Financial advisor blogging Q&A: Michael J. Evans

Michael J. Evans of The Cogent Advisor in Chicago is the latest participant in my Q&A series with financial advisors who blog. Advisor Tim Maurer suggested Michael for this series, saying via Twitter, “@CogentAdvisor stands out as a recovering commodities trader serving traders through evidence-based investing.”

I was interested to learn how Michael manages the burden of regular blogging by mixing his own substantive posts with a strategy of highlighting other people’s content with his quick takes on that content. This is a technique more blogging advisors should consider.

If you enjoy this Q&A, check out others in this series, which started with a Q&A with Michael Kitces.

Q. When did you start your blog?

A. The Cogent Advisor Cogent Conversation blog grew out of my monthly e-newsletter. Clients and prospects had mentioned how much they enjoyed the educational information I was sharing in our monthly newsletters, and urged me to write a blog post and share insights more often. My first post was in March 2012.

Q. How has your blog brought you new business or improved your existing client relationships?

A. It’s been an interesting and unfolding experience! I started to blog to further my passion and mission to educate investors in an additional forum. As I started to post ideas targeted to my niche of financial professionals and other high-end professionals, I found I was being contacted by followers from wider circles about a variety of subjects ranging from wealth management to money challenges in their relationships and more. While I appreciate the business connections, I’ve also enjoyed serving as a connector among intelligent and inquisitive people. Some of them have become clients, but all of them help me think and grow as a wealth advisor and a person.

In terms of specific business growth results, I’ve heard many anecdotes from clients who have shared specific posts with others they believed might benefit. I’ve also heard from prospects who have accessed the blog to learn more about me and my firm’s culture. By combining blog posts with related supporting tweets, LinkedIn announcements, and periodic e-newsletter “best of” distributions, our overall social media presence continues to develop as well.

In a report we compiled last year-end, our LinkedIn connections and e-newsletter open rates remained relatively consistent in 2013, but we found our Twitter followers and LinkedIn impressions were up 27.0% and 4.5%, respectively, between Q3 and Q4 2013. It’s admittedly difficult to directly connect specific social media stats with client growth. However, given the blogging benefits described above and the general health of our firm, we’re convinced that our blog plays an important and integral role in our overall business development efforts. Besides, it’s fun!

Q. What blogging techniques or topics have most helped your business?

A. My mission is to educate successful professionals to build durable wealth. Everything in my blog relates to sharing content that my readers can use to enhance the quality of their lives and to Free Their Wealth for Something More®. To be effective and efficient with our mission, we aim to produce one more substantive Cogent-authored post each month (which is then republished in our e-newsletter), and then regularly serve as a “content curator,” by sharing others’ posts along with our brief take on them.

I try not to sell anything on my blog. If I do my job and produce or share others’ ideas that help readers visualize a better future for themselves and their families, I’ve accomplished my goal. I’m convinced that the business development will flow naturally from there as I share my Cogent content.

Q. What are three of your favorite—or most effective—blog posts? Provide the titles, URLs and a comment about why you included them.

1. As an educator, I love it when I can write a post and elicit a response that creates an “Ah ha!” moment in the reader’s mind. For example, our recent post, “The Triple-Action Power of Donor-Advised Funds,” helps successful individuals consider how a donor-advised fund may enable them to best fulfill their charitable intents. How great that I can reach out to readers and help them advance a cause that matters to them.
2. I also have teamed up with The BAM Alliance, whose experts share my passion for promoting financial understanding. One of my recent shared posts came from BAM’s Director of Personal Finance Tim Maurer: “Tim Maurer on College Spending: Planning vs. Procrastinating.” Sharing a lucid explanation of an intimidating but important subject like saving for your children’s higher education is just great for me.
3. A subject vital to a family’s wealth but often overlooked is the critical need to balance one’s investment risks with the related risks a high-end professional may be taking in his or her career. I took on this subject in this post: “From 65 to Zero in 10 Seconds: Managing Your Human Capital Risk” and also as an article in the Spring 2014 Inside Advantage, a trade journal.

Q. What’s your best tip for advisors who blog?

A. Write from the heart, on ideas of relevance to your audience (which assumes you have identified who your audience is)! It enhances the quality of your readers’ lives, positions you as a subject matter expert, and makes the effort more enjoyable and personally rewarding – financially and emotionally.