Hello, and welcome to the PracticeLab podcast, where we talk to top advisors about what makes them successful, so that you can apply those lessons in your own business.

I'm your host, Melissa Phipps, and on this episode, I am joined by my associate, Becky Chao, our vice president of marketing and head of Practice Management marketing here at Capital Group. Becky and I spoke with James Comblo from FSC Wealth Advisors in Fishkill, New York. With around $250 million in assets under management, James’ business is built serving what he calls “blue-collar millionaires.” 

So how does he find them? A third-generation advisor, Comblo has spent the better part of 10 years experimenting with digital marketing tools to help drive leads and new business. From updating his website (which, he admits, he has done three times), to becoming a thought leader, to Facebook ad campaigns, James shares how he did it and what he’s learned along the way. And he’s got a lot to share.

So, let’s jump right into our conversation. James Comblo, Welcome to PracticeLab.

Becky Chao: Can you tell us a little bit about your practice and how you might distinguish it from others?

James Comblo: Yeah, OK. So, just at a high level, we're about to enter $250 million in AUM. We're probably at $350 million in assets under advisement. (That includes, you know, insurance and all that stuff.) We are five full-time advisors, which I'm one of. We also have six full-time support staff.

My company was started by my grandfather back in the early ‘80s. My uncle took it over in the '90s. And I am the third-generation owner. But there's been a complete shift in how we do business from even, you know, 10 years ago to now. And one of the things I used to always talk to the older guys about, I'd say, “Look, people want more than just investments, right? Anybody can do an investment portfolio. But they have questions, they want guidance, they want leadership. So we have to take a different path.”

And since 2018, that's really where we pivoted to, where we tried to truly be holistic, although I think that's an overused term at this point. However, we look at the four main things in personal finances, which is obviously investing, but two, insurance, three, estate planning, and four, which most people are not even allowed to talk about, taxes, right? And then there's obviously subsectors inside of each one of those major categories. But we try to, even if we're not the expert in any given area, we want to be kind of overseeing the whole process to make sure that all those different silos are working together. Because one decision made in investments definitely affects your taxes, definitely can affect your state plan, right? All that stuff matters, and somebody has to have an eye on the whole process. So that's really what we're trying to do. And this is something that my belief is that the wealthy, ultra high net worth people have had access to for generations. And we're now because of technology and things that have allowed us to do it at a much more efficient pace. We're bringing that to, really, Middle America and the blue-collar millionaires, the people that I think can actually benefit the most from it.

Melissa Phipps: That's great.

Becky Chao: That's fantastic. So, in terms of digital marketing, just jumping into this topic, tell us about that journey for you?

James Comblo: So OK, digital marketing. Back in 2015, we were trying to figure out a new way, you know, to get in front of more people. And nobody was really comfortable doing seminars or anything like that in our company. And, you know, it takes a lot of upfront cost. And maybe you get something back at the end or not, you know, who knows? So I said, “Well, I'm young. Social media is a thing. We use it, and I know other companies and other industries are using it, why can't we?”

So I went into the research, and I started figuring out how do we do it. And I thought if, one, I could write a blog or something that people would be interested in, that would make sense. And then, two, if you could get other companies to quote one of us, kind of as a source, it would all help to just kind of drive more leads to our website. And so the first thing we did was we rebuilt our website back in 2015. It's interesting looking back now. I don't think we did a good job of rebuilding it. But nonetheless, we did that. I started going to actually (you've probably heard of it) Help a Reporter Out, the website.

Melissa Phipps: For listeners who don’t know, Help a Reporter Out, also known as HARO, is an online resource that helps journalists find expert sources. It’s a great place to market yourself as a specialist to journalists. 

James Comblo: So I used them a lot, you know, for a couple of years. And I was quoted in a lot of different articles and things like that, which I then started using on my blog and with the backlinks. Then I looked into SEO. And that was kind of like it was all just about getting the message out where we could help and what we could do for people. And so that was kind of the start of it. And it was very simple in the beginning to be honest.

Becky Chao: Tell us about the evolution. So that was 2015. What were some of the results that you saw that led you to want to do more?

James Comblo: Yeah, so the earned media – being quoted or sourced in different articles – that was immediate. But it didn't really drive any business or anything like that. It was cool, you know, you get your name out there, that kind of thing. But it didn't really have any effect. And the blog, we found that our current clients were interested in what we had to say, different things that maybe they weren't thinking about, that kind of stuff. But again, we weren't really generating leads that way. So we hired somebody to help us. And he helped us to redesign our website again to make it more client-friendly. It still wasn't so much about the clients, it was more about what we could do for clients, which I think was maybe a snag in the whole process.

