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Written by: Carolyn Young
Carolyn Young is a business writer who focuses on entrepreneurial concepts and the business formation. She has over 25 years of experience in business roles, and has authored several entrepreneurship textbooks.
Edited by: David Lepeska
David has been writing and learning about business, finance and globalization for a quarter-century, starting with a small New York consulting firm in the 1990s.
Published on June 6, 2022
Investment range
$3,350 - $9,800
Revenue potential
$96,000 - $288,000 p.a.
Time to build
3-6 months
Profit potential
$86,000 - $115,000 p.a.
Industry trend
Growing
Commitment
Full-time
Essential points to keep in mind for a successful investment company:
First, let’s clarify the type of business being discussed. “Investment company” is a broad term that could include a company that creates its own mutual funds or other investment vehicles, a private equity firm, a real estate investment company, a venture capital firm, or an angel investor.
This article refers to an advisory firm that provides financial advice and planning, makes investment transactions for its clients, and offers investment and wealth management advice.
Starting an investment company has pros and cons to consider before deciding if it’s right for you.
Trends in the investment industry include:
Challenges in the investment industry include:
Startup costs for an investment company if you run the business from home are about $3,300. Costs include a computer, software, a website, and licensing fees. If you decide to get an office, your costs could be closer to $10,000.
You’ll need the following securities licenses:
You must take exams for each one in your state at a physical location. You can find study materials and courses online from places like Kaplan University. Through Kaplan, you can also become a Certified Financial Planner (CFP) with more extensive study.
You’ll also need to meet the requirements to be a registered financial advisor in your state.
| Start-up Costs | Ballpark Range | Average |
|---|---|---|
| Setting up a business name and corporation | $150 - $200 | $175 |
| Business licenses and permits | $100 - $300 | $200 |
| Insurance | $100-$300 | $200 |
| Business cards and brochures | $200 - $300 | $250 |
| Website setup | $1,000 - $3,000 | $2,000 |
| Computer and software | $1,000 - $2,000 | $1,500 |
| Securities licenses | $800 - $1,200 | $1,000 |
| Office space | $0 - $2,500 | $1,250 |
| Total | $3,350 - $9,800 | $6,575 |
Investment advisors usually charge an annual fee of 1% to 2% of the total amount of assets they manage. You can also earn commissions of 6% to 8% for selling products like annuities. Fees to create a financial plan for clients are between $1,000 and $2,000. Your profit margin should be about 90% when working from home.
In your first year or two, you could work from home and manage $3 million in assets, do six financial plans per year, and sell 12 $50,000 annuities, bringing in $96,000 in annual revenue. This would mean $86,400 in profit, assuming that 90% margin. As you grow your portfolio, those numbers could triple. At this stage, you’d rent a commercial space and hire staff, reducing your profit margin to around 40%. With annual revenue of $288,000, you’d make a fantastic profit of $115,200.
There are a few barriers to entry for an investment company. Your biggest challenges will be:
Now that you know what’s involved in starting an investment company, it’s a good idea to hone your concept in preparation to enter a competitive market.
Market research will give you the upper hand, even if you’re already positive that you have a perfect product or service. Conducting market research is important, because it can help you understand your customers better, who your competitors are, and your business landscape.
Research investment companies in your area to examine their products and services, price points, and customer reviews. You’re looking for a market gap to fill. For instance, maybe the local market is missing an investment professional who is certified, or a wealth management firm.
You might consider targeting a niche market by specializing in a certain aspect of your industry, such as index funds or individual stocks.
This could jumpstart your word-of-mouth marketing and attract clients right away.
As an investment advisor, you’ll be able to offer a variety of investment products and services including:
Generally, annual fees are 1% to 2% of the total amount of assets managed. Products like annuities pay a commission of 6% to 8%. Financial plans can be between $1,000 and $2,000. Your profit margin when you’re working by yourself should be about 90%.
Once you know your costs, you can use this Step By Step profit margin calculator to determine your mark-up and final price points. Remember, the prices you use at launch should be subject to change if warranted by the market.
Your target market will be potential investors, which is a broad category. You should spread out your marketing to include sites like TikTok, Instagram, Facebook, and LinkedIn.
In the early stages, you may want to run your business from home to keep costs low. But as your business grows, you’ll likely need to hire workers for various roles and may need to rent out an office. You can find commercial space to rent in your area on sites such as Craigslist, Crexi, and Instant Offices.
