For more than 20 years, Pam Hopman has dedicated her professional life to financial services and financial advising, with a special focus on helping women take control of their finances and achieve their monetary goals. Her journey has taken her from Illinois to Florida to Arizona as she balances her personal well-being with her entrepreneurial ventures. Now based in Tucson, Hopman is the founder and CEO of The Hopman Group LLC, an insurance and advising firm, and B.I.C. Consulting, her business coaching with an emphasis on exit planning company.
In addition to her companies, Hopman has written the book Wealth Amplified!: A Five-Step Guide for the Professional Woman to Make More Money, Keep More Money, and Love Your Life. Pam seeks to address women’s financial issues and the lack of training and planning that most women have.
Hopman’s most recent undertaking is B.I.C. Consulting, which stands for “Best in Class,” as she seeks to help other entrepreneurs raise the value of their companies prior to selling them. She wants every client to be the best in its class, earning them the highest possible valuation, and thus, sale price. After seeing that many entrepreneurs are interested in selling their companies, Hopman was excited to enter a growing market in an area of great interest to her.
As Hopman expands her horizons into exit planning strategy, she’s giving insight into what has helped her achieve so much in her long career.
1, Get a Mentor
Common, but often not heeded advice, is to find a mentor early in your career. Hopman is adamant that working with a mentor, and at times, a coaching group, has been instrumental to her success.
“I think it is critical to have a mentor in business,” she says. “As an entrepreneur, it can be lonely and people who are not entrepreneurs don’t really understand you. Having a mentor allows you to work things out and share ideas in a safe space with someone who will understand what you are talking about.”
Hopman has also spoken about her involvement in a coaching group that gives her access to professionals in a multitude of industries. She calls the varying viewpoints “refreshing” as she works to be more creative in how she runs her companies. Branching out and speaking with a variety of people can give much-needed outside perspective as well as access to new ideas and techniques.
2. Find Apps that Work for You
There are thousands of apps that can help with efficiency, scheduling, client communication, and more. In many cases, these apps are similar but with slight differences that can make one a better fit for you over another. In Hopman’s case, she seeks out help with scheduling.
“I love having a scheduling service,” she details. “I use Squarespace Scheduling or Acuity. Clients can schedule time with me and they receive reminders. If I schedule something else the time becomes unavailable. This reduces the phone tag with clients.”
Taking the time to research apps designed for your particular profession or those address areas in which you are deficient, can pay off in the long run.
3. Net Income is More Important than Gross Income
At the end of the day, the money you’re able to take home is more important than the amount of money your business brings in. If your expenses are high, that will cut into your earnings. Hopman learned early on that more business doesn’t necessarily mean more money in her pocket.
“The first time I had a business, I spent a lot of money on marketing. I made a lot of money but I didn’t keep very much of it. I was focused on sales but not on costs. Once I switched that mindset, I was able to be more profitable.”
4. Be Creative
Along the way, Hopman has found ways to provide services to potential clients who aren’t quite ready for a financial advisor. Although it is easier and more lucrative to work with clients who have already accumulated wealth and are just looking for growth, offering financial coaching has set Hopman apart from others in her industry.
“I work with men and women who want to grow their wealth, but don’t really have any yet,” Hopman explains of financial coaching. “They’re not ready for a financial planner, but you could be ready for a financial coach. That coach will help you work with your income and your expenses and show you where you might be making a couple of mistakes. That if you changed a little bit of your behavior around your finances or even your decision-making, you could achieve whatever financial dreams and goals you have. So we like to work with the vision, such as, what is your retirement vision? What is your future financial vision? And we work backward from there.”
Those potential clients can easily grow into valuable clients before long.
Other Key Advice
Hopman’s other favorite advice includes, “You don’t get what you don’t ask for”; learn how to cultivate and maintain a positive mental state; and learn how to scale your business so that you don’t get burned out.
As is usually the case for Hopman, she isn’t content to do just one thing at a time. In addition to taking on clients with B.I.C. Consulting, she’s already developing her exit planning mastermind and mentoring to use her hard-earned knowledge for additional profitability.
After becoming a leader in the financial advising world, it’s only a matter of time before Hopman rises to the top of exit planning strategy and execution. We’ll be looking for her book on it.
