List Names Top 100 On Social Media

By Cyril TuohyInsuranceNewsNet

By Cyril Tuohy

The most influential financial advisor using social media is a New York-based advisor by the name of Joshua Brown, creator of the website The Reformed Broker. Brown was named in a first-of-its kind listing by a consulting company.

In case you have not heard of Joshua Brown, he’s an investment advisor for high-net-worth individuals at Ritholtz Wealth Management. His Twitter feed lists 74,100 tweets, and indicates that he follows 2,643 other Twitter addresses. Brown has 76,400 followers.

Brown and his peers appear in the Top 100 Most Social Financial Advisors published earlier this month by the San Diego-based consulting company BrightScope.

Mike Alfred, co-founder and chief executive officer of BrightScope, said that because social media have become a “required communication tool,” the time had come to recognize advisors spearheading the communications revolution brought on by social media.

Alfred said he hopes that shining a light on social media best practices will encourage more advisors to use social media tools offered by sites such as Twitter, LinkedIn and Facebook to communicate with current clients and prospect for new ones.

Alfred added that the top 100 listing would benefit advisors and clients “especially in light of the SEC’s recent guidance on social media.”

In March the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) issued new guidance on how and when registered investment advisors can use third-party testimony obtained through social media sites to promote their services in accordance with the Investment Advisors Act of 1940.

Advisors may not publish public commentary on the advisor’s own website or social media site that is “an explicit or implicit statement of a client’s experience with or endorsement of the investment adviser,” the SEC said.

The BrightScope Social Influence Rank uses an algorithm to aggregate information on advisors engaged with clients through digital medial channels, and how those advisors stack up in comparison with their peers.

Michael Kitces, a partner and director of research with Pinnacle Advisory Group, said in news release that social media and blogging offer advisors an opportunity to build a brand and establish trust with clients at a fraction of the cost of traditional branding and promotional methods.

The 10 most influential advisors, according to the listing, are Joshua Brown, The Reformed Broker; Barry Ritholtz, The Big Picture; Roger Wohlner, The Chicago Financial Planner; Jason Hull, Hull Financial Planning; Michael Kitces, Nerd’s Eye View; Russ Thornton, Wealthcare for Women; Charles Sizemore, Sizemore Insights; George Papadopoulos, George Papadopoulos on WSJ; Cullen Roche, Pragmatic Capitalism,and Jeff Rose, Good Financial Cents.

Cyril Tuohy is a writer based in Pennsylvania. He has covered the financial services industry for more than 15 years. Cyril may be reached at cyril.tuohy@innfeedback.com.