mutual fund management fees,
hidden costs in 401k plans, commissions versus hourly rates) but nary a one even knows
what conservative versus moderate means
in terms of numerical risk in a portfolio. For
those that think that is too caustic, also note
that no securities or insurance license even

Over the next months I will provide readers
the salient points to protecting yourself from
irresponsible agents and heavily laden product fees. But the easiest way is to do this. The
mandatory use of a personal financial calculator will negate at least 85% to 95% of all
the agents and brokers you should not work
with.