1. What Do Charles Schwab, Personal Finance, And Rap Music All Have In Common?
(Matching tags: Charles Schwab,Offbeat,advisor industry people)

What do Charles Schwab, personal finance, and rap music all have in common? Not much. Still, their convergence resulted in the production of an infectious music video created by an Indianapolis teen who ...

2. Morningstar Finance App Launched In Mercedes-Benz Vehicles
(Matching tags: Offbeat,technology,mobile apps)

So what if texting has created a driving hazard. Mercedes-Benz is now offering a finance app from Morningstar in its vehicles.

3. Why Advisor Products Rarely Gets Covered In The Trade Press And Advice For Advisors About Their Client Newsletters
(Matching tags: SEO,internet marketing,integrity,client education,marketing,Offbeat,advisor industry people)

A post in AdvisorOne today about the “debate” over whether to get a canned or customized newsletter tells advisors what they already know—you can build a canned or customized newsletter—and ...

4. Hysteria On The Verge Over Government's Domestic Spy Powers In New Privacy Act Brings Out The Archie Bunker In Me
(Matching tags: privacy; security,Offbeat)

The tough thing about a free society is that you can't let people scream "Fire!" in a crowded movie theater or let soldiers with government security clearance leak secrets to the Web. You ...

5. Google Wallet Represents A New Way For Content Providers To Be Paid, And Some Advisors May Want To Become Content Providers
(Matching tags: productizing,client education,google,intellectual property,prospecting,Offbeat)

Google Wallet for content is an experiment to see if users will be prepared to pay for individual web pages if the buying process is easy enough. Should advisors participate in this experiment? ...

6. A Tale Of One Logo: Microsoft’s New Version Of Logo s Praised And Assailed In The Press
(Matching tags: microsoft,Offbeat)

It’s was the best of logos, it was the worst of logos. It was an age of confusion about Microsoft’s new version of its 25 year old brand icon. What the dickens is the truth?   “With ...

7. $35 Million Home Sale Marketed With Web Video And iPad App
(Matching tags: Offbeat)

A $35 million Malibu mansion is being marketed by a realtor in an iPad loaded with a custom app featuring a seductive, Hollywood-style action video showcasing the six-acre trophy property.

8. California Legalizes Texting While Driving For Voice-Activated Hands-Free Devices; It’s Nuts!
(Matching tags: Offbeat)

California has taking a step back from laws banning texting and emailing while driving. Governor Jerry Brown signed the “Freedom to Communicate" bill, which adds an exception to the original ...

9. You Need To See This To Believe It: MIT Grads Reportedly Develop An App That Transfers Files From One Device To Another Using Physical Gestures
(Matching tags: advisor technology,Offbeat)

MIT media lab-developed has developed an open-source software application essentially facilitates cross-application and cross-device data exchange through swipe gestures.

10. Accused 911 Terrorists Were Reading The Economist At Their Arraignment
(Matching tags: Offbeat)

At the 911 terrorist arraignment at Gunatanamo this past Saturday, one detainee, Ali Abd al Aziz Ali, reportedly appeared to be reading the Economist magazine.   At one point, he handed it to ...

11. Satirical Video Pokes Fun At Brokers; Alex Murguia's Latest Contribution To The Financial Advice Profession
(Matching tags: Advisor businesses,marketing,Offbeat,advisor industry people)

Alex Murguia is killing.   First, the CEO of McLean Asset Management Corp. deftly led his RIA from $25 million to $550 million AUM in the last decade.   Then, earlier this year, Murguia, ...

12. Please Join Advisor4Advisors
(Matching tags: Offbeat,Social Media,practice management)

If you are not paying A4A’s $60 a year fee, please do. I’ve been slowly going about the droll business of getting sponsors. This is not how I want to spend my time. But we do need your ...

13. Here's A Chance For You To Participate In The Internet Movement To Improve Everything
(Matching tags: profession,investment fiduciaries,leadership,client education,financial planning,family offices,fiduciaries,Offbeat,investor behavior)

Here's a pre-written email financial advisors can send to local psychologists to get them to sign a petition to create a financial division at American Psychological Association.   If you're ...

14. As The Internet Rebuilds American Institutions, Be Grateful You Live In An Extraordinary Era Of Progress And Tap Its Potential For Doing Good
(Matching tags: Offbeat)

America is in upheaval. Institutions are being crushed and rebuilt all around us and we are living in a time of revolutionary change, but most of us many not even fully realize what's happening. Creativity ...

15. Ideas For The 'Hot' Companies Of The Future Are Already Out There
(Matching tags: investing,Offbeat,technology)

Paul Graham owns a company called Y-Combinator which supports start-ups looking to launch. His take on the next great businesses fall in the following seven areas:   1.       ...

16. Partnering, Merging, Succession, And Other Business Deals--Including Serving Clients; Making All Your Work With People More Fulfilling And Successful
(Matching tags: client acquisition,integrity,communication,differentiation,leadership,competitors,client satisfaction,fiduciaries,Offbeat)

  Win-win relationships are a requirement of business success. The more you chase after ways to be generous in business, the more you will find success. This has been said many times before. But ...

17. Top Three Financial Advisor News Stories Of 2012 (Yes, 2012)
(Matching tags: Offbeat)

Financial writers like me used to be busy at this time of the year writing “year in review” stories. “Trending” pages on the Web, however, now continuously update us top stories ...

18. Clamp-On Keyboard Mount Lets You Exercise On An Elliptical, Treadmill, or Exercise Bike While Using Your Computer
(Matching tags: active management,research,productivity,Offbeat)

I’ve searched for the best way to use my elliptical while working on my computer for over two decades, and recently made a major advance in my research:

19. A4A Will Donate $20 To Bubbles The Clown's Financial Literacy Program If You Join Now; A Lesson In How Advisors Can Partner With Nonprofits
(Matching tags: charitable giving,marketing,prospecting,Offbeat)

If you join Advisors4Advisors (A4A) now, we will donate $20 of our $60 membership fee to Bubbles The Clown’s financial literacy program, and you can post a logo on your website saying you support ...

20. I Have Something Important To Tell You About My Conversation With An Advisor This Morning
(Matching tags: Offbeat)

This morning I spoke with an advisor, let’s call him Jay, who I’ve known for about 15 years. I won’t use his real name because I never intended to write about the conversation. But there’s ...