Andrew M. Ayers, P.C.

I founded Andrew M. Ayers, P.C. to offer clear, customized legal guidance for families and small business owners who want to protect their legacy without navigating confusing court systems or legal jargon.

My practice focuses on:

* Estate Planning – Wills, trusts, healthcare directives, and probate guidance
* Business Law – Formation, contracts, compliance, and dispute resolution

From launching startups to preparing estate plans for growing families, I help clients make smart legal decisions with confidence and peace of mind.

About the Firm:
Founded in Brooklyn in 2011, my firm now operates in both Minnesota and New York, with services offered nationwide. Clients can meet virtually or in person at my Edina or Manhattan offices.

Founder | Estate Planning & Business Law Attorney

Solo Practitioner

Senior Associate Attorney

Law Office of Joseph Martin Carasso

Law Clerk

Slavin & Slavin

Small Business Law & Estate Planning Attorney ~ I Help People and Businesses Protect their Legacies through Planning

I help families and small business owners protect their legacy and avoid costly legal pitfalls with clear, customized estate planning and business law solutions.

Many of my clients feel overwhelmed at the thought of “getting their affairs in order.” The legal jargon, the complexity, the time commitment; it all feels intimidating. I get it. That’s why I focus on making legal planning simple, efficient, and tailored to your real needs, not a stack of unnecessary documents you don’t understand.

Whether you're looking to create your first will, update your estate plan, or ensure your business is legally secure, I work with you at your pace to develop a plan that works for your life, not the law firm's billable hours.

One client put it this way:

“Andrew is a fantastic attorney. He was empathetic, deliberate, and professional—always quick to respond and extremely knowledgeable. He helped us navigate a stressful situation with clarity and confidence.”

I founded my firm to bring a more personal, transparent approach to legal services. No pressure. No sales pitch. Just smart, practical advice that protects what matters most to you—your family, your business, and your future.

Ready to take the next step? Schedule a Legal Strategy Session or download free planning tools at www.AndrewMAyers.com.

Andrew Ayers

I Reviewed 23 Estate Plans Last Year. Here's the $50 Fix That Would've Saved 19 of Them

Beneficiary designation forms. That's it. The free checkbox at your bank that overrides your $5,000 will.

Twenty-three families discovered their loved one's perfect estate plan meant nothing. The 401(k) still went to the ex-spouse from 2009. The life insurance paid out to the deceased mother. The IRA defaulted to "estate" and triggered a tax nightmare.

(𝘈𝘯𝘥 𝘺𝘦𝘴, 𝘺𝘰𝘶𝘳 𝘢𝘵𝘵𝘰𝘳𝘯𝘦𝘺 𝘱𝘳𝘰𝘣𝘢𝘣𝘭𝘺 𝘵𝘰𝘭𝘥 𝘺𝘰𝘶 𝘵𝘰 𝘶𝘱𝘥𝘢𝘵𝘦 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘮. 𝘉𝘶𝘵 𝘥𝘪𝘥 𝘺𝘰𝘶 𝘢𝘤𝘵𝘶𝘢𝘭𝘭𝘺 𝘥𝘰 𝘪𝘵?)

𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗕𝗲𝗻𝗲𝗳𝗶𝗰𝗶𝗮𝗿𝘆 𝗗𝗲𝘀𝗶𝗴𝗻𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝗛𝗶𝗲𝗿𝗮𝗿𝗰𝗵𝘆 (𝗪𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝗔𝗰𝘁𝘂𝗮𝗹𝗹𝘆 𝗖𝗼𝗻𝘁𝗿𝗼𝗹𝘀 𝗬𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗠𝗼𝗻𝗲𝘆):

1. The Form Always Wins
Your will says "everything to my spouse"? Irrelevant. The beneficiary form controls. Period.

2. No Form = Probate Nightmare
Blank beneficiary line? Welcome to 18 months of court proceedings. Plus estate taxes in some states. Plus family fights.

3. "Estate" = Tax Disaster
Naming your estate as beneficiary? You just turned tax-deferred into immediately taxable. Congratulations.

4. Minors Can't Inherit Directly
Named your 8-year-old? The court appoints a guardian. Maybe your ex. Maybe someone worse.

5. Contingent Beneficiaries Matter
Primary beneficiary dies first? Without a backup, you're likely headed to probate.

The accounts that bypass your will entirely:
• 401(k)s and 403(b)s
• IRAs (Traditional and Roth)
• Life insurance policies
• Annuities
• Pension plans
• Bank accounts with POD/TOD
• Investment accounts with TOD

That's probably 80% of your wealth. Controlled by forms you filled out years ago. Or never filled out at all.

𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗛𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗟𝗼𝗻𝗴 𝗕𝗲𝗻𝗲𝗳𝗶𝗰𝗶𝗮𝗿𝘆 𝗙𝗶𝘅:

1. List Every Account (15 minutes)
Retirement. Insurance. Bank. Investment. If it has your name on it, list it.

2. Call for Current Beneficiaries (30 minutes)
Don't guess. Don't assume. Call and confirm. Get it in writing.

3. Update Everything Today (5 minutes per account)
Online for most accounts. One form for others. Do it now, not "soon."

4. Add Contingent Beneficiaries
Primary and backup. Always. No exceptions.

5. Review Annually
Set a calendar reminder. Same day each year.

The most expensive estate planning mistake isn't hiring the wrong lawyer.

It's paying thousands for documents that don't control anything.

Because your will is just a suggestion if your beneficiary forms disagree.

And that checkbox at your bank? It's more powerful than any trust I can draft.

Fix your beneficiaries. Today.

Your family's financial future depends on a form you probably forgot exists.

Trusted Advisor for Estate Planning & Small Business Law | Legal Protection for Families, Founders & Futures

I Asked Millennials About Their Parents' Estates. Most Had No Idea What They'd Inherit.

Not the amounts. Not even what accounts existed. They knew their parents had "something" but couldn't name a single bank. Couldn't find the will. Didn't know if there was life insurance.

Meanwhile, their parents think they've handled everything because they did a will in 2003.

(𝘈𝘯𝘥 𝘣𝘦𝘧𝘰𝘳𝘦 𝘺𝘰𝘶 𝘴𝘢𝘺 "𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘵'𝘴 𝘱𝘳𝘪𝘷𝘢𝘵𝘦" – 𝘺𝘰𝘶𝘳 𝘬𝘪𝘥𝘴 𝘸𝘪𝘭𝘭 𝘯𝘦𝘦𝘥 𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘴 𝘪𝘯𝘧𝘰 𝘸𝘩𝘦𝘯 𝘺𝘰𝘶'𝘳𝘦 𝘨𝘰𝘯𝘦. 𝘞𝘰𝘶𝘭𝘥 𝘺𝘰𝘶 𝘳𝘢𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘳 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘺 𝘩𝘦𝘢𝘳 𝘪𝘵 𝘧𝘳𝘰𝘮 𝘺𝘰𝘶 𝘰𝘳 𝘧𝘳𝘰𝘮 𝘢 𝘣𝘢𝘯𝘬'𝘴 𝘤𝘰𝘮𝘱𝘭𝘪𝘢𝘯𝘤𝘦 𝘥𝘦𝘱𝘢𝘳𝘵𝘮𝘦𝘯𝘵?)

𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗖𝗼𝗻𝘃𝗲𝗿𝘀𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝗡𝗼𝗯𝗼𝗱𝘆'𝘀 𝗛𝗮𝘃𝗶𝗻𝗴:

• Where the Documents Live
Not "somewhere safe." The actual location. Which drawer. Which file. Which password manager. Which lawyer has copies.

• What Accounts Exist
Every bank. Every investment. Every insurance policy. With account numbers. With contact information. Updated annually.

• Who Gets Contacted
Your estate attorney. Your CPA. Your financial advisor. HR for benefits. That old 401(k) from three jobs ago.

• Digital Access Reality
Password manager emergency access. Two-factor authentication backups. Crypto wallet recovery phrases. Email account access.

• The Unofficial Stuff
Safe deposit box location and key. Storage unit details. That cash in the freezer. The valuable collection in the garage.

Parents think they're protecting their kids by keeping finances private. Kids think they're respecting boundaries by not asking.

Both are wrong.

Your millennial kids manage their entire financial life on their phones. They Venmo rent. They buy stocks on apps. They've never written a check.

But when you die, they'll need to navigate 1970s-era bank bureaucracy with 2024 digital habits.

Without a roadmap.

𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗘𝘀𝘁𝗮𝘁𝗲 𝗥𝗼𝗮𝗱𝗺𝗮𝗽 𝗧𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝗔𝗰𝘁𝘂𝗮𝗹𝗹𝘆 𝗛𝗲𝗹𝗽𝘀:

1. 𝘊𝘳𝘦𝘢𝘵𝘦 𝘵𝘩𝘦 "𝘐𝘧 𝘐 𝘋𝘪𝘦 𝘛𝘰𝘮𝘰𝘳𝘳𝘰𝘸" 𝘍𝘪𝘭𝘦
One document. Every account. Every contact. Every password location. Share it with someone who needs it. Update it every tax season.

2. 𝘏𝘢𝘷𝘦 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘔𝘰𝘯𝘦𝘺 𝘛𝘢𝘭𝘬
Not the amounts if you're uncomfortable. But the existence. The locations. The contacts. Your kids should know your banker's name.

3. 𝘗𝘳𝘢𝘤𝘵𝘪𝘤𝘦 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘍𝘪𝘳𝘦 𝘋𝘳𝘪𝘭𝘭
Walk someone through accessing one account. Show them where documents live. Make sure they can actually find what they'd need.

Those millennials who knew nothing? Their parents aren't bad people. They're just following outdated privacy rules from a pre-digital world.

But your estate plan isn't just documents in a lawyer's office.

It's making sure the people you leave behind can actually access what you've left them.

Without a forensic accountant. Without a court order. Without a year of searching.

The most expensive estate plan isn't the one without proper documents.

It's the one nobody can find.

The $47 Costco Document That Saved a Widow's House

Her husband died on a Tuesday. By Friday, the mortgage company was calling. 90-day foreclosure notice arrived the following week. She had $1,200 in checking. The house payment was $3,400.

But tucked in their Costco folder – between the tire rotation receipts and the Executive Membership renewal – was a forgotten legal services benefit. The one that came with their membership upgrade three years earlier.

(𝘈𝘯𝘥 𝘯𝘰, 𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘴 𝘸𝘢𝘴𝘯'𝘵 𝘴𝘰𝘮𝘦 𝘤𝘩𝘦𝘢𝘱 𝘱𝘳𝘦𝘱𝘢𝘪𝘥 𝘭𝘦𝘨𝘢𝘭 𝘴𝘤𝘢𝘮. 𝘐𝘵 𝘸𝘢𝘴 𝘢𝘯 𝘢𝘤𝘵𝘶𝘢𝘭 𝘭𝘪𝘧𝘦 𝘪𝘯𝘴𝘶𝘳𝘢𝘯𝘤𝘦 𝘱𝘰𝘭𝘪𝘤𝘺.)

When she upgraded to Executive Membership for the 2% cash back on bulk paper towels, the Costco rep mentioned their partnership with a major insurance carrier. "Basic term life included. Just fill this out."

$500,000 coverage. No medical exam for amounts under that threshold. Premium paid through the membership fee. Her husband checked the boxes, signed his name, forgot about it.

Three years later, that forgettable form became everything.

𝗪𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝗖𝗼𝘀𝘁𝗰𝗼 𝗗𝗼𝗲𝘀𝗻'𝘁 𝗔𝗱𝘃𝗲𝗿𝘁𝗶𝘀𝗲 (𝗕𝘂𝘁 𝗦𝗵𝗼𝘂𝗹𝗱):

• Executive Members get access to term life insurance
• No medical exam for many coverage levels
• Rates locked for the term length
• Portable if you leave Costco
• Covers mortgage protection scenarios

The widow called the number on the yellowed form. Claim approved in 12 days. House saved. Kids stayed in their school. Life continued, imperfectly but intact.

The Hidden Documents That Actually Matter:

✓ That employer life insurance election (usually 1-2x salary free)
✓ Credit card coverage you didn't know existed
✓ Mortgage protection riders buried in paperwork
✓ Union or association benefits gathering dust
✓ Wholesale club financial services

Your estate plan tells the court who gets what.

These forgotten documents determine if there's anything left to get.

𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗧𝗵𝗿𝗲𝗲-𝗦𝘁𝗲𝗽 𝗙𝗼𝗿𝗴𝗼𝘁𝘁𝗲𝗻 𝗕𝗲𝗻𝗲𝗳𝗶𝘁𝘀 𝗔𝘂𝗱𝗶𝘁:

1. 𝘊𝘩𝘦𝘤𝘬 𝘌𝘷𝘦𝘳𝘺 𝘔𝘦𝘮𝘣𝘦𝘳𝘴𝘩𝘪𝘱
Costco, Sam's, AAA, AARP, alumni associations. Call them. Ask what's included. You'll be shocked.

2. 𝘙𝘦𝘷𝘪𝘦𝘸 𝘌𝘮𝘱𝘭𝘰𝘺𝘦𝘳 𝘖𝘱𝘦𝘯 𝘌𝘯𝘳𝘰𝘭𝘭𝘮𝘦𝘯𝘵
Not just health insurance. Life, disability, legal services, identity protection. 

3. 𝘊𝘳𝘦𝘢𝘵𝘦 𝘵𝘩𝘦 "𝘐𝘧 𝘐 𝘋𝘪𝘦" 𝘍𝘰𝘭𝘥𝘦𝘳
One place. Every policy. Every benefit. Every phone number. Update it annually. Tell someone it exists.

The most expensive life insurance isn't the premium you pay.

It's the coverage you didn't know you already had.

Check your Costco folder. Today.

Your family's future might be sitting between the receipt for 48 rolls of toilet paper and last year's photo center order.

Because sometimes the most powerful legal document isn't from a lawyer.

It's from the place where you buy rotisserie chicken in bulk.

The 7 Estate Planning Conversations Your Lawyer Won't Start (But You Should)

Your estate attorney prepared the perfect will. Bulletproof trust. Airtight power of attorney. Then your family discovered the $400K in crypto you never mentioned and the business partner who still had signing authority on your accounts (you can scroll through past posts to see how that turned out...).

The documents were flawless. The conversations never happened.

𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝟳 𝗖𝗿𝗶𝘁𝗶𝗰𝗮𝗹 𝗖𝗼𝗻𝘃𝗲𝗿𝘀𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻𝘀:

1. 𝘛𝘩𝘦 𝘋𝘪𝘨𝘪𝘵𝘢𝘭 𝘈𝘴𝘴𝘦𝘵 𝘈𝘶𝘥𝘪𝘵
"Do you have cryptocurrency?" isn't enough. What about NFTs? Domain names worth thousands? That Instagram account generating $5K monthly? Your Venmo balance? The password manager controlling everything?

2. 𝘛𝘩𝘦 𝘜𝘯𝘤𝘰𝘮𝘧𝘰𝘳𝘵𝘢𝘣𝘭𝘦 𝘍𝘢𝘮𝘪𝘭𝘺 𝘋𝘺𝘯𝘢𝘮𝘪𝘤𝘴
Your son's addiction. Your daughter's spending problems. The child who's terrible with money. The one who married someone you don't trust. Standard equal distribution might destroy what you built.

3. 𝘛𝘩𝘦 𝘉𝘶𝘴𝘪𝘯𝘦𝘴𝘴 𝘚𝘶𝘤𝘤𝘦𝘴𝘴𝘪𝘰𝘯 𝘕𝘪𝘨𝘩𝘵𝘮𝘢𝘳𝘦
Who actually runs the company if you can't? Not who inherits it – who operates it Monday morning? Your family might own it but can they access the bank accounts? Sign payroll? Keep the lights on?

4. 𝘛𝘩𝘦 𝘉𝘢𝘯𝘬𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘙𝘦𝘢𝘭𝘪𝘵𝘺 𝘊𝘩𝘦𝘤𝘬
Banks don't care about your perfect trust. They want their forms. Their process. Their timeline. Has your attorney called your bank to confirm what they actually require? (Spoiler: They haven't.)

5. 𝘛𝘩𝘦 𝘊𝘩𝘢𝘳𝘪𝘵𝘢𝘣𝘭𝘦 𝘎𝘪𝘷𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘛𝘳𝘢𝘱
"10% to charity" sounds noble. But which charity? What if it doesn't exist anymore? What if it's been corrupted? What about the tax implications your heirs will face? Generic charitable provisions create litigation, not legacy.

6. 𝘛𝘩𝘦 𝘏𝘦𝘢𝘭𝘵𝘩𝘤𝘢𝘳𝘦 𝘏𝘰𝘳𝘳𝘰𝘳 𝘚𝘤𝘦𝘯𝘢𝘳𝘪𝘰𝘴
Beyond "pull the plug or not." What about dementia care? Experimental treatments? Moving to assisted living? Who decides when you can't drive anymore? Your healthcare directive probably covers 20% of what actually happens.

7. 𝘛𝘩𝘦 𝘗𝘦𝘳𝘴𝘰𝘯𝘢𝘭 𝘗𝘳𝘰𝘱𝘦𝘳𝘵𝘺 𝘞𝘢𝘳𝘴
The house gets split per the will. But Mom's wedding ring? Dad's watch collection? The family photos? That painting everyone wants? More families explode over personal items than over millions in cash.

They're messy. Emotional. Time-consuming.

But documents without these discussions are just expensive paper.

𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗥𝗲𝗮𝗹 𝗘𝘀𝘁𝗮𝘁𝗲 𝗣𝗹𝗮𝗻𝗻𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗖𝗵𝗲𝗰𝗸𝗹𝗶𝘀𝘁:

• Bring your uncomfortable truths, not just your asset list
• Ask about scenarios, not just documents
• Demand specific solutions, not generic templates
• Update after major life changes, not just every decade

The most expensive estate plan isn't the one with the most documents.

It's the one missing the conversations that mattered.

Because your family doesn't need perfect paperwork.

They need clear answers to the questions your never asked.

The 5 Apps on Your Phone That Could Lock Your Family Out of $100K+

Last month, I watched a widow discover her husband's Robinhood account had $127,000 she couldn't touch. The password? Died with him. Two-factor authentication? His dead phone number. Recovery email? A Gmail account no one could access.

She could see the balance through old screenshots. But seeing and accessing are different games entirely.

𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝟱 𝗔𝗽𝗽𝘀 𝗧𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝗔𝗿𝗲 𝗗𝗶𝗴𝗶𝘁𝗮𝗹 𝗩𝗮𝘂𝗹𝘁𝘀 (𝗢𝗿 𝗗𝗶𝗴𝗶𝘁𝗮𝗹 𝗚𝗿𝗮𝘃𝗲𝘀):

1. 𝘊𝘳𝘺𝘱𝘵𝘰 𝘞𝘢𝘭𝘭𝘦𝘵𝘴 (𝘊𝘰𝘪𝘯𝘣𝘢𝘴𝘦, 𝘔𝘦𝘵𝘢𝘔𝘢𝘴𝘬, 𝘛𝘳𝘶𝘴𝘵 𝘞𝘢𝘭𝘭𝘦𝘵)
2. 𝘐𝘯𝘷𝘦𝘴𝘵𝘮𝘦𝘯𝘵 𝘈𝘱𝘱𝘴 (𝘙𝘰𝘣𝘪𝘯𝘩𝘰𝘰𝘥, 𝘌*𝘛𝘙𝘈𝘋𝘌, 𝘝𝘢𝘯𝘨𝘶𝘢𝘳𝘥)
3. 𝘗𝘢𝘴𝘴𝘸𝘰𝘳𝘥 𝘔𝘢𝘯𝘢𝘨𝘦𝘳𝘴 (𝘓𝘢𝘴𝘵𝘗𝘢𝘴𝘴, 1𝘗𝘢𝘴𝘴𝘸𝘰𝘳𝘥, 𝘉𝘪𝘵𝘸𝘢𝘳𝘥𝘦𝘯)
4. 𝘉𝘶𝘴𝘪𝘯𝘦𝘴𝘴 𝘈𝘤𝘤𝘰𝘶𝘯𝘵𝘴 (𝘚𝘵𝘳𝘪𝘱𝘦, 𝘗𝘢𝘺𝘗𝘢𝘭, 𝘚𝘲𝘶𝘢𝘳𝘦)
5. 𝘋𝘪𝘨𝘪𝘵𝘢𝘭 𝘗𝘢𝘺𝘮𝘦𝘯𝘵 𝘈𝘱𝘱𝘴 (𝘝𝘦𝘯𝘮𝘰, 𝘊𝘢𝘴𝘩𝘈𝘱𝘱, 𝘗𝘢𝘺𝘗𝘢𝘭)

𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗗𝗶𝗴𝗶𝘁𝗮𝗹 𝗔𝗰𝗰𝗲𝘀𝘀 𝗣𝗹𝗮𝗻 𝗬𝗼𝘂 𝗡𝗲𝗲𝗱 𝗧𝗼𝗱𝗮𝘆:

-> Create a Digital Asset Inventory
Every app. Every account. Every wallet. List them all with current values. Update quarterly.

-> Set Up Emergency Access
Password managers offer emergency access features. Your spouse waits 48 hours, then gets in. No death certificate needed.

-> Document Recovery Methods
Write down security questions. Save backup codes. Store seed phrases in a fireproof safe. Not on your phone. Not in the cloud.

-> Add Authorized Users Where Possible
Some investment apps allow authorized users. Add them now, while you're alive and can prove identity.

