Business Innovators Radio - Interview with Matt Reiner Managing Partner of Capital Investment Advisors

Episode Date: July 24, 2023

Matt Reiner is a CFA® Charterholder, CERTIFIED FINANCIAL PLANNER™, and partner at Capital Investment Advisors, a $4.3B (as of December 2022) RIA in Atlanta, Georgia. Additionally, Matt is the managing partner of Wela Strategies, an RIA that deals with the investment needs of the mass affluent.The MattReiner.com site was created from Matt’s passion to help other financial advisors grow in their knowledge of practice management, help them evaluate their technology needs, and inform them on what’s new in the industry. On this site, you will find the Bridging the Gap Podcast, where Matt talks with top industry leaders about emerging trends, client best practices, and challenges financial firms face every day. In The Inner Circle, financial leaders will find a collaborative atmosphere and community of advisors to help them grow in their knowledge and practice management skills.An experienced thought leader and sought-after industry speaker, Matt has been a featured guest at top financial industry events like FinCon and is a frequently quoted source for outlets including the Wall Street Journal, Business Insider, Entrepreneur, Financial Advisor Magazine, Medium, Think Advisor, and Advisor Perspectives.Matt is dedicated to helping the industry grow and evolve. He has a very simple goal in mind. He wants the wealth management industry – specifically the RIA vertical – to become one of the most innovative, forward-thinking industries on earth. Matt believes that with true innovation, RIAs will attract top-tier talent, create practices that are efficient and scalable, and offer higher-quality personal service to clients at all levels of wealth. Matt Reiner wants to help you become THE advisor of the future!Learn more: https://mattreiner.comInfluential Entrepreneurs with Mike Saundershttps://businessinnovatorsradio.com/influential-entrepreneurs-with-mike-saunders/Source: https://businessinnovatorsradio.com/interview-with-matt-reiner-managing-partner-of-capital-investment-advisors

Welcome to influential entrepreneurs, bringing you interviews with elite business leaders and experts, sharing tips and strategies for elevating your business to the next level. Here's your host, Mike Saunders. Hello and welcome to this episode of Influential Entrepreneurs. This is Mike Saunders, the authority positioning coach. Today we have with us, Matt Reiner, who's a managing partner of capital investment advisors. Matt, welcome to the program. Thanks for having me. Looking forward to the conversation.

I really appreciate it. Yeah, you're welcome. And I know that you do a lot of things for a lot of people. And before we dive into that, I want to hear your story. What is your background? And how did you get into financial services back in the first place? Yeah. And, you know, it's a fun story.

It's a lot of luck. And I've been, you know, grateful for some of the opportunities that I've been provided. I mean, it all started with, you know, my dad started our initial financial advisory firm capital investment advisors about 27 years ago. And, you know, my brother, older brother came into the firm as well. And then I joined. And, you know, it was coming in, my journey really started of coming into the shadow of two people that had done an amazing job of building a firm and trying to figure out, you know, what was my unique value. That's really where my journey started with, you know, dealing with some imposter syndrome. And am I supposed to be here?

I was just given this. And trying to find that unique value. And everybody really expected me just to be successful because I had this opportunity. dad started an amazing firm and why wouldn't Matt just continue to be successful? And, you know, trying to find my unique value really led me to starting a technology firm within wealth management within our own firm and then ultimately to sell to other financial advisors. And that was really that changing moment, that spark for me because it was the entrepreneurial

spirit that I think I was thirsty for in technology innovation, product management, leadership of a team, all of that learning was really exhilarating. And we were able to fortunately raise, you know, $5 million and serve 50 plus RAs. And we had two different types of technology companies, one for direct to consumer and direct to business. But it gave me where I think my value really is, is this interconnection of understanding how to run and build a wealth management firm along with leveraging and utilizing technologies, both that are utilized in our industry today and that aren't utilized in our industry to really build a more efficient and valuable firm for both the team and the clients. It allowed me to find my place. And since then, we've closed that business down, but that failure was probably my best learning experience that we've ever had. And now I'm able to integrate myself back into our RA firm and really help to use those lessons and those experiences, the better our firm and become, you know, transform us even further. And, you know, we started another wealth management firm along that journey as well that helps the Henry's. The hirener's not rich yet. That