When choosing a commercial space, you may want to follow these rules of thumb:
Here are some ideas for brainstorming your business name:
Once you’ve got a list of potential names, visit the website of the US Patent and Trademark Office to make sure they are available for registration and check the availability of related domain names using our Domain Name Search tool below. Using “.com” or “.org” sharply increases credibility, so it’s best to focus on these.
Finally, make your choice among the names that pass this screening and go ahead with domain registration and social media account creation. Your business name is one of the key differentiators that sets your business apart. Once you pick your company name, and start with the branding, it is hard to change the business name. Therefore, it’s important to carefully consider your choice before you start a business entity.
Here are the key components of a business plan:
If you’ve never created a business plan, it can be an intimidating task. You might consider hiring a business plan specialist to create a top-notch business plan for you.
Registering your business is an absolutely crucial step — it’s the prerequisite to paying taxes, raising capital, opening a bank account, and other guideposts on the road to getting a business up and running.
Plus, registration is exciting because it makes the entire process official. Once it’s complete, you’ll have your own business!
Your business location is important because it can affect taxes, legal requirements, and revenue. Most people will register their business in the state where they live, but if you’re planning to expand, you might consider looking elsewhere, as some states could offer real advantages when it comes to investment companies.
If you’re willing to move, you could really maximize your business! Keep in mind, it’s relatively easy to transfer your business to another state.
Business entities come in several varieties, each with its pros and cons. The legal structure you choose for your investment company will shape your taxes, personal liability, and business registration requirements, so choose wisely.
Here are the main options:
We recommend that new business owners choose LLC as it offers liability protection and pass-through taxation while being simpler to form than a corporation. You can form an LLC in as little as five minutes using an online LLC formation service. They will check that your business name is available before filing, submit your articles of organization, and answer any questions you might have.
Choose Your State
The final step before you’re able to pay taxes is getting an Employer Identification Number, or EIN. You can file for your EIN online or by mail or fax: visit the IRS website to learn more. Keep in mind, if you’ve chosen to be a sole proprietorship you can simply use your social security number as your EIN.
Once you have your EIN, you’ll need to choose your tax year. Financially speaking, your business will operate in a calendar year (January–December) or a fiscal year, a 12-month period that can start in any month. This will determine your tax cycle, while your business structure will determine which taxes you’ll pay.
The IRS website also offers a tax-payers checklist, and taxes can be filed online.
It is important to consult an accountant or other professional to help you with your taxes to ensure you’re completing them correctly.
Securing financing is your next step and there are plenty of ways to raise capital:
Bank and SBA loans are probably the best option, other than friends and family, for funding an investment business.
Starting a investment business requires obtaining a number of licenses and permits from local, state, and federal governments.
You’ll need the following securities’ licenses:
You’ll also need to meet the requirements to be a registered financial advisor in your state.
Federal regulations, licenses, and permits associated with starting your business include doing business as (DBA), health licenses and permits from the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA), trademarks, copyrights, patents, and other intellectual properties, as well as industry-specific licenses and permits.
You may also need state-level and local county or city-based licenses and permits. The license requirements and how to obtain them vary, so check the websites of your state, city, and county governments or contact the appropriate person to learn more.
You could also check this SBA guide for your state’s requirements, but we recommend using MyCorporation’s Business License Compliance Package. They will research the exact forms you need for your business and state and provide them to ensure you’re fully compliant.
This is not a step to be taken lightly, as failing to comply with legal requirements can result in hefty penalties.
If you feel overwhelmed by this step or don’t know how to begin, it might be a good idea to hire a professional to help you check all the legal boxes.
Before you start making money, you’ll need a place to keep it, and that requires opening a bank account.
Keeping your business finances separate from your personal account makes it easy to file taxes and track your company’s income, so it’s worth doing even if you’re running your investment business as a sole proprietorship. Opening a business bank account is quite simple, and similar to opening a personal one. Most major banks offer accounts tailored for businesses — just inquire at your preferred bank to learn about their rates and features.
Banks vary in terms of offerings, so it’s a good idea to examine your options and select the best plan for you. Once you choose your bank, bring in your EIN (or Social Security Number if you decide on a sole proprietorship), articles of incorporation, and other legal documents and open your new account.
Business insurance is an area that often gets overlooked yet it can be vital to your success as an entrepreneur. Insurance protects you from unexpected events that can have a devastating impact on your business.