-> Create Transfer Instructions
Not passwords in your will (public record). But a sealed letter with your attorney explaining HOW to access the password manager.

Want to really take it to the next level? I suggest reaching out to folks at Legacy Vault (Jon Braddock) or Digital Life Box (Charles Lambert) to see their tools that can help you manage your digital assets.

Your phone isn't just a communication device anymore.

It's a bank. A vault. A business. A fortune.

And right now, it's probably protected by a six-digit code that dies with you.

The most expensive app on your phone isn't the one that costs $9.99 monthly.

It's the one holding $100K that your family can see but can't touch.

Because digital assets don't care about death certificates.

They care about passwords.

Fix it today. While you still can.

My Estate Planning Checklist for the Venmo Generation (Yes, That Means You)

She sent her roommate $1,200 for rent. He Venmo'd his buddy $500 for fantasy football losses. They split dinner tabs with CashApp and collected wedding gifts through Zelle.

Then she died in a car accident at 29.

Her parents spent six months trying to access her accounts. The money sitting in payment apps? Gone. The passwords to her investment accounts? Buried in her iPhone. The beneficiary on her 401(k)? Her ex-boyfriend from college.

(𝘈𝘯𝘥 𝘺𝘦𝘴, 𝘐 𝘬𝘯𝘰𝘸 𝘸𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘺𝘰𝘶'𝘳𝘦 𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘯𝘬𝘪𝘯𝘨. "𝘐'𝘮 𝘵𝘰𝘰 𝘺𝘰𝘶𝘯𝘨 𝘧𝘰𝘳 𝘦𝘴𝘵𝘢𝘵𝘦 𝘱𝘭𝘢𝘯𝘯𝘪𝘯𝘨." 𝘉𝘶𝘵 𝘪𝘧 𝘺𝘰𝘶'𝘳𝘦 𝘰𝘭𝘥 𝘦𝘯𝘰𝘶𝘨𝘩 𝘵𝘰 𝘩𝘢𝘷𝘦 𝘢 𝘝𝘦𝘯𝘮𝘰 𝘣𝘢𝘭𝘢𝘯𝘤𝘦, 𝘺𝘰𝘶'𝘳𝘦 𝘰𝘭𝘥 𝘦𝘯𝘰𝘶𝘨𝘩 𝘵𝘰 𝘯𝘦𝘦𝘥 𝘢 𝘱𝘭𝘢𝘯.)

After watching millennials navigate estate disasters they never saw coming, I created this checklist. Not the stuffy trust-fund version. The real one for people who think NFTs are retirement planning.

The Digital Money Trail:
✓ List every payment app (yes, even that Venmo with $3.47)
✓ Document crypto wallets and exchanges
✓ Screenshot QR codes for 2FA backup
✓ Create a "digital death file" someone can actually access

The Beneficiary Reality Check:
✓ 401(k) - Not defaulted to "estate"
✓ IRA - Updated since that breakup
✓ Life insurance through work - Someone actually knows it exists
✓ Bank accounts - Add payable-on-death designation

The Password Problem:
✓ Password manager with emergency access
✓ Not just written on a Post-it in your desk
✓ Include investment accounts, not just Netflix
✓ Update it more than once a decade

The Actual Legal Stuff:
✓ Will (even a basic one beats nothing)
✓ Healthcare directive (who decides if you can't)
✓ Financial power of attorney (bills don't pause for tragedy)
✓ HIPAA releases (so someone can talk to doctors)

The Uncomfortable Conversations:
✓ Tell someone where these documents live
✓ Share your digital asset plan
✓ Name guardians if you have kids
✓ Discuss your wishes, not just your passwords

That 29-year-old? Her parents eventually recovered about 40% of her digital assets. The rest disappeared into the internet void. Customer service reps hiding behind "privacy policies" while her savings sat untouchable.

Your estate plan doesn't need to be perfect. It needs to exist.

Because the most expensive estate plan isn't the comprehensive one that costs a few thousand.

It's the one you keep putting off because you're "too young to worry about it."

Your digital life deserves analog protection.

Start with one thing today. Even if it's just updating that 401(k) beneficiary.

Your future (or your family's) will thank you.

JSESSIONID

li_at

Talks about #businesslaw, #llcformation, #estateplanning, #willsandtrusts, and #businesslawsuits

Derek J. Gruber, CIC Talked About Insurance Stewardship Today. 

Derek used a word I haven't heard from an insurance person before: Stewardship.

Not "coverage." Not "protection." Stewardship. Like he's actually responsible for what happens to us.

(𝘈𝘯𝘥 𝘺𝘦𝘴, 𝘐'𝘷𝘦 𝘴𝘢𝘵 𝘵𝘩𝘳𝘰𝘶𝘨𝘩 𝘦𝘯𝘰𝘶𝘨𝘩 𝘪𝘯𝘴𝘶𝘳𝘢𝘯𝘤𝘦 𝘱𝘳𝘦𝘴𝘦𝘯𝘵𝘢𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯𝘴 𝘸𝘩𝘦𝘳𝘦 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘺 𝘴𝘤𝘢𝘳𝘦 𝘺𝘰𝘶 𝘸𝘪𝘵𝘩 𝘴𝘵𝘢𝘵𝘪𝘴𝘵𝘪𝘤𝘴, 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘯 𝘴𝘦𝘭𝘭 𝘺𝘰𝘶 𝘴𝘰𝘮𝘦𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘺𝘰𝘶 𝘥𝘰𝘯'𝘵 𝘶𝘯𝘥𝘦𝘳𝘴𝘵𝘢𝘯𝘥. 𝘛𝘩𝘪𝘴 𝘸𝘢𝘴𝘯'𝘵 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘵.)

Here's what Derek really taught us without meaning to:

Insurance isn't about the cheapest premium. It's about having someone who knows your business well enough to spot the gaps before they become problems. Most businesses' big red flag??? CYBER INSURANCE

Just like estate planning isn't about having documents. It's about having the RIGHT coverage that actually protects you.

If you're in the Twin Cities area and are interested in learning more about our group, shoot me (or Tony Rubin) a DM and we can chat.

Partner | Risk Consultant | Simplifying Insurance & Risk for Business Owners | Coalition 9 Member

Financial Advisor at Rudin & Rubin Financial Group of Wells Fargo Advisors

The Secret Estate Planning Checklist Banks Use (That Nobody Told You About)

Your estate lawyer prepares documents for probate court, but banks have their own internal "court" - their compliance department. And they play by different rules.

𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝟱 𝗗𝗼𝗰𝘂𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁𝘀 𝗕𝗮𝗻𝗸𝘀 𝗗𝗲𝗺𝗮𝗻𝗱 (𝗧𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝗔𝗿𝗲𝗻'𝘁 𝗶𝗻 𝗬𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗘𝘀𝘁𝗮𝘁𝗲 𝗣𝗹𝗮𝗻):

1. 𝘊𝘦𝘳𝘵𝘪𝘧𝘪𝘦𝘥 𝘋𝘦𝘢𝘵𝘩 𝘊𝘦𝘳𝘵𝘪𝘧𝘪𝘤𝘢𝘵𝘦𝘴 - 𝘉𝘶𝘵 𝘏𝘰𝘸 𝘔𝘢𝘯𝘺?
Banks want originals. Each account. Each institution. I tell clients: Order 15. Yes, it costs more. Know what costs more? Waiting 8 weeks for additional copies while accounts sit frozen.

