How can financial advisors get found in AI search, build trust faster, and use online reviews in a compliant way?

In Episode 111 of The Influential Advisor Podcast, Paul G. McManus interviews Brian Thorp, Founder and CEO of Wealthtender, about one of the biggest opportunities in advisor marketing today: compliant online reviews as a trust signal for Google, ChatGPT, Gemini, Perplexity, Claude, and other AI-powered search tools.

Financial advisors have always relied on referrals, reputation, and trust. But today, before a prospect reaches out, they are often searching online, reading reviews, asking AI tools who to consider, and comparing advisors before the first conversation ever happens.

That means your digital reputation matters.

In this episode, Paul and Brian discuss how financial advisors can use compliant online reviews, third-party credibility, Google visibility, and AI search optimization to help prospects make a more informed decision about whether you may be the right advisor for them.

You’ll learn:

1. How financial advisors can get found in AI search
2. Why online reviews are becoming a major trust signal
3. How compliant reviews differ from traditional Google reviews
4. What the SEC Marketing Rule changed for testimonials and reviews
5. Why ChatGPT, Gemini, Perplexity, and other AI tools may use reviews to summarize reputation
6. How reviews can support SEO, AEO, and GEO for financial advisors
7. Why “stars” matter, but client stories matter even more
8. How advisors can ask for reviews without cherry-picking
9. How reviews can help independent advisors compete against larger firms
10. Why advisor-level reviews may matter as much as firm-level reviews
11. How niche advisors can use reviews to strengthen local and specialized visibility
12. Why a book, a website, LinkedIn, Google Business Profile, and reviews all work together as authority signals

This conversation is especially relevant for independent financial advisors, RIAs, wealth management firms, advisor marketing teams, and practice leaders who want to understand how trust is built in the age of AI search.

If you are a financial advisor wondering how to show up when someone asks ChatGPT, “Who is the best financial advisor for me?” this episode will help you think through the credibility signals that matter.

Learn more about Influential Advisor Media:
https://influentialadvisor.com/

Learn more about Wealthtender:

https://wealthtender.com/

COMMON QUESTIONS ANSWERED

Can financial advisors use online reviews?
How can advisors ask clients for reviews compliantly?
Do financial advisor reviews help with SEO?
Can online reviews help advisors show up in ChatGPT?
What is the difference between Google reviews and Wealthtender reviews?
How do testimonials work under the SEC Marketing Rule?
How many reviews does a financial advisor need?
Why do online reviews matter for financial advisor referrals?
How can advisors build trust before the first meeting?
How can financial advisors improve AI search visibility?

#FinancialAdvisorMarketing #FinancialAdvisorReviews #AIsearch #Wealthtender #AuthorityMarketing #FinancialAdvisors #RIAmarketing #AdvisorSEO #AEO #GEO #TheInfluentialAdvisor

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How can financial advisors use podcast guesting to build trust, attract ideal clients, and turn their expertise into new business opportunities?

In this episode of The Influential Advisor Podcast, Paul G. McManus interviews Gabe McManus about his book, Sharpen Your Message: Guest Podcast Preparation for Financial Professionals.

Gabe shares how financial advisors and financial professionals can prepare for podcast interviews, clarify their best stories, and communicate their expertise in a way that builds trust with prospects. Drawing from his background in theater, storytelling, book coaching, and podcast preparation, Gabe explains why the right message can help advisors make the most of every podcast appearance.

You’ll learn why writing a book gives financial advisors a stronger foundation for podcast guesting, how to identify your “greatest hits” before an interview, and why preparation does not mean memorizing a script. Instead, it means knowing your best ideas, stories, frameworks, and client transformation examples so you can speak with confidence when the opportunity comes.

Paul and Gabe also discuss how podcast guesting creates borrowed trust, why a book can serve as the “ticket in the door” to better speaking and media opportunities, and how sharpening your message can create an identity shift for advisors who want to grow their practice, raise their minimums, scale their team, and become more influential in their market.

If you are a financial advisor, wealth manager, or financial professional who wants to use a book, podcast interviews, and authority marketing to attract better-fit clients, this episode will help you understand how to prepare your message before the microphone turns on.

Get Gabe McManus’s book, Sharpen Your Message, at:
https://influentialadvisor.com/gabe

Learn more about Influential Advisor Media:
https://influentialadvisor.com

Topics covered:
Podcast guest preparation for financial advisors
How financial advisors can get clients from podcasts
How to sharpen your message before a podcast interview
Why financial advisors should write a book before guest podcasting
How a book builds authority and trust
How podcast interviews create borrowed trust
How to prepare your greatest hits for interviews
Book marketing for financial advisors
Authority marketing for financial professionals
How financial advisors can use storytelling to attract ideal clients

#FinancialAdvisors #PodcastGuesting #BookMarketing #AuthorityMarketing #GabeMcManus #SharpenYourMessage #InfluentialAdvisor #FinancialAdvisorMarketing #WealthManagement #FinancialProfessionals

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In this episode, Gabe McManus sits down with Jeremy Lederer, CPA and founder of XIT CPA, to explore what separates a tax preparer from a true tax strategist. Jeremy brings more than 16 years of experience working with entrepreneurs, business owners, and high-income professionals to zero (yes, zero) out their federal tax liability using legal, government-backed strategies. From film financing deductions to healthcare software investments, Jeremy breaks down the frameworks he writes about in his book The Zero Tax Strategy. He makes the case that implementation, not information, is the missing ingredient for most people. This is one for any financial advisor whose clients are paying more to Washington than they have to.

About Jeremy Lederer

Jeremy Lederer, CPA, is the founder of XIT CPA, a tax strategy firm that landed on the Inc. 5000 list of the fastest-growing private companies in America in 2023. With over 16 years of experience, Jeremy specializes in helping entrepreneurs and high-income professionals legally reduce or eliminate their federal tax burden through personalized, audit-proof strategies. A former professional golfer and winner of the 2008 San Juan Open, he brings the same precision and competitive drive to tax planning that he once brought to the fairway. Jeremy is also the author of The Zero Tax Strategy and a former certified mastery-level strategist within Tom Wheelwright's WealthAbility Network.

What We Cover

• Why Jeremy quit his firm in 2014, and the $100,000 savings opportunity his managing partner refused to pursue for a client
• Why the average age of a CPA today is close to 70, and what that means for the quality of advice most business owners are getting
• The fundamental premise of the U.S. tax code: 99.9% of its 80,000 pages are about how to avoid tax legally, not how to pay it
• How W-2 earners can use Section 181 film financing to create a $400,000 deduction from a $100,000 cash investment
• The Amanda case study: a $2 million-per-year biotech founder who zeroed her tax with a $300,000 healthcare software investment
• What "to change your tax, you have to change your facts" actually looks like in practice
• The audit that went perfectly: a $500,000 deduction, a nervous client, and a "no change" outcome

Resources Mentioned

• The Zero Tax Strategy by Jeremy Lederer, CPA — available at zerotax.com/book
• Vivid Vision by Cameron Herold

Connect with Jeremy Lederer

• Website & book: zerotax.com/book
• XIT CPA: xitcpa.com
• LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/jeremy-lederer-6128691b

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