How to Generate $200,000 in Revenue from Estate Planning (w/ Tushar Kumar of Twin Peaks Advisors)

Summary

In this case study with Twin Peaks Wealth Advisors, we sat down with Tushar Kumar (Founder and Private Wealth Advisor) to explore how he and his team generated $200,000 in revenue in the first year of implementing Encore and estate planning, and six figures of revenue every year since then.

What's Twin Peaks Wealth Advisors?

Twin Peaks Wealth Advisors was founded by Tushar Kumar and his twin brother Vishal back in 2015 (hence the name "Twin Peaks" 😉). They serve clients in Northern California, delivering personalized financial advice to empower clients in pursuing their financial goals.

Challenges:

• Despite recommending estate planning regularly, his clients frequently struggled to follow through on getting their estate plans in place.
• Clients who did complete the initial estate plan steps often fell short of fully funding their trusts, creating potential risks and ongoing frustrations.

Solution:

• An estate planning platform that allowed Tushar and his team to empower themselves to be the solution in ending client procrastination on estate planning (and stop referring estate planning out to estate attorneys, unless a client's estate planning needs were really complex and or they exceeded the exemption amounts for gift and estate taxes).
• A compliant way to help clients complete their estate plans while avoiding unauthorized practice of law (UPL).

Results:

• $200,000 in revenue from estate planning in the first year alone: And six-figure revenue every year since then! Tushar knew his estate planning offering through Encore was "going to fly off the shelf," and he was excited to contact clients to have them set up time with him to get their plans completed.
• Compliance confidence: Tushar felt secure using a vetted platform that has safeguards in place for advisors against unauthorized practice of law (UPL).
• Improved client retention and satisfaction: Clients were happy to have Tushar and his team facilitate their estate plans + properly fund them. They already trusted Tushar, and wanted him to hold them accountable while they made time to finally get their plans done.
  
• Rapid, meaningful estate planning results through Encore: Encore's industry-leading support team takes care of each and every advisor and their clients. According to Tushar, Encore turned around estate documents in 24 hours to 48 hours based on his clients' urgent needs (e.g., heart condition, closing on a house and needed a trust urgently). No other estate planning software for advisors would deliver this caliber of service.

Challenges

Clients knew the importance of getting their estate plans done, but wouldn't do so

For 11 years, Tushar was constantly referring estate planning business to someone else, only to see little to no progress happen for his clients. Similar to the way Encore saw it, the client experience for estate planning was broken.

Similar to what Eric Negron and the Forefront team did historically, Tushar and his team would often recommend estate planning with their clients. Clients knew the importance of having an estate plan, but wouldn't follow through. Kumar sums it up best:

"For the clientele that I serve...85 to 90 percent of my clients need a basic revocable living trust. It was like pulling teeth to get clients to visit an estate attorney and get documents drafted. Many would start the process, but not finish it...[or] had their trust drafted [but] stopped and never finished funding the trust."

Tushar and his team already knew how powerful estate planning is, and they wanted a tool that would help them become a forcing function for their clients' estate plans:

"For most people, it's really not a question of cost or desire to get it done. It's just about making the time to do it and having someone who can hold you accountable and financial advisors are very good at holding people accountable."

Solution

Encore's intuitive and supportive platform gave the Twin Peaks team everything they needed to scale estate planning

Tushar experienced an "Aha!" moment after seeing the Encore platform: his firm could now offer more comprehensive financial planning experiences for all of their clients while owning that process and keeping that revenue:

"When Encore first reached out, a light bulb went off because for 11 years, I was constantly referring that business to someone else and not being able to own that process."

Twin Peaks chose EncorEstate Plans because it created an opportunity for the firm to simplify their estate planning process and leverage Encore's extensive Knowledge Base templates, questionnaires, and resources + work with Encore's industry-leading support team to answer any and all questions:

"You guys have done a great job of putting in all the right things in the questionnaire...There’s a lot less work required."

Leveraging all of Encore's resources simplified Tushar's firm's process to the point where estate planning client meetings are no longer than 45 min. According to Tushar, these meetings are "not a heavy lift compared to other advisor tasks."

He explains:

" The first year with Encore, we did about 54 plans."

Results

Six figures of revenue every year from estate planning + improved client retention, satisfaction, and acquisition

Integrating estate planning and Encore significantly impacted Twin Peaks' client relationships and business growth:

• Improved Client Retention and Satisfaction:

"Estate planning makes for a stickier client relationship because they have another reason to engage with us each year."

• Increased Client Acquisition:

"In 2023, two prospects decided to hire us because we offered estate planning."

Tushar also highlighted Encore’s Estate Planning Support and Ops team as a major bright spot, enabling him to deliver rapid, meaningful results:

"I had a client in his 30s with a heart condition needing immediate estate planning. Encore turned around documents in 48 hours. It was incredibly valuable. Another client was closing on a house and needed a trust urgently. Encore got it done in 24 hours."

Advice for Advisors Considering Estate Planning and Encore

Tushar strongly recommends Encore to advisors hesitant about estate planning given Encore's industry-leading support team:

"Do your own plan first. Seeing it from start to finish will give you peace of mind. Encore’s incredible support team is very patient, which was tremendously helpful for me."

He emphasizes the advisor’s natural advantage in managing estate planning conversations:

"Having someone who can hold you accountable: financial advisors are very good at holding people accountable."

And to new advisors nervous about legal complexities, Tushar advises clearly distinguishing the advisor’s role from the attorney’s:

"I always position it as, 'Look, I'm not an attorney. My job is really to help you clearly understand what your estate planning goals are and then put them down on paper.'"

Estate planning with Encore Estate Plans has not only enhanced the depth and quality of Twin Peaks Wealth Advisors’ client relationships, but it's significantly contributed to the firm’s overall growth and strategic positioning.

Reflecting on the impact, Tushar summarizes:

"I think estate planning really helps the wealth management side because you get so much insight…You'll know very quickly, even by helping someone with their estate plan, whether they're ultimately going to be a fit for you."

Through Encore, Twin Peaks Wealth Advisors confidently delivers a seamless estate planning experience, furthering their mission of delivering comprehensive financial confidence to every client.