In this episode of the Trusted Adviser Podcast, Rob Pyne speaks with Rebecca Tai, co-founder of Game Plan Wealth Advisers, about building a modern advice business designed specifically for millennials and younger professionals. Rebecca shares how she and her business partner, Alicia, identified a gap in the advice market for younger Australians making significant financial decisions but unable to access advice through traditional models. They discuss designing a business from a clean slate, creating scalable service offerings, using technology to improve client experience, leveraging social media to build trust, and maintaining a long-term vision while growing a successful advice practice. The conversation also explores pricing, onboarding, project-based advice, technology integration, personal branding, the ethical decision to outsource insurance advice, and the psychological realities of starting and growing a business.
LISTEN
SHOW NOTES
Topics Discussed
- Targeting younger clients with tailored advice models
- Innovative use of social media and digital tools
- Business design and long-term strategic planning
- Why younger Australians often struggle to access traditional financial advice.
- Building a financial planning business specifically for millennials.
- Designing service offerings around life stages rather than asset levels.
- The importance of long-term thinking when building an advice business.
- Creating scalable pricing models and avoiding custom solutions for every client.
- The role of project-based advice as an entry point for younger clients.
- Developing streamlined onboarding processes and client journeys.
- Using Instagram and social media to educate and attract ideal clients.
- Building a personal brand while reducing key-person risk.
- Leveraging HubSpot and technology to improve lead generation and client segmentation.
- Choosing best-of-breed technology rather than relying on a single platform.
- The impact of AI and emerging technology on advice businesses.
- Why Rebecca chose to partner with insurance specialists rather than offer insurance advice internally.
- The importance of specialization and staying within areas of expertise.
- The psychological challenges of entrepreneurship and business ownership.
Episode Highlights
(Timestamps are approximate)
- [00:00] – Rebecca Tai’s journey into financial advice and entrepreneurship
- [01:00] – Identifying the advice gap for younger Australians
- [03:00] – Why servicing younger clients requires a completely different business model
- [05:00] – The three client service tiers: Foundations, Pathway to Wealth, and Countdown to Retirement
- [07:30] – Playing the “infinite game” and resisting short-term business decisions
- [10:30] – How pricing evolved as the business matured
- [13:30] – Project-based advice and creating a lower barrier to entry
- [17:00] – Building an efficient and scalable onboarding process
- [19:00] – Growing an audience through Instagram and educational content
- [22:00] – Personal branding versus business branding
- [24:30] – Using HubSpot to track leads and improve marketing effectiveness
- [27:30] – Building a technology stack with best-of-breed solutions
- [34:00] – AI, advice technology, and the future of advice delivery
- [36:00] – Why Game Plan Wealth Advisers chose not to provide insurance advice internally
- [39:30] – Staying focused on long-term business goals
- [40:00] – Building brand visibility and client experience
- [45:00] – The biggest surprise about running a business: the psychological challenge
- [47:00] – Resilience, uncertainty, and what it takes to succeed as a business owner
Quotes from Rebecca Tai
- “Some people are so poor, all they have is money.”
- “We essentially created a business for ourselves.”
- “If you’re trying to service younger clients using the old model, that’s where the challenge comes from.”
- “We’re playing the infinite game. It’s not a short-term thing that we’re building.”
- “Pricing is a reflection of business design.”
- “The personal brand is a great entry point to attracting people who want to understand what you stand for.”
- “Technology should start with the end goal. What is it that we want to achieve?”
- “If we’re not the best person to give advice in an area, then we shouldn’t be doing it.”
- “To become successful, a lot of it is not technical. It’s psychological.”
- “Social media is about harvesting potential clients and watering that potential over time.”
Key Takeaways
- Rebecca began her financial advice career in 2009 before co-founding Game Plan Wealth Advisers.
- The business was designed specifically to serve younger professionals and millennials.
- Younger clients can be highly profitable when the service model is designed around their needs.
- Game Plan Wealth Advisers segments clients into three distinct life-stage service offerings.
- Long-term thinking and strategic focus have been central to the firm’s growth.
- Standardised pricing improves scalability and operational efficiency.
- Project-based advice provides an accessible entry point for younger clients.
- Structured onboarding has improved both client experience and business efficiency.
- Instagram has become a powerful education and client acquisition channel.
- Personal branding helps build trust before prospects become clients.
- HubSpot provides valuable insights into lead sources and client engagement.
- Technology decisions should be driven by business outcomes rather than software features.
- AI is already improving efficiency in areas such as file notes and advice preparation.
- Specialisation and referral partnerships can deliver better client outcomes than trying to do everything internally.
- Business success depends as much on resilience and mindset as it does on technical expertise.
Resources & Links
- The Trusted Adviser: https://thetrustedadviser.com.au/
- Game Plan Wealth Advisers: https://gameplanwa.com.au/
- Game Plan Wealth Advisers (Instagram): https://www.instagram.com/gameplanwa
- Connect with Rob Pyne on LinkedIn
- Connect with Rebecca Tai on LinkedIn and on Instagram
- Follow The Trusted Adviser Podcast
Show notes and transcript
For the full show notes and transcript from this episode, head to the episode page on The Trusted Adviser Website here.