This one's behind-the-scenes. I put Leonardo, one of our senior appointment setters at Preserve Wealth Group, on the podcast. In the last 4 months, Leo has personally spoken to 358 business owners. He booked 81% of them. 78% of the ones he booked actually showed up. The industry average show rate for marketing-generated appointments is 40-50%. We talked about the part of the process most agents never see, the conversation that happens between the ad and the appointment. A few things we got into: — What business owners want in the first 30 seconds of every call — The moment they go from skeptical to engaged — The 3-phase framework Leo uses to qualify and book at 81% — Why disqualifying business owners protects your calendar — How we maintain a 78% show rate when the industry sits at about 50% — The one question to ask any marketing company before you hire them If you've ever wondered why some agents get qualified, committed, prepared business owners on their calendar, and others get ghosted, this episode answers that. — Pavel

New Beyond the Bottom Line just dropped with @Scott Gannon and this is one of my favorite episodes we've recorded. Scott's been with us at HTAB for almost 2 years now, and he opened up about how a properly structured corporate owned life insurance policy literally saved his daughter's life in 2022. She was diagnosed with a rare cancer at the base of her skull, sitting on her brain stem. The surgery to save her required $275K USD upfront within days. Scott called his insurance company, ordered $400K against his policies, and had the money in his bank account in 3 days. If you're a Canadian HTAB member, I really suggest you watch this one. Scott breaks down exactly how he structures these policies for liquidity over death benefit, the audit story where 92 out of 96 strategies were set up wrong, and what the math actually looks like over 20-40 years. Scott, thank you for being this vulnerable on the show and for the value you keep bringing to the HTAB community. Means a lot. https://youtu.be/_qbv059_OMA?si=Rej2fWtqi-QXC2fU

I'm going to be honest. This episode made me feel like a complete beginner. I've been interviewing financial advisors for months now. I thought I had a decent grip on the strategies available for Canadian business owners. Then Elise Keller walked me through how strategic philanthropy actually works, and I realized I had the same blind spot that 95% of business owners have. I thought charity was for billionaires. I thought giving to charity meant less money for my family. I was wrong on both counts. Here's what Elise broke down on the latest Beyond The Bottom Line: → A real case study where a $4 million tax bill was reduced to $350,000, the estate GREW by $3 million, and the business owner created a $5 million legacy donation to a cause he actually cares about → Donor Advised Funds: You can start one with as little as $25K, and it acts like a tax-deductible investment account that grows tax-free → Her exact words: "You're not disinheriting your children. You're disinheriting the CRA." → How $2 million in appreciated stock turned into a $10 million legacy fund (she shared her screen and walked through the math live) → Flow-through shares: 5 cents on the dollar instead of 50 cents. Yes, that's real. → The Alfred Nobel story that honestly reframed how I think about legacy entirely Elise holds the MFA Philanthropy designation. Fewer than 200 advisors in Canada have it. She's not selling insurance or investments. She's showing business owners how to use charity as a weapon against the CRA while building something that outlasts them. This is the episode I wish someone had shown me three years ago. Go watch it. Drop your biggest takeaway in the comments. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2BFTqlCZJ1U&t=105s

Hey team, Just dropped a new episode of Beyond The Bottom Line that is directly relevant to the conversations you are having with your high-net-worth clients every single day. Our guest is Scott Bushkie, founder of Cornerstone Business Services, 400+ M&A deals closed, and just inducted as the youngest member of the IBBA Hall of Fame in 2025. Here is why this matters for YOU as advisors: His 2025 national study of 750 companies found that 75% of business owners never successfully sell or transition their business. The biggest reasons? They do not plan early enough, they do not build a team of specialists, and they accept the first offer that flatters their ego. THE GOLDEN NUGGET FOR YOUR PRACTICE: Scott breaks down the 3 numbers every business owner needs before even thinking about selling: 1. Real Market Analysis (RMA) — what the business is actually worth today 2. Net Number — what they will walk away with after debt, fees, and taxes 3. Lifestyle Number — what they actually need to live their ideal life That third number? That is where YOU come in. Scott says point blank on the episode that the financial advisor is the person who helps the owner figure out their lifestyle number, and without it, the other two numbers are meaningless. He also talks about how Cornerstone works directly with financial advisors to help their clients sell businesses. This could be a massive referral partnership play for any of you working with business owner clients in the $5M+ revenue range. REAL STORY FROM THE EPISODE: A business owner was about to accept $5M from a PE firm. Cornerstone ran their process, got 8+ offers, and closed at $14M with 85% cash at close. That is an extra $9M in the client's pocket. Imagine being the advisor on that deal. Share this with your business owner clients. It positions you as the advisor who thinks about the full picture, not just investments, but exit strategy, tax optimization, and legacy planning. Full episode: https://youtu.be/y4-RNY9RMXw?si=zrEjiMwRsc7ERt34

This might be the most powerful episode we've ever recorded. Conor McGowan grew up on welfare in Vancouver. No one in his family ever owned a home. At 15, his dad was murdered in front of him. What happened next changed the entire trajectory of his life — and it started with a life insurance policy. Today, Conor and his brother run GOLD Financial out of Vancouver, working with real estate professionals and business owners to protect the wealth they've spent decades building. In this episode we broke down: → How an $8M real estate portfolio can shrink to $2M overnight if you don't have the right structure → Why your accountant literally isn't licensed to tell you about these strategies → The corporate-owned life insurance playbook the ultra-wealthy use (and why most business owners have never heard of it) → The exact IFA strategy a developer with 10 commercial buildings used to create massive deductions at zero net cost But honestly? The first 15 minutes alone are worth the watch. Conor's story about his dad, delusional optimism, and what $150K did for a kid from welfare — that's the kind of raw, real conversation that separates this podcast from everything else in the Canadian finance space. This is also Conor's FIRST podcast ever. Show him some love. Go watch it, drop a comment, and share it with a business owner who needs to hear this. Watch Here: https://youtu.be/zFzClb5Ooc0?si=ca3FaQKE5nrauEpJ If this hits you — tag someone in the comments who's building wealth through real estate and doesn't have a plan to protect it yet.