2. 𝘈𝘧𝘧𝘪𝘥𝘢𝘷𝘪𝘵 𝘰𝘧 𝘋𝘰𝘮𝘪𝘤𝘪𝘭𝘦
Proves where the deceased lived. Banks use it for tax withholding. Your will doesn't cover this. The bank often won't release funds without it.

3. 𝘛𝘐𝘕 𝘊𝘦𝘳𝘵𝘪𝘧𝘪𝘤𝘢𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯 𝘍𝘰𝘳𝘮 (𝘞-9 𝘧𝘰𝘳 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘌𝘴𝘵𝘢𝘵𝘦)
The estate needs its own tax ID. But banks want the form proving it. Not just the number. The actual IRS form. Miss this? Accounts stay locked.

4. 𝘚𝘮𝘢𝘭𝘭 𝘌𝘴𝘵𝘢𝘵𝘦 𝘈𝘧𝘧𝘪𝘥𝘢𝘷𝘪𝘵 (𝘌𝘷𝘦𝘯 𝘧𝘰𝘳 𝘓𝘢𝘳𝘨𝘦 𝘌𝘴𝘵𝘢𝘵𝘦𝘴)
Some accounts bypass probate with this form. But only if it's perfect. One wrong checkbox? Rejected. Start over. Another month lost.

5. 𝘉𝘢𝘯𝘬-𝘚𝘱𝘦𝘤𝘪𝘧𝘪𝘤 𝘐𝘯𝘥𝘦𝘮𝘯𝘪𝘧𝘪𝘤𝘢𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯 𝘍𝘰𝘳𝘮𝘴
Each bank has proprietary forms. Chase wants theirs. Wells Fargo wants different ones. Your perfect will means nothing until their legal department checks their boxes.

What Actually Unlocks Accounts:

* Pre-death preparation with each institution
* Beneficiary designations (bypass everything)
* Joint ownership structures
* Transfer-on-death provisions
* Bank-specific estate planning addenda

Your will tells the court who gets what.

Bank forms determine when they get it.

Or if they get it at all.

𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗧𝗵𝗿𝗲𝗲-𝗦𝘁𝗲𝗽 𝗕𝗮𝗻𝗸-𝗥𝗲𝗮𝗱𝘆 𝗘𝘀𝘁𝗮𝘁𝗲 𝗣𝗹𝗮𝗻:

1. 𝘈𝘶𝘥𝘪𝘵 𝘌𝘷𝘦𝘳𝘺 𝘈𝘤𝘤𝘰𝘶𝘯𝘵 𝘕𝘖𝘞
Call each bank. Ask for their estate settlement requirements. Get the forms. Before you need them.

2. 𝘖𝘳𝘥𝘦𝘳 𝘔𝘰𝘳𝘦 𝘋𝘦𝘢𝘵𝘩 𝘊𝘦𝘳𝘵𝘪𝘧𝘪𝘤𝘢𝘵𝘦𝘴 𝘛𝘩𝘢𝘯 𝘠𝘰𝘶 𝘛𝘩𝘪𝘯𝘬
Whatever number seems right, double it. Triple it for complex estates. $20 per certificate beats 2-month delays.

3. 𝘊𝘳𝘦𝘢𝘵𝘦 𝘠𝘰𝘶𝘳 𝘉𝘢𝘯𝘬-𝘙𝘦𝘢𝘥𝘺 𝘈𝘥𝘥𝘦𝘯𝘥𝘶𝘮
One document listing every account, every institution, every form needed. With contact numbers. Update it annually.

The most expensive estate plan isn't the one that costs the most to create.

It's the one that looks perfect on paper but fails at the bank window.

Because your family doesn't need a perfect will.

They need access to accounts. Today. Not after six months of bureaucratic nightmare.

Because the secret isn't having the right lawyer.

It's knowing what the banks won't tell you until it's too late.

I Asked My Estate Planning Attorney Friends: What's the Weirdest Digital Asset Dispute You've Seen?

The winner involved a $23,000 World of Warcraft account and a grieving widow who thought her husband played "some computer game."

I was running low on stories for LinkedIn, so I reached out to estate planning attorneys I knew to find some stories for this post. Asked them one question. The stories they told made my $50K Venmo dispute look like child's play.

The Top 5 Digital Nightmares:

1. The Bitcoin Wallet on a Dead iPhone
$890K in crypto. Password died with the owner. Wife tried 9 times. One attempt left before permanent lockout. Still sitting in a safe deposit box. Untouchable.

2. The Instagram Influencer's Account War
420K followers. $30K monthly income. Three siblings fighting over who gets to post memorial content. Meanwhile, sponsors pulling out, followers dropping. Account dead within 60 days.

3. The OnlyFans Battle
$1.2M annual revenue. Content still generating income. Widow wanted it deleted. 

4. The Gmail Account That Controlled Everything
Entrepreneur ran six businesses through one Gmail. No password manager. No recovery options. Google wouldn't grant access without a death certificate AND pre-death authorization. Businesses collapsed in 90 days.

5. The NFT Collection Nobody Understood
"Bunch of monkey pictures" worth $3.4M. Family sold the laptop for $500 at an estate sale. 

What These Horror Stories Taught Me:

Digital assets aren't just Facebook photos anymore. They're businesses. Investments. Income streams. Legacies.

But here's the kicker: Your will probably doesn't cover them.

Standard estate documents written for physical property. Bank accounts. Real estate. Not for wallets protected by 24-word seed phrases or accounts requiring two-factor authentication from a dead person's phone.

The Digital Asset Protection Checklist:

• Password Manager with Emergency Access
Set up a digital vault. Grant emergency access to someone you trust. Update it monthly.

• Inventory Your Digital Life
Crypto wallets. Investment apps. Online businesses. Gaming accounts. Domain names. List them all.

• Update Your Estate Documents
Add digital asset provisions. Name a digital executor. Include access instructions (but not passwords).

• Document the Value
That gaming account might be worth more than your car. That Instagram following could be a business. Document it.

• Create Access Instructions
Not passwords in your will (public record). But instructions on HOW to access your password manager.

Your digital life isn't just emails and photos anymore.

It's your wealth. Your business. Your legacy.

And unlike your house, it can vanish with one wrong password attempt.

The most expensive digital asset isn't the Bitcoin you forgot to mention.

It's the fortune your family can see but can't touch.

Because you never told them how.

The LLC Mistake That 73% of Solopreneurs Make (A Black Friday Warning)

Black Friday's coming in a week. You'll drop $500 on deals you don't need. Meanwhile, your LLC is sitting there like a screen door in a hurricane (one of my new favorite analogies).

I reviewed solopreneur LLCs last month for an accelerator program. Many of them had the same fatal flaw. They'd spent more on their logo than on making their LLC actually work.

(𝘈𝘯𝘥 𝘯𝘰, 𝘪𝘵 𝘸𝘢𝘴𝘯'𝘵 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘮𝘪𝘴𝘴𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘰𝘱𝘦𝘳𝘢𝘵𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘢𝘨𝘳𝘦𝘦𝘮𝘦𝘯𝘵. 𝘛𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘸𝘢𝘴 #2.)

