We know how important your clients are to you. You may have a longer relationship with them than many of your friends and family. Many of them ARE your friends and family. You’ve gone through many of life’s biggest events together. You’ve seen them get married, have children and grandchildren. You were there to tell them their children won't need a loan for college or that their dream retirement was possible. You were there when their spouse died to let them know there was a plan in place and their life insurance would pay out. You've been through a lot together so you don’t want to pass your clients off to just anybody. Like a "match.com" for advisors, we work to make sure your successor is the right fit.
Whether you're looking to sell your practice now or in the next 3-5 years, our team can help you structure the sale of your practice, find your successor, and roll out a custom plan to ensure a smooth transition for you and your clients.
WHAT TO EXPECT
Maximize Your Value
You’ve spent your entire career building your practice. In doing so, you have also been building equity. As you’re considering exiting the industry as a financial professional, you will want to make sure you are receiving top dollar for your book of business. We have identified four key factors that can lead to an increase value:
- Client Relationship Management System
- Recurring Revenue
- External Succession
- Annual Growth Rate
Identify Your Successor
Identifying and appointing your successor(s) well before your goal exit date can make the transition easier on your clients. This will increase the chance of retaining clients through the transition and increase the value of your practice. Starting early will allow you to build the relationship with your successor so you will have confidence that they will maintain the same great level of service that you currently provide to your clients. If you don't have a successor in mind, we can introduce you to advisors within our firm who we believe align with your values both internally and externally.
Structure Your Sale
There are many variations in designing a structure that is fair to both you and your successor. We highlighted the most common below.
- Fixed Payment - Once a value is determined for the practice, that value is divided by the number of years of a fixed payment.
- Earn-Out - Upfront payments followed by subsequent annual payments based on a percentage of the revenue generated.
- Partnership Terms - You choose to sell portions of your practice over time, allowing you to realize liquidity now while protecting your value for a future date.
Transition Your Clients
It’s important to begin preparing your clients for your exit. Prior to the transition, try to have your successor sit in on as many client review meetings as possible to both get to know your clients, but also get an understanding of how you run a meeting with your clients. Incorporate your successor into whatever marketing initiatives you have and consider having an event to celebrate your departure and introduce your successor. Transitioning your clients to an advisor within the same Broker/Dealer as you has its definite advantages from a paperwork and processing standpoint.
What is My Practice Worth?
Complete our questionnaire to receive your informal valuation.
Frequently Asked Questions
FACTORS FOR EVALUATING VALUE, FINDING A SUCCESSOR, STRUCTURING A SALE & MORE
GET IN TOUCH!
Chelsea Zangkas
(248) 663-4776248-827-7378
czangkas@michiganfinancial.com
Chelsea Zangkas is the Recruiting Coordinator for Michigan Financial Companies. Her role consists of helping advisors with their recruiting initiatives and is responsible for recruiting new talent to the various offices in all seven states of operation. Chelsea graduated from the University of Southern Indiana in May 2011 with her Bachelor of Arts in Online Journalism, and Political Science. In her free time, she enjoys camping and hiking in the great outdoors and is an avid marathon runner. Schedule time to speak with Chelsea about career opportunities at Michigan Financial Companies below.
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