The Practical Planner – “How to Incorporate Estate Planning Into Your Practice”

Podcast by: wealth.com
Release Date: October 7, 2025
Hosts: Thomas Kopelman, Dave, Anne Rhodes

Episode Overview

This episode dives deep into the practical ways financial advisors can make estate planning a core part of their client offering. Unlike surface-level overviews, Thomas Kopelman, Dave, and Anne Rhodes break down the distinct roles advisors play at every stage of the estate planning process—before, during, and after the plan is in place. They discuss how advisors can better motivate clients, facilitate attorney relationships, ensure implementation, and provide ongoing support, ultimately positioning themselves as indispensable partners in clients’ life and legacy decisions.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. The Three Phases of Advisor Involvement in Estate Planning

A. Motivating and Educating Clients (Phase One)

• Advisors as “captains of the ship”: They possess unique, long-term insights about clients—family, personality, needs—that shape the estate planning conversation.
  • [01:19] Dave: “The advisor is a key motivator. They're the captain of the ship...their voice in getting them across the finish line could be really, really impactful.”
• Nudges & Life Events: Advisors must actively nudge clients to prioritize estate planning since most people delay. Life events—births, deaths, pregnancies, even vacations—can be natural prompts.
  • [02:29] Thomas: “It’s still something that people push off… nudges based on life events become super helpful… you need your estate plan done before this second baby is here, right? You need guardians.”
• Fear-Based Motivation: Leveraging client fears (e.g., what happens if you die without a plan?) can be effective, but isn’t universally appropriate.
  • [05:16] Thomas: “Fear based doesn't work for everybody, but naturally it works in a lot of areas… fear of that is why I need an estate plan.”
• Educating Clients: Supplying simple educational resources and connecting clients to attorneys helps demystify the process and lowers anxiety.
  • [07:44] Dave: “They can really start simple and just start with the foundation. They don't have to tackle it all at once if it's overwhelming.”

B. Implementing the Plan (Phase Two)

• Facilitating Communication with Attorneys: Often, advisors help prep both the client and attorney with critical information, smoothing potential hurdles.
  • [09:02] Anne: “You should also… prep them to be like, at least get the [local] part done. Let's get some of it done, even if it's not perfect.”
• Visualizing the Plan: Using tools like wealth.com, advisors can help clients truly understand their choices through visualization, not just legal documents.
  • [10:46] Thomas: “I use wealth to visualize it… everybody's pretty much lost on what they decided on.”
• Ensuring Funding and Proper Titling: Advisors take responsibility for making sure assets are titled correctly, beneficiary designations updated, and that the plan is “funded” (i.e., assets are actually in trust, etc.).
  • [12:45] Thomas: “At the end of the day, right, we need to make sure that the estate plan is funded and the beneficiary designations follow it… or it’s not living up to the full potential.”
• The Unpleasant, Important Work: Funding feels like “more homework,” but this is an area where advisors shine by going above and beyond.
  • [12:47] Anne: “Funding is really annoying for you, but also for your client, right, because it just feels like homework. But… if you did the funding… you are the natural person they call.”
• Advisor-Attorney Coordination: Good relationships and communication between advisors and attorneys prevent client frustration and dropped plans.

C. Long-Term Maintenance and Review (Phase Three)

• Reviewing and Updating the Plan: Advisors should set regular check-ins—annually or every few years—to keep plans current with life changes.
  • [15:13] Dave: “There are natural points and then there’s just pure passage of time… That’s why… it’s so critical… have estate planning be a part of [annual reviews].”
• Trigger Events for Updates: Childbirth, marriage, divorce, substance issues in the family, deaths, or any significant change in family structure or assets should all prompt a review.
  • [17:16] Thomas: “So, like trustee, maybe you didn't want your kids because they were young, but now you have adult kids… or you picked your dad or your mom and one of them passed away… need to update.”
• Supporting Clients Through Inheritances & Loss: When clients lose family members, advisors should show empathy and curiosity about the administration process—not just what assets arrive.
  • [17:55] Anne: “It’s okay… to show a natural curiosity about how things are going with that estate administration… you might actually uncover those nuggets that you can use…to encourage your client to do their own estate plan too.”

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• [01:19] Dave:

  “The advisor is a key motivator. They're the captain of the ship… [with] context over years of a relationship, that they've been meeting with the client annually… critical for the estate planning conversation.”

• [02:29] Thomas:

  “One of my clients would be like, ‘Hey, gotta let you know we're pregnant and we're due.’…Great, you need your estate plan done before this second baby is here, right? You need guardians.”

• [05:16] Thomas:

  “Fear based doesn't work for everybody, but naturally it works in a lot of areas… you don't want this to happen to your kids.”

• [07:44] Dave:

  “They can really start simple… just start with the foundation… just getting the basic documents in place.”

• [09:02] Anne:

  “All of a sudden, the attorney is like, ‘well, you're going to have to hire a second attorney to do xyz, because I don't have that capability’… the client just… panicked… and they just left the project.”

• [12:47] Anne:

  “Funding is really annoying for you, but also for your client… But if you did the funding… you are the natural person they call…”

• [14:18] Thomas:

  “That's how you win with your clients is in those little things… they actually see you do some things that are… not insurance product, it's not more in assets… I love that you're willing to step out and help me on this.”

• [15:13] Dave:

  “There are natural points… and then there’s just pure passage of time…most of them have this annual requirement that they meet with their client every year. Have estate planning be a part of that.”

• [17:55] Anne:

  “I think your clients have family members who pass away… it’s okay… to show a natural curiosity about how things are going with that estate administration, how they're feeling about it…”

• [18:54] Thomas:

  “Research shows that advisors are like the number one push for people to get their estate planning done… educate them so they go into it not like everything is brand new… I almost feel like the advisor job is at least 50% of the role on the estate plan.”

Timestamps for Key Segments

• 00:09 – Episode introduction: three phases of advisor involvement in estate planning
• 01:19 – Dave on the advisor as a “key motivator” and holder of context
• 02:29 – Thomas on using life events and fear as motivators; practical nudges
• 05:16 – Debate on fear-based vs. normalization approaches
• 07:44 – Breaking analysis paralysis; advocating simplicity and foundational steps first
• 09:02 – Anne’s cautionary tale about multi-state planning complications
• 10:46 – Visualization tools and demystifying complex documents
• 12:45 – Funding the trust: what advisors must do, why it matters
• 14:18 – Winning client loyalty by focusing on non-revenue-generating tasks
• 15:13 – Ongoing maintenance: review triggers and analogies to updating your music tastes
• 17:16 – Specifics on trustee selection, beneficiaries, and updating after deaths
• 17:55 – Empathy in succession/inheritance situations; uncovering process pain points
• 18:54 – Recap: Advisors’ critical roles and actionable steps

Takeaways for Advisors

• Push clients over the finish line using empathy, timely warnings, and real-world stories.
• Educate clients before attorney meetings—demystify terminology and requirements.
• Maintain strong attorney relationships and help bridge knowledge/context gaps.
• Facilitate funding and asset title changes so that estate plans are truly effective.
• Incorporate estate plan reviews into annual or periodic client meetings—capture life changes.
• Be the partner for the long haul: support clients through inheritances, deaths, and ongoing changes.

Conclusion

This episode provides a detailed playbook for advisors to transform estate planning from a checkbox task to a core component of holistic client care. By stepping up before, during, and after the attorney’s work, advisors not only ensure better outcomes for clients but also deepen trust and add measurable value to their relationships.