As we announced last week, effective today, we have retired the Commonwealth Independent Advisor blog. You’ll continue to find all of our thought leadership and practical guidance over on Insights, https://www.commonwealth.com/insights.

As you may know, Commonwealth launched our new public-facing website in September. One of the advantages of the new platform is that it allows us to consolidate the content we’ve historically shared on the Commonwealth Independent Advisor blog in a new section called Our Insights.

With summer upon us and National Book Lovers Day just around the corner (August 9), we thought it would be the perfect time to take a break from our usual fare and provide an escape into the world of books. Whether you’re looking for a good laugh (or a good cry) or maybe some food for thought (or for the soul), our Commonwealth book club has selected a few inspirational female authors to add to your reading list.

If you’ve ever searched for ways to ensure that your clients and prospects find your firm in their online searches, you’ve likely come across the phrase search engine marketing (SEM). In a nutshell, SEM includes various methods for improving the chances that your firm will be included in search engine (read: Google) results. Think of it this way: if Google’s job is to find the best answer to searchers’ questions, SEM’s job is to help Google pick your firm as a high-ranking answer. It sounds like a no-brainer, but is SEM right for your firm? As with any decision that will affect your bottom line, there is a lot to consider before making the investment.

It’s the new year, the perfect time to better your brand. Can we take a few guesses about your practice? You offer comprehensive financial planning and/or wealth management that puts your clients’ goals and needs first. You have a dedicated process that begins with learning about your clients before developing a custom plan, investing wisely, and monitoring the plan for success. You might have a holistic approach—but in any event, your firm is independent, and you offer outstanding client service. Great! The only problem? That’s what the other 310,000 financial advisors out there say.