It’s the first week of the month, and what better way to kick off the holiday season, then by hearing from another awesome client? As a part of our “Financial Advisor Website Showcase” series, we had the chance to chat with David Pulcini, RICP®, CFP®, managing partner and advisor at SixPoint Financial Partners. Want to hear what he has to say about the web development process? Keep reading to find out more!
First, how did you decide to start SixPoint Financial Partners and what was your biggest inspiration or motivator?
We started SixPoint to become our own brand and to do “real” financial planning on an independent platform. Our biggest motivator was our clients. Every day we meet new people that need our help. We want to be “all things” to the clients that are a good fit for us and that are in alignment with what our firm represents.
You have touched briefly on the meaning behind your firm’s name on the website, SixPoint Financial Partners. Could you discuss how you decided on this name and why it’s such an important piece of your business?
SixPoint Financial Partners was named after the Six Steps of a true, comprehensive plan. It is very important to us that for each client that we work with, we touch on all Six Points. We do this by following our process, which is something that we have built and refined over the last 15+ years of working with clients. I wish there was a great story on how we came up with the name, but it just came to me one evening while I was standing in my kitchen putting away groceries…and since then we have been so fortunate to be able to do the work that we do for the people that we do it for.
Marketing is such an important part of being a financial advisor in this day and age, especially as the field continues to change and evolve. What are some of the marketing tactics that you have used at your firm that really worked for you, and what are some future techniques you want to incorporate?
Currently, like many advisors, most of our business is by recommendation from our clients. We know that when we do a great job, try to make financial planning not seem overwhelming (and boring), then we will be recommended frequently.
We have big plans for the future of marketing in our firm. First, we want to focus more on niche markets and specialties. Once we do that, we will finish our white papers, become more of a presence for that niche on social media and potentially even start podcasts directed at that niche. Happy hours are never a bad idea either.
What are the 3 tools that you can’t do without either on your website or in your workspace?
If you could sum up your business in one sentence, what would it be?
Our business is based on proven processes and systems that afford our advisors a great balance and our clients a very thorough, thoughtful approach to financial planning.
The very first thing that people do is to search for you and your business, and that first impression is everything. The website needs to be clean, easy to follow, have a call-to-action and show what you do. There is no doubt that I would outsource this to experts to make sure this is done correctly.
– david pulcini,Jr., RICP®,CFP®,sixpoint financial partners
We love hearing success stories from our clients, where they have a moment when they realize all of their hard work has paid off. Do you have a story like this that you would like to briefly share? It can be about client success or something that you have achieved yourself!
A moment that stands out in my mind, was the first time that I realized that my business did not need new clients. It was a transformation from a “sales” role to the role of a consultant. It took 11 years for this to happen, it was 75 and sunny outside, I was driving and it just hit me…and it was an unbelievable feeling. I knew that we could move on to refining and perfecting our business, rather than look for new business.
What was the easiest part of the design process and alternately, what was the hardest part for you?
The easiest part was just letting the experts do what they do. We only had to make small changes in design, and that was all done by the site designers. For example, the first draft was more a “business theme” and we said, “can we try to make a water theme?” Then it was done. The most difficult part is getting all of the content written.
Where do you see the financial industry headed in the next 5-10 years?
I think that our industry will continue to evolve with technology and that specialists will see the greatest growth. Financial planning generalists are going to have a harder time obtaining clients and keeping them happy, especially as advisors become experts in almost every niche. The planning itself will have to become more comprehensive in nature, and the advisors that are focused on product sales rather than the people, the practice and the process are going to find it difficult to grow. On the other side, the advisors that are focused, specialists and have a refined and developed process and practice, with the right people, will thrive. It is a very exciting time if an advisor can position themselves properly.
What is your best piece of advice that you would share with other financial advisors who may be considering building a new website?
We consider the website the hub of our marketing now and in the future. The very first thing that people do is to search for you and your business, and that first impression is everything. The website needs to be clean, easy to follow, have a call-to-action and show what you do. There is no doubt that I would outsource this to experts to make sure this is done correctly.
Ready to Build your Dream Website?
Work with Twenty Over Ten’s award-winning design team to build a website your finally proud of. With automatic site archiving, blogging, an intuitive CMS, SSL certificates and more — we’ve got everything you need and then some.
