Dan Hobbs, CEO at New Leaf Distribution, joins Sam Oakes to talk about what building their own podcast has delivered for an IFA Network. He's joined by his father, Founder & Chairman of New Leaf Distribution, Mark Hobbs, whose own scepticism about podcasting turned around once it started outperforming close to £1,000,000 spent on Google Ads." In this episode, Dan and Mark explain why Mark was initially convinced podcasting was a gimmick, and what it took for Dan to change his mind. They talk about why New Leaf deliberately avoided the well worn topics every other network already covers, choosing instead to focus on what it is actually like to become an adviser and what happens in the silence after qualifying, when the phone stops ringing. The conversation also covers how New Leaf supports advisers through retirement and exit, including a striking story about completing a business sale with no contract in place after an adviser's death, and why New Leaf positions itself as a compliance thought leader rather than buying out its own advisers' client banks.
Dan and Mark also share what happened after their very first guest, Kelsey Phillips, went live on the podcast, and why New Leaf's own advisers are now lining up, asking to be featured on the podcast.
Key takeaways from this episode:
- Why most business podcasts fail, and what New Leaf built theirs around instead
- How Mark went from thinking podcasting was a gimmick to backing Dan's idea completely
- Why New Leaf avoids generic advice content in favour of what it is really like to become an adviser
- How New Leaf supported an adviser's family through a business sale with no contract in place
- Why New Leaf positions itself as a compliance thought leader rather than buying its own advisers' client banks
- Why New Leaf would rather a business stay within its own network than go to an M&A buyer
- How Kelsey, New Leaf's first podcast guest, ended up with more development finance leads than she was ready for
- Why New Leaf's own advisers are now asking to be featured on the podcast
This is an episode for anyone running a business in financial services, who is weighing up whether a podcast is worth the investment, and for any adviser starting to think about what their own exit from the profession might look like.
Learn more about New Leaf at https://newleafdistribution.co.uk/
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