The killer? No separate business credit card.

"But I track everything in QuickBooks!" they said.
"I reimburse myself properly!" they insisted.
"I keep perfect records!" they promised.

The plaintiff's attorney won't care. Neither will the judge.

One personal charge on your business account. One business expense on your personal card. That's all it takes. Your LLC protection? Hanging on by a thread. Your personal assets? Could be fair game.

I spoke to a freelance designer worried about losing her house over a $15,000 contract dispute. Her LLC was perfect on paper. Delaware formation. Professional operating agreement. Separate EIN.

But she'd used her personal card for Adobe Creative Suite. "It was just easier with the family plan."

That one transaction became Exhibit A in the Plaintiff's veil-piercing argument.

𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗕𝗹𝗮𝗰𝗸 𝗙𝗿𝗶𝗱𝗮𝘆 𝗟𝗟𝗖 𝗣𝗿𝗼𝘁𝗲𝗰𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝗖𝗵𝗲𝗰𝗸𝗹𝗶𝘀𝘁:

• Business Credit Card (TODAY)
Open one before Black Friday. Every business expense goes here. No exceptions. Not even "just this once."

• Separate Shopping Accounts
Your business Amazon account can't share Prime with your personal one. Yes, it costs more. That's the price of protection.

• Document Everything
That laptop you're buying on sale? Business resolution authorizing the purchase. Sounds excessive until you're in court.

• Payment Method Discipline
Business expenses = business card. Personal stuff = personal card. Mix them even once and you've given ammunition to the other side.

The real tragedy? A business credit card is free. Most give cash back. Some have better rewards than personal cards.

But solopreneurs skip it because "it's just me" or "I'll do it later" or "I'm too small for that."

You're never too small to lose everything.

Black Friday's coming. You'll see 500 ads for things you don't need. But you won't see a single ad for the business credit card that could save your personal assets.

Because Capital One makes money when you spend.

Lawyers make money when you didn't protect yourself.

Your LLC is either a fortress or a house of cards.

The difference? A piece of plastic in your wallet.

Get the card. Skip the deals. Protect what you've built.

The Venmo Divorce That Cost a CEO Everything (And Why I Don't Miss Practicing Family Law)

An old family law friend of mine saw my recent posts about Venmo transactions and shared this one with me:

Venmo transactions labeled "golf lessons." Each one timestamped. Each one traceable. Each one a lie.

The CEO thought he was clever. His wife's divorce attorney thought otherwise.

She pulled six months of Venmo history. Cross-referenced the timestamps with his calendar. Those Tuesday afternoon "golf lessons"? They happened during board meetings in Chicago. During client dinners in Dallas. During the family vacation in Aspen when he "stepped out for a call."

$31,000 in "golf lessons" to the same recipient. A 29-year-old marketing coordinator from his firm.

The metadata told the whole story: 

𝘛𝘳𝘢𝘯𝘴𝘢𝘤𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯 𝘭𝘰𝘤𝘢𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯: Minneapolis.
𝘊𝘢𝘭𝘦𝘯𝘥𝘢𝘳 𝘦𝘯𝘵𝘳𝘺: "Phoenix - Quarterly Review."
𝘛𝘳𝘢𝘯𝘴𝘢𝘤𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯 𝘵𝘪𝘮𝘦: 2:47 PM.
𝘍𝘭𝘪𝘨𝘩𝘵 𝘳𝘦𝘤𝘰𝘳𝘥𝘴: Hadn't left MSP yet.

His attorney called it "unfortunate timing discrepancies."

𝗪𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝗠𝗼𝗱𝗲𝗿𝗻 𝗣𝗮𝘆𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁 𝗔𝗽𝗽𝘀 𝗥𝗲𝘃𝗲𝗮𝗹:

* Every transaction has a digital fingerprint
* Timestamps don't lie (even when you do)
* Location data survives deletion
* Public feeds become evidence
* Emoji choices matter (yes, really)
* Payment patterns tell stories

The CEO lost more than money. The court found dissipation of marital assets. Hidden accounts. Financial misconduct. His mansion? Gone. The cabin up north? Hers. Alimony? Maximum allowable.

The affair shouldn't have mattered financially.

Except when you lie about it. Under oath. With digital receipts proving otherwise.

The New Reality of Digital Evidence:

* Your Venmo is a financial diary
* Apple Pay tracks your every move
* Zelle leaves breadcrumbs
* PayPal keeps records for years
* Cash App screenshots live forever

Twenty years ago, affairs required private investigators. Hidden cameras. Following cars. Now? Your spouse's attorney just needs your phone number and a subpoena.

𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗧𝗵𝗿𝗲𝗲 𝗥𝘂𝗹𝗲𝘀 𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝗗𝗶𝗴𝗶𝘁𝗮𝗹 𝗣𝗮𝘆𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁𝘀 (𝗗𝗶𝘃𝗼𝗿𝗰𝗲 𝗼𝗿 𝗡𝗼𝘁):

1. 𝘈𝘴𝘴𝘶𝘮𝘦 𝘌𝘷𝘦𝘳𝘺𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘪𝘴 𝘗𝘶𝘣𝘭𝘪𝘤
Even "private" transactions. Even deleted ones. If it went through a server, it exists somewhere.

2. 𝘓𝘢𝘣𝘦𝘭 𝘏𝘰𝘯𝘦𝘴𝘵𝘭𝘺 𝘰𝘳 𝘎𝘦𝘯𝘦𝘳𝘪𝘤𝘢𝘭𝘭𝘺
"Dinner" not "golf lessons." "Reimbursement" not "consulting." Lies in writing become evidence.

3. 𝘚𝘦𝘱𝘢𝘳𝘢𝘵𝘦 𝘗𝘦𝘳𝘴𝘰𝘯𝘢𝘭 𝘧𝘳𝘰𝘮 𝘘𝘶𝘦𝘴𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯𝘢𝘣𝘭𝘦
Different apps for different relationships. Your marriage counselor will thank you. Your divorce attorney definitely will.

That CEO? He's living in a one-bedroom apartment now. Still paying for those "golf lessons" ~ just in a very different way.

The most expensive Venmo transaction isn't the one you send.

It's the one that sends you to court.

You Know What's Wild? Most Business Owners Spend More Time on LinkedIn than on Their Operating Agreement

I counted yesterday. Over 25 LinkedIn updates in October. Last time I touched my operating agreement? 2017.

(𝘈𝘯𝘥 𝘺𝘦𝘴, 𝘐'𝘮 𝘢 𝘣𝘶𝘴𝘪𝘯𝘦𝘴𝘴 𝘢𝘵𝘵𝘰𝘳𝘯𝘦𝘺. 𝘐 𝘴𝘩𝘰𝘶𝘭𝘥 𝘬𝘯𝘰𝘸 𝘣𝘦𝘵𝘵𝘦𝘳. 𝘉𝘶𝘵 𝘦𝘷𝘦𝘯 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘤𝘰𝘣𝘣𝘭𝘦𝘳'𝘴 𝘤𝘩𝘪𝘭𝘥𝘳𝘦𝘯 𝘨𝘰 𝘣𝘢𝘳𝘦𝘧𝘰𝘰𝘵 𝘴𝘰𝘮𝘦𝘵𝘪𝘮𝘦𝘴.)