Here are some types of insurance to consider:
As opening day nears, prepare for launch by reviewing and improving some key elements of your business.
Being an entrepreneur often means wearing many hats, from marketing to sales to accounting, which can be overwhelming. Fortunately, many websites and digital tools are available to help simplify many business tasks.
You may want to use industry-specific software, such as Scoro, AdvisorEngine, or eMoney, to manage your leads, portfolios, financial plans, and billing.
Website development is crucial because your site is your online presence and needs to convince prospective clients of your expertise and professionalism.
You can create your own website using services like WordPress, Wix, or Squarespace. This route is very affordable, but figuring out how to build a website can be time-consuming. If you lack tech-savvy, you can hire a web designer or developer to create a custom website for your business.
They are unlikely to find your website, however, unless you follow Search Engine Optimization (SEO) practices. These are steps that help pages rank higher in the results of top search engines like Google.
Here are some powerful marketing strategies for your future business:
Unique selling propositions, or USPs, are the characteristics of a product or service that sets it apart from the competition. Customers today are inundated with buying options, so you’ll have a real advantage if they are able to quickly grasp how your investment company meets their needs or wishes. It’s wise to do all you can to ensure your USPs stand out on your website and in your marketing and promotional materials, stimulating buyer desire.
Global pizza chain Domino’s is renowned for its USP: “Hot pizza in 30 minutes or less, guaranteed.” Signature USPs for your investment business could be:
You may not like to network or use personal connections for business gain. But your personal and professional networks likely offer considerable untapped business potential. Maybe that Facebook friend you met in college is now running an investment business, or a LinkedIn contact of yours is connected to dozens of potential clients. Maybe your cousin or neighbor has been working in investments for years and can offer invaluable insight and industry connections.
The possibilities are endless, so it’s a good idea to review your personal and professional networks and reach out to those with possible links to or interest in investments. You’ll probably generate new customers or find companies with which you could establish a partnership.
If you’re starting out small from a home office, you may not need any employees. But as your business grows, you will likely need workers to fill various roles. Potential positions for an investment business include:
At some point, you may need to hire all of these positions or simply a few, depending on the size and needs of your business. You might also hire multiple workers for a single role or a single worker for multiple roles, again depending on need.
Free-of-charge methods to recruit employees include posting ads on popular platforms such as LinkedIn, Facebook, or Jobs.com. You might also consider a premium recruitment option, such as advertising on Indeed, Glassdoor, or ZipRecruiter. Further, if you have the resources, you could consider hiring a recruitment agency to help you find talent.
Investment advisors provide an invaluable service that boosts wealth and ensures financial security and well-being for countless Americans. The financial planning and advice industry has grown tremendously of late and will continue to grow in the future. If you can meet the licensing requirements, you could start your own investment company and make a great living while helping people with crucial financial decisions.
You’ve learned the entrepreneurial tasks involved, so now it’s time to get licensed and launch your successful investment company!
You’ll need securities licenses including Series 6, Series 7, Series 63, Series 65, and Life and Health Insurance. You must take exams for each one in your state at a physical location. You can find only study materials and courses online from places like Kaplan University. Through Kaplan you can also become a Certified Financial Planner (CFP) with more extensive study.
The main types of investments include stocks, bonds, mutual funds, real estate, commodities, and alternative investments such as hedge funds or private equity. Each investment type has its own characteristics, risks, and potential returns, allowing investors to diversify their portfolios based on their goals and risk tolerance.
To handle client accounts and maintain transparency in an investment company, it is crucial to implement robust systems and processes. This includes accurately documenting client transactions, maintaining proper accounting records, and providing regular reports and statements to clients regarding their investments.
Start by evaluating the investment services you offer and identifying the specific demographic, financial profile, and investment objectives that align with your expertise. Conduct market research to understand the demand for investment services in your target market, identify potential clients through networking, and consider leveraging digital marketing strategies to reach a broader audience.
Running an investment company can be challenging due to various factors such as regulatory compliance, market volatility, client expectations, and competition. It requires a strong understanding of financial markets, investment strategies, risk management, and the ability to build and maintain client relationships.
Running an investment company demands time, expertise, and resources, so balancing it with other commitments can be challenging. Ensure that you have the necessary qualifications, experience, and knowledge to provide investment services. It is crucial to adhere to legal and regulatory requirements and establish clear boundaries between your primary employment or commitments and the investment company.
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