Service aims to help advisors "demonstrate expertise" in "intricate decision". Advisors Trusted Advisor is out with educational materials, marketing tools and a conversion optimizer to help advisors position themselves as a valued resource for clients looking to take advantage of impending changes in eligibility rules for Roth IRA conversions.

From New Year's Day 2010, taxpayers with adjusted gross annual incomes in excess of $100,000 will be allowed to convert traditional IRAs to Roth IRAs -- which are traditionally funded with non-deductible contributions, but which allow for tax-free withdrawals. In other words, people will be able to exchange IRAs, built with deductible contributions, and turn them into non-taxable sources of retirement income -- once they pay tax on any earnings and pretax contributions.

Unique opportunity

"The advent of these new tax laws presents a unique opportunity for people in the wealth-management industry to demonstrate their expertise in what will be an intricate decision," says Michael Slemmer, a principal of Advisors Trusted Advisor. "In our fifteen years of helping advisors market and grow their businesses, we've rarely seen such a great opportunity for them to incorporate educational seminars and workshops to build their current client roster."

Advisors Trusted Advisor's Roth 2010 Conversion Package includes pre-packaged workshops for clients and prospects, scripted PowerPoint presentations, business-building strategies and tactics, information on how financial advisors become retirement experts and access to a Roth IRA Conversion Optimizer.

"We want to arm financial advisors, wealth managers and independent reps with all the information they need to help clients make the best conversion decision, while also helping them [to] build their businesses," says Slemmer.

Advisors Trusted Advisor is a service of the Collaborative, a Medfield Mass.-based business-development firm that provides management and marketing support to wealth-management professionals. The Roth 2010 Conversion Package was developed by Advisors Trusted Advisor with help and ongoing support from Convergent Retirement Plan Solutions and Archimedes Systems. -FWR

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