There, I said it.
I'm not one to usually make "predictions," but Chris managed to get some out of me somehow.
And under 3 minutes has to be a record for a media interview.
Fast watch.
Robert Sofia, Co-Founder, Chairman & CEO of Snappy Kraken, discusses the major trends in marketing technology impacting the wealth management industry in 2025 and 2026. @robertsofia@SnappyKraken
#joltconference lived up to the hype.
- finally met a bunch of people Iโve talked to on socials for years
- listened to a lot of the industryโs smartest marketing minds
- had my first opportunity to speak on stage next to @kendrarockslife and Elizabeth Reider
- and after two years of talking almost daily and working on multiple projects together, @TheFinArtist and I finally met in person
Big thank you to @robertsofia and the @SnappyKraken team for a great event.
What happens when financial advisors put connection, creativity, and client experience at the center of their practice?
You get ๐๐ผ๐น๐!
I am to start this one backwards โฆ
The only standing ovation at #JoltConferenceโฆ.
๐ was given to Cici Prsha and her team.
In a class move, @robertsofia invited them all on stage to accept the credit they deserved.
Jolt! 2025.... started with a Jolt!โฆ
A Jolt in the form of a fire alarm evacuating us at 1 am due to active explosions in the attached parking garage.
๐ The next morning โฆ
Other than the coffee and donuts, the Renaissance @RenNashville kindly placed in the lobby and the fans around the hotel, you would have never known everyone had been awoken and on the street in the early morning hours.
๐Robert, Diana Cabrices, and Matt Halloran bought the energy and high-voltage reminder that financial planning is about more than spreadsheets.
Financial Planning is about connection, clarity, leading with ๐ฎ๐๐๐ต๐ฒ๐ป๐๐ถ๐ฐ๐ถ๐๐ and reminding us:
๐ Are you connecting with your audience?
๐ก Storytelling is the most underrated skill in financial services
๐ฏ How do you make them feel?
๐ That itโs about doing, about improving by putting the repโs
๐ JOY isnโt just a feeling; itโs a strategic advantage.
If you were at Jolt!โฆ.
๐ช๐ต๐ฎ๐ ๐ถ๐ฑ๐ฒ๐ฎ ๐๐ผ๐ ๐ฎ๐ฟ๐ฒ ๐ฝ๐๐๐๐ถ๐ป๐ด ๐๐ผ ๐๐ผ๐ฟ๐ธ?
๐จ In this closing, Robert nailed it
@SnappyKraken has created a community
A community of outliersโฆ.
Butโฆ. for an advisor who wears a t-shirt that says ๐ช๐ต๐ฎ๐ ๐ฑ๐ถ๐ฑ ๐๐ผ๐ ๐ฑ๐ผ ๐๐ผ๐ฑ๐ฎ๐ ๐๐ต๐ฎ๐ ๐ฏ๐ฟ๐ผ๐๐ด๐ต๐ ๐๐ผ๐ ๐ท๐ผ๐?ยฎ thatโs just fine.
๐ฌย The feedback I received after sharing how we are leading with JOY at @MitlinFinancial was touching.
And it reinforced my plan to pull back the curtain on our process.
A giant thank you to Kim Skermer for her coaching and for transforming Denise's words into a TED Talk that I was told inspired!
๐ Brian Thorp of @wealthtender, thank you for the valuable insights and for disclosures, so on point compliance agreesโฆ
๐oh, and for making it so I can end this post like most of my stories....
with HOCKEY
Letโs Go Oilers
Do something hard
Something you might not pull off
Put your all into it
Feel yourself get stronger
Your confidence will swell
Onto the next hard thing
Growth never ends
That's awesome! Congrats. It's still new, but it is basically like SEO with something deeper: being part of the right conversations in the right places. Iโd focus on:
Making sure your name/site shows up in niche articles, podcasts, panels about AI/robo-advisers.
Getting mentioned or linked in places that AI models + search scrape for โrusted answers (think industry blogs, thought leader posts, Quora, Reddit, etc.).
Using very specific long-tail keywords in your bios and site copy... what would you Google if you needed โlegal help for an AI robo-adviserโ?
I would summarize that it's a mix of SEO, influence, and positioning. Curious how @SamanthaTwenty and @ShawnaOhm are thinking about it!