Let’s get personal. As in personal attention. A live voice on the phone connecting you quickly to the right personnel. Yes, the same personnel you spoke with the last time you called. We’re still here, and we know you. Personally.

VSR is a boutique firm by design. Our goal is to establish long-term relationships with high-quality, high-producing financial planners. Once Reps come to VSR, they typically don’t leave—we have the same track record for low turnover in Reps that we have in home office personnel. “Our motivation is the same as the Reps’ motivation,” explains Senior V.P. Jeff McAnarney. “Everyone here from the receptionist to the owners is on a bonus system. If numbers aren’t being met, then we don’t make the money we want to make either.” That incentive, which larger firms can’t provide, is why VSR strives to provide Reps with personalized marketing support that’s tailored to their unique needs.

 Product Support
A core group of quality supporting vendors believe, work, and assist the VSR system, providing our Reps with access to unique benefits: keynote speakers, special due diligence meetings exclusively for VSR Reps, and seminar support. But, unlike broker/dealers with a short list, we don’t attach proprietary vendor relationships to our Reps. We understand the importance freedom of product choice makes to Reps in the independent channel, and fully support that freedom.

McAnarney makes clear the emphasis on helping Reps facilitate the business they choose: “No matter whether it’s a money manager for VSR Advisory Services, a mutual fund, or a partnership, we’re going to look at it. As long as they are a quality company and a quality investment, we have no problem putting the things in place to help Reps do business.” We don’t have one business plan, we have over 250 business plans, a unique one for each Rep.

 Transition Support
“This is my fourth broker/dealer in twenty years, and it’s the smoothest transition I’ve had. Where were you three moves ago?” That’s a typical statement for a new VSR Rep. A transition can be an ordeal, and Reps can be hesitant about switching broker/dealers. That’s why we help make the transition as customized and personalized as possible, going as far as to work one-on-one with a Rep’s staff to help them understand our forms and procedures. It’s in everyone’s best interest to get the Rep up and going and submitting business as quickly as possible, and we’re proactive in making that happen.

Don’t take our word for it. We’re confident enough in our Rep relationships that we’ve been known to provide potential Reps with a referral list, quite uncommon in the industry. Our outlook is that there’s no better way to demonstrate not only the ease of a VSR transition, but the quality of our follow-through after the Rep makes the decision to move.

 Due Diligence
The due diligence process is much more of a commodity item today than when it was the hot topic of the 1980s. Now, analyst reports are shared within the industry, and third-party independent reports provide broker/dealers with an expertise advantage that in-house reports might not always yield.

Nice, if you can get it. What distinguishes VSR from other firms is the way we give Reps a voice by supporting individual business plans. At larger firms, a Rep wanting to develop a product that doesn’t have a nationwide interest would probably be turned down. At VSR, we’re willing to take a look at Rep-specific product proposals. In many cases, we’ll perform the due diligence and sign a selling agreement for that Rep to do business. Unlike those inflexible companies that dictate selling policies, VSR promotes and encourages innovation on the part of our Reps.

 Publications
VSR produces the Friday Flash, which is published electronically twice a month. The newsletter features topical articles, and also communicates new product information, product updates, and the Compliance Minute.

Also for broker/dealer use only is the Bulletin, our well organized and comprehensive VSR product directory. In addition, VSR consistently releases marketing pieces and sales strategies from different companies. These publications, along with links to supporting vendor sites, are available online at VSR’s secure broker/dealer only web portal so that you’re never without the forms or information you need. 

The web portal contains other information such as past Friday Flash articles, performance reports, new product listings, compliance information, etc. You can read more about the broker/dealer only web portal by clicking on the following link:

VSR's Technology 

 Meetings
All Reps are brought annually to Kansas City for the VSR National Sales Conference. The conference includes sessions on sales, marketing, and continuing education, as well as addresses by featured speakers.

An Awards Conference for our top producers is held each year in “a warm weather destination” during the late winter or early spring. Like our profit sharing plan for our best Reps, the Awards Conference is an attractive incentive for encouraging mutual success.

Regional meetings are held on a quarterly or bi-annual basis, depending on the location, at which a home office employee attends and provides marketing support. VSR also provides sales assistant training. Other firms point to a website and say “you’re on your own,” but the VSR philosophy is that our Reps are our clients, so our time is their time.