This spring, a client called in a panic. His business partner of 12 years wanted out. They'd built a $3M consulting firm together. Weathered COVID. Survived the talent shortage.

Then his partner's divorce attorney started asking questions about business valuations.

Their operating agreement? Still had their original $50K valuation from 2012.

No buyout provisions. No updated ownership percentages after they'd brought in two junior partners. No mechanism for handling disputes. Just twelve years of handshake modifications that lived in their heads and nowhere else.

Meanwhile, his LinkedIn profile was pristine. Updated headshot. Fresh testimonials. Perfect keyword optimization. Daily posts about business growth.

But the document that actually governed his business? Gathering digital dust.

The Real Cost of That Outdated Operating Agreement:

• Months of legal battles (and counting)
• $85,000 in attorney fees between them
• Business operations frozen during negotiations
• Two junior partners who quit during the chaos
• Lost clients who got nervous about the instability
• A friendship destroyed by preventable disputes

What Your Operating Agreement Should Actually Reflect:

✓ Current business valuation methods
✓ Clear buyout procedures and triggers
✓ Updated ownership percentages
✓ Decision-making protocols for deadlocks
✓ Succession planning for death/disability
✓ Exit strategies that protect everyone

Here's what kills me: This guy spent two hours crafting the perfect LinkedIn article, but he couldn't spend two hours updating the document that actually protected that partnership.

Your LinkedIn profile shows the world who you are today.

Your operating agreement protects who you'll be tomorrow.

One gets likes. The other saves your business.

I get it. Legal documents are boring. LinkedIn is engaging. One feels like progress. The other feels like homework.

But when your partner's life implodes (divorce, death, disability, or just different dreams), that dusty operating agreement becomes the most important document in your business life.

Update your LinkedIn all you want. But update your operating agreement first.

Your future self will thank you.

Your business depends on it.

The 5-Minute Friday LLC Checkup That Could Save You $75,000

If you've been following along, you know I love a good checklist, especially one that you can implement quickly.

In honor of seeing Back to the Future with my boys, let's take a Delorean trip back to last year, before Thanksgiving, when a client lost $75K because he hadn't checked his LLC maintenance in three years. Personal assets seized. Business protection worthless. But all of it was preventable.

(𝘈𝘯𝘥 𝘺𝘦𝘴, 𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘴 𝘩𝘢𝘱𝘱𝘦𝘯𝘦𝘥 𝘳𝘪𝘨𝘩𝘵 𝘣𝘦𝘧𝘰𝘳𝘦 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘩𝘰𝘭𝘪𝘥𝘢𝘺𝘴. 𝘞𝘩𝘦𝘯 𝘦𝘷𝘦𝘳𝘺𝘰𝘯𝘦'𝘴 𝘥𝘪𝘴𝘵𝘳𝘢𝘤𝘵𝘦𝘥 𝘣𝘺 𝘵𝘶𝘳𝘬𝘦𝘺 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘵𝘳𝘢𝘷𝘦𝘭 𝘱𝘭𝘢𝘯𝘴.)

Your LLC is either protecting you or it's not. There's no middle ground. And most business owners won't know which until it's too late.

Take 5 minutes. Right now. Before you log off for the weekend.

𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝟱-𝗠𝗶𝗻𝘂𝘁𝗲 𝗙𝗿𝗶𝗱𝗮𝘆 𝗟𝗟𝗖 𝗣𝗿𝗼𝘁𝗲𝗰𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝗔𝘂𝗱𝗶𝘁:

𝘔𝘪𝘯𝘶𝘵𝘦 1: 𝘊𝘩𝘦𝘤𝘬 𝘠𝘰𝘶𝘳 𝘚𝘵𝘢𝘵𝘦 𝘍𝘪𝘭𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘚𝘵𝘢𝘵𝘶𝘴
Pull up your Secretary of State website. Search your LLC. Is it "Active" or "Good Standing"? If it says anything else, you're exposed. Fix it today.

𝘔𝘪𝘯𝘶𝘵𝘦 2: 𝘝𝘦𝘳𝘪𝘧𝘺 𝘠𝘰𝘶𝘳 𝘙𝘦𝘨𝘪𝘴𝘵𝘦𝘳𝘦𝘥 𝘈𝘨𝘦𝘯𝘵
Still using that online service from three years ago? Are they still in business? Did they move? One missed lawsuit notice = default judgment (𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙥𝙤𝙨𝙨𝙞𝙗𝙡𝙮 𝙥𝙚𝙧𝙨𝙤𝙣𝙖𝙡 𝙡𝙞𝙖𝙗𝙞𝙡𝙞𝙩𝙮)

𝘔𝘪𝘯𝘶𝘵𝘦 3: 𝘉𝘢𝘯𝘬 𝘈𝘤𝘤𝘰𝘶𝘯𝘵 𝘚𝘦𝘱𝘢𝘳𝘢𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯 𝘛𝘦𝘴𝘵
Open your business bank statement. Any personal expenses? Even one Starbucks? That's evidence against your protection. Screenshot it. Fix it Monday.

𝘔𝘪𝘯𝘶𝘵𝘦 4: 𝘊𝘰𝘯𝘵𝘳𝘢𝘤𝘵 𝘚𝘪𝘨𝘯𝘢𝘵𝘶𝘳𝘦 𝘊𝘩𝘦𝘤𝘬
Pull your last three contracts. Did you sign as "Jane Doe, Manager of ABC LLC" or just "Jane Doe"? Wrong signature can lead to personal liability. Update your email signature now.

𝘔𝘪𝘯𝘶𝘵𝘦 5: 𝘈𝘯𝘯𝘶𝘢𝘭 𝘔𝘦𝘦𝘵𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘔𝘪𝘯𝘶𝘵𝘦𝘴
When did you last document a meeting? (Yes, even if you're solo.) No minutes in 2024? 2025? Download a template. Date it today. Sign it. Done.

𝗥𝗲𝗱 𝗙𝗹𝗮𝗴𝘀 𝗧𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝗠𝗲𝗮𝗻 "𝗗𝗼 𝗧𝗵𝗶𝘀 𝗡𝗢𝗪":
• Haven't filed an annual report this year
• Mixed personal and business expenses even once
• Can't find your operating agreement
• Never documented a meeting
• Using personal email for business contracts

The holidays are coming. You're about to get busy. Family visits. Year-end scrambles. Travel plans (if you dare go to the airport with the current state of air travel).

Lawsuits don't take holidays. Neither do state compliance deadlines.

Your LLC is either a shield or a piece of paper.

Five minutes tells you which.

And if you're reading this at 4:47 on a Friday thinking "I'll do it Monday"...

That's exactly what my client thought. Four years ago.

Check it now. Sleep better this weekend.

Because the most expensive LLC mistake isn't the one you make.

It's the one you ignore.

Business Owners Think They Need Complex Trusts. Meanwhile, They Haven't Even Updated Their LLC's Banking Resolution.

Sat with a prospective client earlier this week who spent $12,000 on an offshore asset protection trust. Smart guy. Runs three successful companies.

His LLC still lists his ex-business partner as a bank signatory.

The partner who left two years ago. Who could empty the $280,000 operating account with one wire transfer. Legally.

