Benefits of joining Truly Independent

17 September 2021 by

In this article I will be discussing some of the key points a financial adviser would benefit from when joining Truly Independent. Truly Independent was given authorisation to advise customers in financial services on 23rd February 2010 and since then has grown to employ over 65 Financial Advisers. One of the key components to our continued success is the happiness of our advisers.

“Why do so many financial advisers appear to be unhappy, and how do you change that? It’s a natural assumption that if you work hard and earn plenty of money you will achieve success, and further, that success will lead to happiness. However, psychological studies show that happiness doesn’t necessarily follow success.  In fact, this formula of ‘success leading to happiness’ is the wrong way around and in fact, the opposite is true: it is happiness that leads to success.”

– Andrew Goodwin, Director of Truly Independent

Long term future

The company has grown organically with a focus on being steady and diligent while still being efficient. While this may not have resulted in the fastest growth possible it has resulted in a successful business with no debts to its name with a strong ambitious future ahead of it. Other firms on the other hand with early investment may appear to have faster growth and hence greater strength, however this can often be false. These companies will often spend the capital investment poorly and bypass the concept of efficiency. These firms focus on generating huge turnover before profits in hope that they will be able to reap the profits later. These companies are ‘build to sell’ firms and should be avoided by independent financial advisers if your business relies on long term consistency with minimal client disruption.

Ownership and control

The freedom that being self employed brings is something that can truly be appreciated after being restricted working for a major firm. Being independent lifts all restrictions placed on you as a financial adviser and allows you to achieve what you set out to do in the first place when you became an adviser (provide the best possible advice). Financial advisers working for a firm are restricted to using the products and software that the firm provides, even if this is not the best solution to a client’s needs. This can often feel very restrictive and unrewarding. At Truly Independent you can build your business with your own vision in mind, and we will provide all the help and support you require from our in-house action team.

Work life balance

One of the most well-known benefits of being self employed is a greater work life balance. Being your own boss allows you to choose the hours you want to work and the clients you wish to take on. As opposed to being employed by a firm where you will work set hours and have clients assigned to you. Of course, this is not to suggest that becoming independent is easy and requires little work, however it does give you a much greater freedom which will likely result in you being much happier in your work and in turn much more likely to be successful.

Generous payment structure

At Truly Independent we not only support but encourage our advisers with our very generous charging structure. The more you earn, the less percentage you pay. Advisers are all self employed and are paid between 70% to 90% of their gross income dependent on their production level. We encourage our IFAs to earn more money, have more time and to do so with less stress. We achieve this with our unique business model that being happier in business is essential. We pay our advisers twice a week based upon business completed. The more you write, the more you receive. The happier you are, the more productive and successful you are. Plus, in addition to the production bonus, a further 5% can be achieved for recurring income providing they meet the firm’s client support agreement standards.

To find out how much you could earn use our retention rate calculator here

Marketing opportunities

We have big ambition to not only become a household brand, but to become the UK’s number one IFA firm. We will achieve this goal with clever and efficient marketing to get our company brand and message out in the public domain. With our inhouse marketing team established in the head office we understand the importance of effective marketing. Not only for growing our own brand to recruit more advisers but to generate more leads for them too. We have a range of financial adviser marketing solutions; some of which are included in our generic marketing activities and some which fall into our added value resource packages. Our client facing website is full of engaging and interactive content about the products and services we offer. It features financial calculators, a regularly updated news section, our ‘search for an adviser’ tool, digital magazines and a live chat. On top of this we are also active on several other digital marketing channels such as social media, email marketing and search engine marketing.

Succession strategy

Another benefit of joining Truly is that we will give you the help and support you need when you start to think about retirement. We have implemented a succession strategy into our business model that will help you to be prepared for when you finally decide to end your career as a IFA. Under new fee contracts it is no longer easy to sell your business ‘en bloc’ as it once was. Hence an alternative to sale at retirement is needed and here at Truly Independent we have cultivated a realistic and proven alternative. Our contracts and successor agreements ensure smooth and uncontested client relationships and handover. Of course, you may already have a successor in mind.

Ongoing support

One of main benefits of choosing Truly Independent is the continued support we offer our advisers even after your initial induction. Our in-house action team will always be happy to assist you and offer any guidance. We provide all new advisers with local ‘mentoring’ support. From our vast experience, we know that ‘in the field’ support is crucial to the long-term success of any multi-adviser firm. All our advisers are given an induction that is tailored specifically to them. Following your induction, you will receive mentoring from existing IFAs to ensure you are settled back in to your home workstation.

Systems in place

Once you join Truly you will be provided with a range of systems to offer support and guidance to aid you in your work.

-Our back-office system is a powerful and comprehensive tool that runs everything automatically. It is a single data entry and completely paperless. Any of our IFAs in the UK can use it with a simple login.

-Our website is aimed at your potential clients with a focus on providing useful and engaging content. They have the ability to use the Find and IFA tool to find the nearest and most suitable IFA to match their needs.

-We expect our IFAs and staff alike to engage in quick replies to telephone calls, emails and text. We also use an email management system which puts clients who register for information on our website into a campaign which gives them useful updates and information about our advisers and services with the motive of generating more leads.

-Upon joining Truly, you will gain access to our Yammer Internet service which brings together every member of staff at Truly on an online platform.

We all want to provide for our families, be comfortable in our lives and reap the rewards of a successful career built upon hard work. If you are interested in joining us you can book a discovery session here