That firm's called Wellis Strategies. But I've been fortunate to be around this business and have a platform to explore and overcome some things that were just internal that allowed me to be better and more innovative in my mindset as well. I love it. There's about 19 things we could unpack in that. So I'll just kind of jump on a couple things that jump to my mind. Whenever I do presentations, a lot of times I'll go, you know, okay, finish this thought. You either win or you. and people go lose and I'm like, no, you win or you learn.

You know, and that's exactly what you described. You had a couple failures with a little F because they were learning experiences. And another thing that I heard from you say is like, you know, hey, my older brother went to the same high school I did. And he was the football star and I was always in his shadow. Oh, you're Tom's brother. No, you came into this company that what your dad started, you had family in there. And now here's Matt. How does he fit in?

you needed to carve out a name and a reputation for yourself and stand out first within your family persona and then to your clients. And now that's what you've done. And then somewhere along the way, it hit you that like, hold on. So I've had some failures that turned into successes and I've created, you know, kind of like my way of doing things. And now this kind of becomes a track to run on and success leaves clues and follow the process. And now that's what you're doing, helping other advisors grow.

and I think that is so spectacular. So kind of how did that move in? How did that progression happen to now branch out and tell other advisors, hey, look, I'm in the jungle with the machete, you know, carving a path. Follow me because I can help you make the right turn and not get, you know, stumble along in the weeds. Yeah. I mean, I think that the one thing is, is I've learned a lot.

And I've had a huge opportunity to experience. And I think that there's there's an opportunity in this space to be authentic and be vulnerable and become stronger mentally. And that helps us become better professionally, which then allows us to serve our clients in a more unique and profound way. And I think that there's, you know, there's some major challenges, mental challenges and, you know, failures like you mentioned. And they all, they led to me learning how to get comfortable with myself, get comfortable with my value, get comfortable with my uniqueness. And in an industry that seems like so rigid of, you know, this is what you do, this is how

it's been done and to do it. You know, I think that there's a spot in a space that we need some fresh voices. And I felt that there's an opportunity there. And, you know, my mindset is I've been very fortunate. And our firm at $4.5 billion where we're on a trajectory to get to $15, $20, $30 billion, you know, we're not going to be able to serve everybody. but I do have a mission personally that I believe that every single person in this country needs a human financial advisor.

That's a human financial advisor. They don't just need investing in everything of that nature. I think that the value of human financial advice is priceless. And it's hard to put that value together. But I believe that the value can change lives. I've seen it. We have over 4,000 families that we serve. I see it every single day.

and I hope that everybody can have that. And the way that I felt I could have that impact was helping advisors be able to serve more people. And the way that I believe that we can do it is to kind of break down that barrier, that stigma, that we have to keep everything close to our chest because it's our secret sauce and bring together community of sharing ideas. I've been using this quote for a while, the Matt Ridley quote of, you know, innovation is multiple ideas coming together and having sex. And I think that that is really, what it's about is that we can think in our own four walls about how to better our experience, better our client value, better our firm, but you're not going to innovate that way. The way that

you innovate is you hear from multiple people, you look outside your walls. And that's what I hope to do is to bring that together. And that's one of the leading drivers of the circle, which is my three times a week newsletter where, you know, we talk about mine first on Monday. It's motivate Monday. And it's all about getting your mindset right. Because I think that you can't do great. professionally or for your clients if your mindset isn't correct. And so it's a matter of reshaping your mindset. And then you get into Wednesday and that's where we start doing tactical stuff. We're talking about marketing.

