-- “Most advisors struggle to scale COI partnerships because they don’t have a system that makes them work. Our job is to give them one,” says Max Hofstetter, founder of TradesMark.com. This simple but powerful insight has transformed how many financial advisors approach referral partnerships. Instead of relying on luck, networking events, or sporadic outreach, advisors now lean on TradesMark’s white-glove COI partnership consulting service. Trained specialists conduct thoughtful prospecting conversations and deliver five to ten warm, pre-qualified introductions each month to CPAs, estate attorneys, real estate professionals, and other high-value Centers of Influence (COIs) open to collaboration.
Hofstetter, a computer programmer, equipped TradesMark with custom-built software that identifies referral partners advisors would never discover on their own. The company goes beyond traditional channels to connect advisors with yacht brokers, exit consultants, private client service providers, and other professionals serving the ultra-wealthy. This technology-driven approach expands the advisor’s referral ecosystem while keeping services competitively priced compared to cold introduction services and other prospecting methods.
The Hidden Problem: Advisors Know COIs Matter, But They Don’t Have Time
Ask any successful financial advisor where their best clients came from, and COIs often top the list. However, even experienced advisors typically maintain only a few strong relationships. Most have one trusted CPA, one estate attorney, and perhaps a few other connections built over years.
Building these relationships takes time and care to find someone with the right personality, values, professional standards, and client base. Trust must be earned, reciprocity should feel natural, and clients must truly overlap. Most advisors don’t have the time to repeat this process thirty or forty times. With advisors already at capacity, serving clients, managing a practice, and overseeing compliance, finding new COIs is often not a priority.
TradesMark was created to solve this problem.
A New Era: TradesMark’s White Glove COI Partnership Service
TradesMark performs the work that advisors wish they had time to do. Partnership consultants at TradesMark engage in deep conversations with potential referral partners to understand each advisor’s services, style, and ideal client. The company’s relational matchmaking process includes:
- Careful review of thousands of potential COIs in a market
- Identification of the top group whose values and clientele align with the advisor
- Targeted outreach and qualifying conversations
- Confirmation that each COI is receptive and interested in partnership
- Delivery of warm, pre-briefed introductions directly on the advisor’s calendar
This precision removes the randomness that has limited COI building for decades. Advisors no longer rely on chance when meeting new COIs; they walk into conversations where the other professional is already interested in forming a partnership.
Many of these introductions turn into lasting relationships, as fit and intent are confirmed before the meeting.
Scaling What Already Works for Busy Advisors
TradesMark’s approach is rooted in generational industry insight. Founder Max Hofstetter grew up in a Wall Street family, with a great-grandmother who built a forty-year career at Merrill Lynch. This early exposure shaped TradesMark’s belief that great partnerships are built on trust, values alignment, and human connection rather than automated outreach or impersonal algorithms. At the same time, Hofstetter’s custom software helps the team operate efficiently, reduce manual work, and deliver a consistent, high-touch client experience at scale.
TradesMark supports advisors at the top of the market. For advisors with minimums of $10 million and above, TradesMark builds partnerships with yacht brokers, aviation specialists, private family office service providers, and other professionals who serve the top one percent. These relationships place advisors in the ecosystems where ultra-high-net-worth conversations naturally occur, bypassing traditional channels that no longer reach this level of wealth.
TradesMark’s Impact: Two Types of Advisors
TradesMark resonates with two groups of advisors:
- Advisors without a COI ecosystem: These advisors are starting from scratch. TradesMark provides the entire system and warm introductions, giving these advisors a functioning referral ecosystem within months.
- Advisors with one or two great COIs: These advisors understand the value of trust, alignment, and shared clientele but struggle to find additional partners due to time constraints. TradesMark addresses this by offering a fully managed model that requires as little as one hour of involvement each month. Advisors simply show up to warm introductions with professionals who have already expressed interest and are aligned with their goals.
Five to Ten Pre-Qualified Introductions Each Month
Advisors working with TradesMark typically receive five to ten warm introductions each month. Each introduction is pre-qualified by industry specialists and matched for personality, values, expectations, and client alignment. Instead of filling their calendar with cold exploratory conversations, advisors focus on forming partnerships that lead to client referrals, tax planning collaboration, joint opportunities, and long-term reciprocal value.
TradesMark ensures that every introduction has the potential to become a high-quality, enduring referral source.
The Advisor Experience: “Ten Out of Ten”
Advisors often highlight the professionalism, reliability, and precision of TradesMark’s service. One advisor shared their experience:
“TradesMark did exactly what they said they would do. Every call was booked, confirmed, and followed through on. They handled all coordination, rescheduling, and communication before each meeting, which made the entire experience seamless. Ten out of ten on everything they promised. They fully delivered.”
With such support, advisors can stay focused on client work while continuing to build new COI relationships.
Setting a New Standard for COI Growth
TradesMark’s thoughtful approach earned the firm recognition as the Best Business Development Partner for RIAs and Wealth Managers in the United States of 2025. By rethinking business development for financial advisors, TradesMark eliminates cold leads, random networking, and wasted meetings. Instead, advisors receive a steady flow of aligned professionals eager to collaborate.
As the advisory industry moves toward relationship-based growth, TradesMark provides advisors with the leverage they need to build scalable referral ecosystems without sacrificing time, attention, or client service.
About TradesMark.com
TradesMark.com is a national leader in strategic COI partnership development for financial advisors. Through comprehensive market research, human-centered outreach, and a systematic relationship-building process, TradesMark helps advisors create high-quality, scalable referral ecosystems. With warm introductions, deep industry insight, and an award-winning service model, TradesMark empowers advisors to achieve predictable, long-term business growth.
Media Contact:
Sam Hofstetter
Media, TradesMark.com
Email: info@tradesmark.com
Website: TradesMark.com
Contact Info:
Name: Sam Hofstetter
Email: Send Email
Organization: TradesMark.com
Website: https://tradesmark.com/
Release ID: 89179734
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