So then I started looking at paid ads on Facebook, for instance. And you could do it very cheap. And I just tested a whole lot of different ideas, keywords, groups of people, based on age, based on location, all of that stuff. I just tested a whole lot of stuff. And essentially, I got to a point where I was getting a lot of clicks for a very small amount of money. And some of the marketers that I spoke to, at the time, were pretty impressed. We just didn't have a huge budget to, you know, send it out to the masses. So it was, again, like dipping my toe in the water, trying a lot of different things with little amounts of money to see where we could then put bigger amounts of money. And you know, hopefully, the way I think about it is like, you pour gasoline on a fire, and then it just takes off.

Then I met the folks at the current website we have now which was Twenty Over Ten and now is FMG, and they were incredible at helping me get to the next level of, you know, getting people going to the website and all that. And then I just, it was very time-consuming. But the biggest thing I did was just put out content all the time. I was doing two blogs a month, every month, for I don't know, two years, three years.

And then I met another group of marketers that basically helped me to execute the vision of making it all about the client. And they're not even necessarily a client. But anybody out there who comes to our website, they're the main character in the story. We're kind of like the guide. And we can help them navigate the path that they're on. And obviously everybody's path is different. But we tried to say, look, if you looked at our website, the main line says “It's your plan, we just want to help you build it.” Then under that, there's questions.

One thing I've done a good job throughout my meetings is documenting the questions that are asked, and then we find commonalities. And, of course, nobody has the single question that's on there. But, you know, we've put together three different versions of it. And this is the one that comes up the most. Like, is my money going to last? Am I paying too much in taxes? That kind of stuff.

Becky Chao: It sounds like you started kind of more internally, had some folks helping you, but the strategy was kind of within yourself, and then added. What was the other firm that's FMG Suite or another marketing kind of maybe outsourced or agency?

James Comblo: Yes.

Becky Chao: They really helped take you to kind of this place you are. So can you talk a little bit about the difference between what you're seeing right now as a result? Some of the work that you've done, and this to where you were maybe at the beginning, and then what are you hoping for, you know, next?

James Comblo: Yeah. OK. Big questions. So yeah, I think we could be doing better just from the standpoint of, you know, driving leads, I think is one thing. You both probably know that. But also, converting those leads is a totally different thing. And I think part of where we lack is that we are a smaller company. We're not American Funds, so, you know, we're not a household name to everybody. And so there's a lot of maybe jumping over the hurdle of, do these people really know? Are they reputable? All that kind of stuff. So I think we have probably a lot of brand awareness that we have to build. But as a small company, it's difficult to do that. It's very expensive. So I think we could be doing better, maybe just from like a nurture campaign standpoint. OK, we've got people coming to the website, they give us their email, whatever it is, and how do we make sure that we stay top of mind with them, constantly giving them timely content that matters, that helps them make a decision.

And this is something that we pivoted to this year, is video marketing. And it's funny, I've asked my clients this, even my clients that I see, you know, once a year. I say, “How do you feel about the videos? Do you like them? Do you not like them?” So we send out a monthly video email. And there's obviously stuff that's not video attached to it as well. But the main thing is the video, and it's like two to two and a half minutes at most. And they just say they love it, because they feel like they're maintaining their relationship with me. So I think that will be one of the big hurdles that you take away is people feel like they know you, they see you, they hear you, they understand the way you speak, they know what to expect when you talk to them. So I think that will be a big a big part of that. And hopefully the goal at the end of the day is just to help more people make the right decisions and have the right information that they need at the moment that they need it, so that they can put themselves in better position going forward.

Becky Chao: That's fantastic. So does that mean that like maybe from 1.0 to 2.0, and I think now you're going to 3.0, that the difference between one to two maybe was that you did see more leads? And then now you're focused on the conversion side of it. Is that how you would characterize your journey?

James Comblo: Yeah, so version 1.0 of our website did not get any leads, version 2.0 got, I would say, hundreds, maybe low thousands of people giving us their information to contact them and continue reaching out. Just this year, since we launched our new website in, I don't know if it was December or January, we've had many, we've got thousands of people coming to the site. But also, we've got people who are what we would consider qualified clients actually becoming clients that came strictly through the website. So that is a leap, like a quantum leap forward for us as a company. And I think it's purely based on the wording and the way that we did the website itself.