We're talking about niches where we did a series on chat, GPT and how to use that. Tactical things, the better your business. And then Fridays is all about the client. How do we look at what's going on in the world of news of how we better our client experience? And how do we think about a thought to ponder from something outside of our world that can help us think about innovating on our client experience. And that's the circle of efficiency. That's a circle of growth. That's a circle of impact. And I think that we can do it all together. And there's enough business out there for all of us. And we're not going to be able to serve

everybody. There's not one firm that will. So let's all work together so that we can impact even more people. And that's been the mentality. And I'm fortunate to have a platform for that and to have those experiences. You know, when you were describing that, the thought came to my mind of what you just said right there, which is, you know, the law of abundance. There is, you pull up all the stats of, you know, boomers retiring or how many people. It is an staggering amount of opportunity out there. Even in your local geographic area, there is plenty to go around. So why not get into an inner circle group of like-minded individuals that, yes, are your competitors, so to speak. But if you can exchange ideas, everyone wins. And a rising tide raises all ships.

And you said another thing that is interesting. I've always heard. it, you know, business to business to consumer, business to government, but H to H, it's human to human. And too many times people just go, I need numbers, numbers, numbers, give me AUM, and let me just get, and all of a sudden, it's like you're just being treated like a number. How about treat people like humans and build relationships? And you've said this word several times, we serve our families. And that is the perspective of giving value and serving.

And when all that is done the right way, then guess what? A advisor, a wealth planning firm is never going to be replaced by AI and chat GPT because there's a human behind it, pulling the strings, running it and developing those relationships. It's a huge piece that you brought up there. Yeah, I think that, you know, when you think about what our unique value proposition is, and it's a tough, it's a tough concept or a tough change to accept in our industry, right, because of how we've been built. But the value that we provided 20 years ago, and even when my dad started the firm of investment management, that has become commoditized. And you look at a business and you say, if I want to continue to be a business, I want to continue to provide value, I want to continue to grow, I've got to look at the areas of my

business that I think I can excel at, that I think are not going to become commoditized in the future. And when you look at our business, the area of our business that will not become commoditized is the relationship. And all of the investment in technology into efficiency, into all of that is all a matter, or it should be, a matter of finding a way to create more time for more people on your team to create deeper, more meaningful relationships with your clients and more of them. because the whole concept of the generational shift in wealth. Everybody's talking about that. I know it's hard to build a business because it's such a gradual thing that just there's not going to be at one point in time where all of it shifts.

It's going to be over 20 to 25 years. But the challenge with that is that it's not a money thing, money shifting from one generation to another. That's what everybody talks about and the headlines talk about. It's a human thing that's going to be the challenge. And what I mean by that is that you have one $3 million client that, that you serve, that you know, that passes away, it has three heirs. Now, in order for you to have the same amount of revenue, you have to serve three million dollar clients that are all unique

and different, and you better have the efficiency. If not, then you're going to lose revenue and lose on your margin. And so you now have to serve more people. And so the only way to start doing that is to invest in efficiency, understand what your value is, and then answer the question of of how might I be human to more people? And then let that be your ideation kind of a jumping point to go and create innovation inside of your firm. Yeah, that's huge. And when you can accomplish that and you know what, that is not, he fill out this form

and you're good to go. That's not download this thing and you're good to go. That is a mindset shift and that is a methodology that you must adhere to. And it comes up each and every day to not get. it's so busy that you just treat people like a number to build those relationships. And to remember that, oh, this client said that their husband was going into for surgery. Let me drop a card in the mail to them. Let me follow up and see how that was going.

And there's myriad ways to accomplish that. But when that happens, boy, people sit up and take notice because they're used to their other service providers out there, whoever they may be, just not doing it. And it isn't rocket science. It doesn't take a lot of effort. Now, it takes effort because what's easy to do is easy not to do. But yeah, you hit the nail on the head there that when you can build those relationships and boy, it's really relationship marketing. And, you know, like I interviewed Bob Berg who wrote the book, The Go Giver,

and he's famous for saying, you know, all things being equal, people want to do business with those that they know like and trust. Well, if that's what you focus on and build those relationships, then when you have that, you know, client that has. has three heirs that, who are they going to call? Well, they're going to call the person that has been to birthday parties or treated their mom or dad the right way. And then that's just, you know, that pebble that gets dropped into the pond and then this ripple effect. And, you know, you mentioned something there with regards to, oh, you know, how do I surprise and delight my families where, oh,

