Advisor Spotlight with Scott Moffitt, Loveland, OH

26 Sep Advisor Spotlight with Scott Moffitt, Loveland, OH

We are pleased to bring you the Summit Advisor Spotlight. These interviews aim to learn how advisors have dramatically increased their production through leveraging tools and services provided by Cetera and Summit Financial Networks.

This edition of Advisor Spotlight features Scott Moffitt, co-founder of Summit Financial Group, located in Loveland, OH. Scott recently sat down with Josh Gomez, Summit’s Sr. Relationship Manager, and Gordon Jahnig, Summit’s Director of Sales Support. We are grateful to Scott for taking time out of his busy day to share his insights. Let’s get started.

JG: Scott, how long have you been a financial advisor, and when did you join Summit?

SM: I have been an advisor since 1993. I spent three years at another firm before joining what was the original version of Summit. I was one of the first few reps with Summit Brokerage Services back in 1996.

JG: Does that mean you’ve been here longer than anyone else?

SM: Yes, I have been with the “brand” longer than any of the current reps. I had a partner in the practice, and we were reps number three and four. He retired about two years ago. The gentleman that started Summit originally had one representative in his office down in Florida, and we were his first satellite office.

JG: You’ve been an advisor for nearly 30 years. Why did you become an advisor, and how did you get started?

SM: My dad was a school principal, so I was always drawn to education, but I also loved finance and the concept of the stock market. My dad encouraged me to follow finance as he always told me about the financial inequities in education. So, I chose to follow my passion for the market, and that is what drew me into the business.

The firm where I was hired out of college focuses on business succession and estate planning for near-retirement business owners. I was 23 years old, and I looked like I was maybe 18. Needless to say, it was a tough sell. Not for lack of effort, but I did not have a lot of success. I met a gentleman with a proven model working with middle America that I felt would allow me to grow into a successful advisor. He recruited me with the idea that I could replicate his “model” of doing business and be quite successful. I went home from that meeting and told my wife of only a few months that I was quitting my job and going to work with this guy from Florida. I began teaching educational classes on basic money management at high schools and colleges. At the end of the course, a complimentary portfolio and financial planning review were offered. That’s where it all started, getting out there and building relationships with middle American people who need someone to help them with their college and retirement planning.

JG: But why become a financial advisor? The appeal was that it satisfied both of my interests; I was able to educate people like my dad, but at the same time, the investment piece was satisfying to me. I loved what I was doing, and I was really driven, so I just started doing these classes nonstop all over the city. My wife would help me. We didn’t have kids at the time, so we were doing classes 2-3 nights a week, probably 10-11 months a year, just getting after it. That was basically the first ten years of my career.  

GJ: Thank you for the background on your business. What would you say makes your practice unique from other advisors? Or in other words, what is the value(s) that drive your clients to work with you?

SM:  That’s a good question. This is something I share with clients when we first meet, and it is simply that I am a sounding board for when they are making significant financial decisions. My clients know they can reach out to me, and I’ll share my thoughts, the good, bad or indifferent. The client makes the ultimate decision, but I am a resource. I want to help them make decisions that align with their financial goals.

My team and I have been very fortunate to develop really good relationships with our clients. Some clients have been with us for 20-25 years. It’s not our superior money management that keeps clients here. I believe it’s the trust, care, and individual attention that we pay to each client.  

At the end of the day, we just want to help our clients however we can so they stay on a path that will allow them the opportunity to achieve their financial goals and aspirations.

JG: I love hearing about advisors and their relationship with clients. Yes, this business is about money, but it’s also really about relationships with people. Tell me some more about how you build and manage relationships. Are there certain things you do that resonate more with people?

SM: One thing that I’ve learned over the years is don’t try to be somebody you’re not. I was raised in middle class in Middle America. Sometimes when you are successful, people on the outside will assume you are living a certain lifestyle, or you act a certain way. Their assumptions about me would be wrong. We don’t hang out at country clubs or that type of stuff. Staying true to how I was raised and who I am is important to me. This is who we are, and clients can relate to that. There are times when I’m referred to a prospective client, and it becomes clear; we are not going to be a good fit. I don’t mind passing on the business in those situations. I think it’s important to be confident enough to say no to a prospective client if it means trying to be something I am not. Accepting clients and handling their wealth is a responsibility and we don’t take it lightly. If you have to put on a fake persona, people eventually see through you, and the results aren’t going to be good. You must be comfortable in your own skin.

GJ: Let’s switch gears a little. We see you had a nice jump in production from 2020 to 2021, and hopefully, you are having another good year despite the market gyrations. How has partnering with Summit Financial Networks and Cetera helped you grow your business?

