Nothing Succeeds Like Success

It’s only been a year?

Eszylfie Taylor is ruminating on the success of his Pasadena-based company, Taylor Insurance and Financial Services, and what has made it so successful in only its first year of operation.

As he told Pasadena Now, “I find that a lot of my counterparts, and financial advisors, most of them, aren’t as good as they should be, and those that are, generally specialize in one or two areas, yet everyone in the business is called a “financial advisor.’ That term means a lot of different things. You might find an investor in mutual funds, and they call themselves a financial advisor, but he doesn’t take a planning perspective that considers other beneficial options besides mutual funds.”

“We look at not only investing,” Taylor continued, “We look at insurance, we look at estate planning, tax planning, we look at everything, so that’s the big difference,” said Taylor.

Taylor equated his role to that of a doctor, saying, “You have a doctor and he is a great cardiologist, so if you have a problem with your foot, he’s probably not the person you’re gonna talk to. We are more of a general practice, so we’re going to look at everything, and then we bring in any professionals it might take, beyond our level of expertise. I’m certainly not a jack of all trades, and I would not be an expert on all things, so we address all the areas, then bring in the necessary experts, and then go from there.”

Part of what has made Taylor’s company so successful, he said, is knowing how to identify the right client. As he explained, “There are three things that make a good client. Number one is whether or not they have sufficient income, that’s always good. Number two, will they have assets to play with, and the third, and probably the most important is a willingness to be educated on a deal.”

“You can have investments,” says Taylor, “but if you’re closed off, stubborn and unwilling to take advice, you might not do as well.”

Taylor credits his simple process as a big part of not only drawing in new investors, but helping them achieve their financial goals as well.

“Our process is very simple,” he said. “Our objective as advisors in Taylor Insurance is to give our clients the information that they need. There is no fee, and no obligation to meet with us, but at the end of the day, I’m either going to uncover some issues, or validate that they (already) have the perfect financial plan.”

As a financial advisor, Taylor also works with a number of professional athletes, whose financial landscape might need a little more maintenance.

As he explained, “We’ve had the opportunity to work with professional athletes, and we’ve done some great planning for them. Obviously so many athletes make a lot of money but they spend a lot of money too, so we want to establish long term financial plans for athletes so that when their playing career is over, they have a plan in place.

“At the end of the day we want to be proactive, not reactive,” Taylor continued, “so its best that people look at their options now.”

“You really don’t want to come in my office on December 26, with four days to plan for the year and be forced to make a decision in that timeframe. You want time to gather information, plan and do things in your time.”

“The number one question that I ask someone on the planning side,” Taylor emphasized, is ‘If you didn’t come home tomorrow, how is your family’s estate?’ and unless you can say, ‘I’ve got all my plans in order and I’m comfortable with it, we need to sit down.”

Taylor believes strongly that his company is not a transactional firm, but is a relationship-based firm.

“It does not matter how good your products are or how much you know, “ he said. “People need to trust you, so my agents and my staff are all extensions of me, and we’re all built the same way, we are taught the same way, that it’s relationships that are the most important.”

“So,” Taylor concludes, “It’s not a matter of, ‘Here, buy this product and I hope your life works out.’  We are a relatively new company, but not new in the business. In September, I’ll be going on my fifteenth year in the business.”

“I’m only 36,” he said. “I’ll be there when the money goes to your kids, too. And that’s important.”

Taylor Financial is at 201 South Lake Avenue, Suite 300, Pasadena. (626) 356-7637. www.taylorinsfin.com.