I remember that the, the wife told me that the husband was going into surgery. I'm going to send, you know, a food or a card or whatever may be. You know, that's the Ritz Carlton method, right? They train their people to hear these things. And then they provide the processes in the ecosystem to allow them to take action on that, which is super powerful. And you read some of the books by Chip and Dan Heath and made a stick or the power of moments or any of those types of books. You know, one of the main things that change people's perception of who you are and keep them involved with you is to alter their expectations of alter the experience based on what their expectations are. And so what I mean by that is that if they there is this assumed perception of what a relationship with a wealth

manager is. And if you can do something slightly different to make them an unexpected moment happen, that they didn't expect that that relationship is there, they are now going to view you in a different light. And that moment is going to be more memorable, which helps them to stick with you longer. And the only way that you can do that, because I know that there's some advisors that are probably listening that say, gosh, that seems so hard. Like, I can't, like, that's like a point in time. There's nothing I can structure. I can't set up a calendar for this.

Like, it's really hard. How do we do it? That is the point is that, that is where our value. Your competitors aren't doing it. You're not, they're not doing it. And if you can figure out how you can do that within your own firm by removing the, the, the menial and mundane from your team's plate to focus on this, that is how you, you evolve yourself and grow your firm more than any type of tool or any type of marketing scheme,

that right there is a way that you can grow your firm faster. 100%. So let's wrap up with this, Matt. You are in the industry. You've been in the industry. You kind of can look over the fence and over the horizon. Where do you see the industry going in the next few years? Yeah, I think, you know, the one challenge I think facing this industry is that there hasn't been a moment that has forced us to change, really. And what I mean by that is that, you know, the markets go up and down, but, you know, a firm can be $100 million and have 50 families and their revenue grows. There's no, there's no impetus to change, to be forced to change, because I can have $100 million and just, let's say, in the market and I grow and in 10 years,

I have $200 million and my revenue went up. There's no really other industry that does that. And so I think that there's going to be a moment. And I don't know what it's going to be, whether it's an outside event or it's a firm coming into the industry or change in the way that, you know, fees are structured or whatever may be that's going to force change in the industry. And I think that the firms that are innovating today, both with technology and mindset and processes, are going to be forward ahead. And, you know, whether it is chat, GBT and AI, or it's just this like shift. and dynamic. It's never happened yet really in our industry. And I do think in the next 10 years, something will happen that will force change and it's going to leave either firms flat-footed or it's going to create this massive separation between the firms that are investing in it today

to be better and getting a little bit uncomfortable and those that are just waiting and sitting on their laurels on that side. I think you're exactly right. And you're a book reader and a quote giver. So let's wrap up with this one because what you said reminded me of this. The Wayne Gretzky quote about the hockey puck and I skate where the hockey puck is headed. Well, if you hear what you just said and go, what can I do to be ready for that if and when it comes? That's huge. Because if you prepare for that and it doesn't happen, cool.

You're still ahead of the game. But if the industry shifts and you've prepared for that, you just have gained massive market share because your competition hasn't taken advantage. of that. A hundred percent. It's a, it's a invest in time of thinking innovatively, read about people and other industries, test out new technologies that they come, find that sense of curiosity. And I think that you'll find yourself way ahead, whether my prediction comes true or not. Yep. Well, Matt, it's been a real pleasure chatting with you today. If someone is interested in learning more about what you do and how you serve your advisors and your clients, what's the best way that they can reach out and connect. Yeah, please. Just go over to, to,

Matt Reiner.com and sign up for the circle and you'll start getting the emails three times a week and I think it's going to make you a better person, a better professional, and a better service of clients. So again, thanks again for having me. Awesome. Thank you so much, Matt. You've been listening to Influential Entrepreneurs with Mike Saunders. To learn more about the resources mentioned on today's show or listen to past episodes, visit www.com.com.com com