SM: From the client’s perspective, Cetera Advisor Networks and Summit Financial Networks are not generally what attract clients to work with me. That said, the firm provides me the autonomy to run my business and service my clients in the way I see fit. Another thing is that despite some challenges with learning the new systems, we are finding AdviceWorks and SmartWorks to be very nice tools and absolutely are a plus for our clients.

My relationship with Summit, particularly since Marshall has been running the firm and bringing in excellent professionals like the two of you, has been fantastic. The benefit, in my opinion, is that I feel supported. I try not to go to the well too often, but when I do, any issue or problem that I raise will be respected and addressed. That doesn’t mean I always get the answer I want, but I know the team values the advisors, and I respect that.

GJ: I have to think your relationship with the Summit staff is a big part of why you have been with us for so long.

SM: I feel like the Summit team cares about me. Honestly, it is the relationships that I have had with the people at Summit for 15+ years that make a difference. Now, it may be a little time between phone calls, but I know their character. I know who they are, and they know me, and if I genuinely have an issue or if I need something, I can count on them. They have my back, and we’re all in this together.

That’s really the Summit business model. Advisors get a concierge-type service, where you know everybody by name. In the past, it’s been great to attend the conferences and meet the staff and really get to know them because it’s a two-way street.

JG: Scott, I want to come back to talking about practice growth; What are you doing? What’s driving the growth? 

SM: The growth is very much organic growth. We don’t actively market to attract new clients. Our current clients are great, and they refer their friends and family, which we appreciate. That said, most of the growth is driven by identifying when our clients have additional needs. We haven’t done the exact statistics lately, but my team and I are talking to all of our clients on a regular basis. We have found that effective, regular communication with our clients delivers a lot of additional business, such as retirement plan rollovers or accepting accumulated funds they now want to invest.

JG: I understand Summit has been very helpful with helping you grow inorganically as well, both as an advisor and in other areas as well. Can you talk about that some?

SM: Summit has been uniquely instrumental in helping me grow by business through acquisition. Both with financial and strategical assistance in purchasing a tax practice, as well as, multiple opportunities to acquire small books of investment business through retiring reps. Without question, these events would have either not happen or would have been more challenging without my partnership with Summit.

JG: I’m always interested to hear about an advisor’s vision for the future of their business. What is your vision for the future? What do you see your practice looking like a few years from now?

SM: I want to accelerate the growth of the business over the next couple of years, and we’re putting the pieces in place to make that happen. Finding additional staff or potential advisors has been challenging. I want to make a nice hard run over the next 8 – 10 years to double or triple the business, which I think we can accomplish.

GJ: What would you tell an advisor who was considering joining Summit?

SM: I really think having a big firm like Cetera, with all of the resources they bring to the table, is a significant advantage. Whether you’re tapping into 10% or 90% of what’s out there, I think it’s phenomenal and provides advisors with future opportunities to expand their practice offerings. With Cetera, we can address almost any financial need for a client. When you couple the big firm resources with the boutique feel Summit offers its advisors, it is a good situation for an advisor. I can pick up the phone with a question or problem and talk to someone whose name and face I know and who knows me and my business. I think that type of relationship with support staff is extremely valuable.

JG: Let’s get to the fun questions. You mentioned your kids earlier and that’s a big part of your life. What do you spend your time doing when you’re outside the office?

SM: Our family is very close. I have two boys and two girls. Both of my boys play baseball. My older son just transitioned from playing college baseball to coaching at our high school. I helped coach his travel team. A number of my former players are playing college ball. Right now, I’m now coaching my younger son’s team. They are juniors in high school, and most of them will hopefully be going on to play college baseball. I am excited to watch them develop and see what their futures hold.

As for my daughters, the oldest is getting her master’s degree at the University of Kentucky and she plays club soccer and enjoys riding horses. My younger daughter is a competitive cheerleader and also likes riding horses. All of their activities keep us very busy, but we wouldn’t trade it for anything. We enjoy family time.

JG: Any other interests, passions or personal pursuits you are willing to share with us?  

SM: My wife, Cindy, and I have been married for 26 years. And now that our kids are all getting older and some are adults, I look forward to spending more time with her. We have a place in Hilton Head, SC and hope to spend more time down there. It is an interesting and surreal thought to be approaching that stage of life where you can be less focused on young kids. The opportunity to visit different places and spend quality time, just the two of us, is something we both look forward to.

JG: Scott, thank you for taking the time to do this, and we appreciate your thoughtful comments.

Scott Moffitt – Registered Representative offering Securities and advisory services through Cetera Advisor Networks LLC, member FINRA/SIPC, a broker/dealer and a Registered Investment Adviser. Summit Financial Networks is a region of Cetera Advisor Networks LLC, Cetera is affiliated and under separate ownership from any other named entity.