Becky Chao: I see that you have Facebook, LinkedIn, trying to remember if you have Twitter, but you do have a nice social aspect as well. And your search is strong. You know what I mean? It comes up pretty quickly when you look locally. So do they, do you see those working together?

James Comblo: Define working together.

Melissa Phipps: Has your social presence helped with search? Like in terms of boosting your rankings, you seem to know quite a bit about search. Maybe you could tell me a little bit about the journey there and then whether social helps at all or whether it's a different part?

James Comblo: OK, so now you've exposed me. Truthfully, I don't know if it's helping at all.

Melissa Phipps: Oh, OK.

James Comblo: I just know you have to be on social and have a presence. So we're trying to do our best to have like that one big piece of content that we then break down into little pieces, is more digestible. I think I've read that in a book somewhere. So we tried to implement that strategy.

But yeah, the way our search works is that we just do our best to target keywords that the big companies aren't targeting, right? We try to own the smaller keywords. And there's a way we do it. So basically, if a keyword has over 2,500 searches a month, that's not where we're going to put our money or our thought process. We're going to look for one that has 500 to 1,000 searches a month. And we know that we can own that niche or that keyword. And even if we did paid ads, which we don't do, it would be much more cost-effective to do that, as opposed to, you know, one of the bigger areas.

Melissa Phipps: Is your content, the content that you created, you know, when you were producing two pieces a month, is that kind of building over time and getting more traction in search? Are you seeing that kind of work for you? I know, it was time-consuming initially.

James Comblo: I feel like we're at a point now where I can start to take old pieces and just, you know, refresh them and bring them into this year, things like that. I still, though I'm very much in the camp that it has to be timely for today. And new. I don't want to just repurpose old stuff. I know it makes sense. And, you know, there's a tax blog that I've written, and I've repurposed that every single year because things change. But at the same time, I want different ideas as well. But build off of previous ideas, so that we can always link to the other articles throughout our website.

Becky Chao: Right. How are you coming up with those ideas?

James Comblo: The person who does the marketing, her name is Liz, she basically sends me, you know, three ideas for the month. Can you write a blog about this, write a blog about that? And then I use FMG, they had their own platform of curated content. I just sometimes will go on there and take their framework and write my own words to it or read, you know, move things around, take points out.

One of my superpowers, I think, is that I know what I don't know, or I know that there's a lot that I don't know. And so, I just need somebody to be logical with me. Like, “Hey, we're going to do this, this is going to be the process. And here's what we can expect, as the result may not go according to plan.” But there's a logical process and thought process that makes sense to me to apply it.

The other thing is, I think stages are important. So one of the main people who helped us build out kind of the wording behind, or at least tweak the wording behind our website, I saw her on a stage. And I had already read all of the books that she was up there talking about, I just didn't know how to make it happen. Right? I was struggling with, you know, putting that part together. So after she got off the stage, I went over, I introduced myself and I said, "I would like you to help me do what it is you're out there talking about." And, you know, three months later, we were going and making it happen. So there is a cost to it. I think if you're one of the people who's going to say, “Sounds good in theory, but in the end, I want it to be my way anyway,” it's going to be a wasted, you know, investment. But if you're willing to take advice and understand that maybe you're not the expert in this area, it can pay off for years to come. If you just take the advice and hire experts.

Becky Chao: Well, James, thank you so much. We really enjoyed this call. And I appreciate it so much.

James Comblo: Yeah, well, thank you both for the compliment of asking me to do this and also for saying you like what I have to say. Thank you so much.

Melissa Phipps: By the way, after this conversation, James agreed to participate in our webinar: Site, search, social — how to attract prospects through digital marketing. So he may have even more to share about reaching new clients through these digital channels, and it’s a great way to earn CE credit. That event is live on PracticeLab Webinars on July 13, 2023, at 11 a.m. Pacific, and it will also be available on demand.

Melissa Phipps: Well, that’s it for this episode. We really hope you enjoyed it. If you liked what you heard today, hit the subscribe button and consider leaving a rating and review, because that helps other advisors discover this show.

PracticeLab is brought to you by Capital Group. You can find all these episodes and more at practicelab.com.

I hope you found this helpful, and I look forward to joining you on the next episode of the PracticeLab podcast.