I've been 
at what BS these salesmen come up with on online forums. (What BS do they tell their clients, I wonder?) I thought I'd share a couple of the online tales:
1. "This morning, for example, I sat with an accomplished and extremely bright banker in his mid-30's. Despite his evident intelligence, excellent training, and entrepreneurial spirit, here is how he has allocated his current rollover IRA: 25% in the Japan iShare, and 75% in cash.
Dang. This meets the test of a low-cost portfolio, but it's lunancy. I suggested we reallocate. He said he'd rather wait until his position comes back to breakeven before reallocating. Double dang. I reminded him of Econ 101 and the concept of a sunk cost. He conceded the point.
So then it was a question of the wrap fee. After looking at everything, we tentatively settled on 1.25%. After thinking for a moment--and this is the guy who has 75% in cash earning about 2%--he was concerned that I should give back another 0.25%. Ummm. I think we'll be able to get you those 25 bips back and then some if you allow us to build and manage a diversified portfolio for you. Okay, he said."
Raise your hand if you believe this one.
2. A saleswoman with Ameriprise sent an email to the webmaster at www.amexsux.com pretending to be a very salisfied client of Ameriprise, saying:
"I have had a fabulous experience with my American Express/Ameriprise
financial advisor. They have assisted me in looking at a total overall picture of my entire life. I was able to make several correction in strategies and I will be able to retire much sooner than I expected. I have referred my advisor to several friends who also have had excellent experiences. Although no large company is perfect, my life is so much better than it was when I was working with a stock broker who only wanted to invest rather than help me organize my life. May I suggest that you take a more objective view of the benefits? Thank you."
She should not have used an email that could be tracked back to her - and showing that she was not a client at all, but an Ameriprise salesman (CFP, no less, and a grandmother).
3. Another Ameriprise CFP posts this on one website:
"I joined American Express 15 years ago because of the right and privilege to offer objective advice, without undue influence to sell one product line over another and to this date, my reasons for joining have been abundantly validated. If you're already a client, then congratulations. If you're not yet, I encourage you to meet with an advisor. I think you'll be amazed at the sense of caring for your best interest and success." "
And this on another:
"I was discouraged and all but ready to quit. I no longer believed in what I was doing, my confidence was battered by a system I felt trapped in, and my trust level in the industry and the company I represent was at an all time low. I was searching for either a way out, or to rediscover the primary reason I joined IDS 17 years ago, which was to escape the product bias so prevalent in proprietary firms.
No longer content with scraps from the industry table, my dinosaur was demanding raw meat.... Yet what good is the best asset allocation work, when I plug in product selections from the 98% pool that lags the asset categories we are trying to mirror? "
This is just a sample. I'll leave you with a quote made by a (hopefully ex) Ameriprise salesman:
"Do you realize what no load funds are? They are not professionally managed. "
at what BS these salesmen come up with on online forums. (What BS do they tell their clients, I wonder?) I thought I'd share a couple of the online tales: 1. "This morning, for example, I sat with an accomplished and extremely bright banker in his mid-30's. Despite his evident intelligence, excellent training, and entrepreneurial spirit, here is how he has allocated his current rollover IRA: 25% in the Japan iShare, and 75% in cash.
Dang. This meets the test of a low-cost portfolio, but it's lunancy. I suggested we reallocate. He said he'd rather wait until his position comes back to breakeven before reallocating. Double dang. I reminded him of Econ 101 and the concept of a sunk cost. He conceded the point.
So then it was a question of the wrap fee. After looking at everything, we tentatively settled on 1.25%. After thinking for a moment--and this is the guy who has 75% in cash earning about 2%--he was concerned that I should give back another 0.25%. Ummm. I think we'll be able to get you those 25 bips back and then some if you allow us to build and manage a diversified portfolio for you. Okay, he said."
Raise your hand if you believe this one.
2. A saleswoman with Ameriprise sent an email to the webmaster at www.amexsux.com pretending to be a very salisfied client of Ameriprise, saying:
"I have had a fabulous experience with my American Express/Ameriprise
financial advisor. They have assisted me in looking at a total overall picture of my entire life. I was able to make several correction in strategies and I will be able to retire much sooner than I expected. I have referred my advisor to several friends who also have had excellent experiences. Although no large company is perfect, my life is so much better than it was when I was working with a stock broker who only wanted to invest rather than help me organize my life. May I suggest that you take a more objective view of the benefits? Thank you."
She should not have used an email that could be tracked back to her - and showing that she was not a client at all, but an Ameriprise salesman (CFP, no less, and a grandmother).
3. Another Ameriprise CFP posts this on one website:
"I joined American Express 15 years ago because of the right and privilege to offer objective advice, without undue influence to sell one product line over another and to this date, my reasons for joining have been abundantly validated. If you're already a client, then congratulations. If you're not yet, I encourage you to meet with an advisor. I think you'll be amazed at the sense of caring for your best interest and success." "
And this on another:
"I was discouraged and all but ready to quit. I no longer believed in what I was doing, my confidence was battered by a system I felt trapped in, and my trust level in the industry and the company I represent was at an all time low. I was searching for either a way out, or to rediscover the primary reason I joined IDS 17 years ago, which was to escape the product bias so prevalent in proprietary firms.
No longer content with scraps from the industry table, my dinosaur was demanding raw meat.... Yet what good is the best asset allocation work, when I plug in product selections from the 98% pool that lags the asset categories we are trying to mirror? "
This is just a sample. I'll leave you with a quote made by a (hopefully ex) Ameriprise salesman:
"Do you realize what no load funds are? They are not professionally managed. "
