The Branding Question That Defines Succession Planning with Mike Saunders

When buyers evaluated Tyson Ray's practice in 2024, they asked one question: "What happens to client trust if you're not there?" That's where branding and succession planning often collide.Tyson and Kim Cochenour sit down with marketing expert Mike Saunders to explore how brand equity determines your exit value and why your brand drives your succession planning decisions.You'll discover the positioning mistakes that create founder dependency and how to build a brand that transfers client trust beyond the founder.Tyson Ray and Kim Cochenour sit down with marketing expert and author Mike Saunders to discuss the importance of brand equity for advisors and the role it plays in succession planning.In 2024, Tyson was in real conversations about selling his practice. When it comes to branding, buyers really asked one question: “What happens to a client’s trust if you’re not there?”In other words, the focus of the investors was on evaluating founder dependency. Tyson touches upon the fact that realizing how important your brand is will drive some of the decisions on what, who, and how you do a succession.Mike brings up the concept of positioning – what you’re known as, what your prospect thinks of you as – and the importance of articulating your solution in your messaging.Tyson shares his thoughts on branding and marketing within his firm, and how it has contributed to its growth.“The biggest mistake you make as an advisor is not getting advice," says Tyson.In his experience working with the financial services industry, Mike has identified seeing marketing as an expense and not doing it consistently are two of the big traps advisors fall into. Mentioned in This Episode:TotalSuccession.comTotalSuccession.com/podcastFORM Wealth AdvisorsTyson RayKim CochenourTyson’s book - Total Succession: 5 Steps for Financial Advisors to Exit Confidently, Be Fully Compensated, and Keep Clients’ Interests FirstMikeSaunders360.com Mike Saunder’s books on AmazonJPMorgan Chase