(𝘈𝘯𝘥 𝘣𝘦𝘧𝘰𝘳𝘦 𝘺𝘰𝘶 𝘴𝘢𝘺 "𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘵'𝘴 𝘧𝘳𝘢𝘶𝘥" – 𝘯𝘰𝘱𝘦. 𝘏𝘦'𝘴 𝘴𝘵𝘪𝘭𝘭 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘢𝘶𝘵𝘩𝘰𝘳𝘪𝘻𝘦𝘥 𝘴𝘪𝘨𝘯𝘦𝘳 𝘰𝘯 𝘳𝘦𝘤𝘰𝘳𝘥. 𝘉𝘢𝘯𝘬 𝘥𝘰𝘦𝘴𝘯'𝘵 𝘤𝘢𝘳𝘦 𝘢𝘣𝘰𝘶𝘵 𝘺𝘰𝘶𝘳 𝘰𝘱𝘦𝘳𝘢𝘵𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘢𝘨𝘳𝘦𝘦𝘮𝘦𝘯𝘵. 𝘛𝘩𝘦𝘺 𝘤𝘢𝘳𝘦 𝘢𝘣𝘰𝘶𝘵 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘪𝘳 𝘱𝘢𝘱𝘦𝘳𝘸𝘰𝘳𝘬. 𝘠𝘰𝘶'𝘭𝘭 𝘩𝘢𝘷𝘦 𝘵𝘰 𝘨𝘰 𝘴𝘰𝘳𝘵 𝘦𝘷𝘦𝘳𝘺𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘰𝘶𝘵 𝘭𝘢𝘵𝘦𝘳 𝘸𝘪𝘵𝘩 𝘢 𝘤𝘰𝘶𝘳𝘵.)

This happens constantly. Business owners drop five figures on sophisticated structures while their basic documents are tissue paper.

The Banking Resolution Disasters I See Weekly:

* Dead partners still authorized
* Divorced spouses with full access
* Bookkeepers who quit but kept signing authority
* Kids added "temporarily" three years ago
* That emergency signatory from 2019 you forgot existed

Your LLC's banking resolution can be more powerful than your operating agreement. More enforceable than your buy-sell. More dangerous than any lawsuit.

Because the bank doesn't care about your internal drama. They care about one thing: whose name is on their form.

𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝟭𝟬-𝗠𝗶𝗻𝘂𝘁𝗲 𝗣𝗿𝗼𝘁𝗲𝗰𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝗔𝘂𝗱𝗶𝘁:

1. Pull your banking resolutions (all accounts, all banks)
2. Check every authorized signer
3. Verify signing limits match reality
4. Confirm the LLC name matches exactly
5. Update immediately if anything's wrong

That complex trust structure? Worthless if someone can drain your accounts before the protection kicks in.

Your fancy estate plan? Meaningless if your business checking gets emptied by a ghost from 2021.

The most dangerous person to your business isn't your competitor.

It's the person you forgot has access to your money.

Fix your basics before you buy the complex stuff.

Because a fortress with an open back door isn't a fortress.

It's an invitation.

What I'm Grateful For This Thanksgiving (Spoiler: It's Not What You Think)

Far too many lawyers still count billable hours. I count the disasters I helped clients avoid.

This year alone? LLCs saved from piercing, estates protected from digital lockout, business owners who discovered their ex-partners could still drain their accounts.

But that's not what I'm grateful for.

(𝘈𝘯𝘥 𝘺𝘦𝘴, 𝘐 𝘬𝘯𝘰𝘸 𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘴 𝘴𝘰𝘶𝘯𝘥𝘴 𝘭𝘪𝘬𝘦 𝘰𝘯𝘦 𝘰𝘧 𝘵𝘩𝘰𝘴𝘦 𝘴𝘢𝘱𝘱𝘺 𝘓𝘪𝘯𝘬𝘦𝘥𝘐𝘯 𝘱𝘰𝘴𝘵𝘴. 𝘉𝘦𝘢𝘳 𝘸𝘪𝘵𝘩 𝘮𝘦.)

I'm grateful for the 4:57 p.m. texts on a Friday: "Andrew, I think I messed up my LLC."

The panicked calls: "My business partner just died and I can't access our accounts."

The coffee meetings that start with: "I should've called you sooner."

Because every one of those moments means someone trusts me with their biggest fears.

𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗥𝗲𝗮𝗹 𝗚𝗿𝗮𝘁𝗶𝘁𝘂𝗱𝗲 𝗟𝗶𝘀𝘁:

• Clients who implement the boring stuff I recommend
• Business owners who actually separate their finances
• Families who have the hard estate planning conversations
• The colleague who sends me their overflow (you know who you are)
• My kids, who think "Dad helps people not lose their money" is the coolest job

And LinkedIn? For letting me share these cautionary tales with some of you who actually read them.

Your comments keep me writing. Your questions make me better. Your success stories remind me why I switched from family law.

This Thanksgiving, I'm not just grateful for what went right.

I'm grateful for every disaster that taught me how to help you avoid the next one.

Because the best legal victory isn't winning in court.

It's never needing to be there.

Happy Thanksgiving to all of you protecting what you've built.

(𝘈𝘯𝘥 𝘪𝘵'𝘴 𝘵𝘪𝘮𝘦 𝘵𝘰 𝘧𝘪𝘳𝘦 𝘶𝘱 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘴𝘮𝘰𝘬𝘦𝘳 𝘵𝘰 𝘤𝘰𝘰𝘬 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘵𝘶𝘳𝘬𝘦𝘺 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘰𝘶𝘳 𝘱𝘰𝘳𝘬 𝘣𝘦𝘭𝘭𝘺 𝘯𝘶𝘨𝘨𝘦𝘵𝘴...)

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Took My Sons to See Back to the Future in Theaters. If Your Estate Plan Predates 1985, We Need to Talk.

Saturday evening. Two boys, ages 10 and 13. Their first time seeing Marty McFly on the big screen.

"Dad, this movie's older than you," my youngest said, doing the math.

Hardly. The film hit theaters in 1985. Reagan was president. A stamp cost 22 cents. And estate planning meant a simple will and maybe a trust if you were fancy.

(𝘈𝘯𝘥 𝘺𝘦𝘴, 𝘐 𝘩𝘢𝘥 𝘵𝘰 𝘦𝘹𝘱𝘭𝘢𝘪𝘯 𝘸𝘩𝘺 𝘔𝘢𝘳𝘵𝘺 𝘯𝘦𝘦𝘥𝘦𝘥 𝘢 𝘱𝘩𝘰𝘯𝘦 𝘣𝘰𝘰𝘵𝘩.)

Watching Doc Brown scramble to send Marty back to 1985 got me thinking about my clients still using estate documents from that era.

Your 1985 estate plan doesn't account for:

• Digital assets (Bitcoin wasn't even a dream)
• Online banking (what's a passbook?)
• Social media accounts worth thousands
• Cloud storage with your entire life
• Remote work and multi-state issues
• HIPAA privacy laws (didn't exist until 1996)
• The Secure Act changing retirement rules
• Divorce rates doubling since then

I reviewed a client's 1987 trust last month. It referenced "computer diskettes" and assumed his kids would all live within 50 miles. 

One son's in Singapore. The daughter runs an online business from Costa Rica. The "diskettes" are now 2TB of family photos in the cloud that nobody can access.

Great Scott, indeed.

What Your Pre-1985 Plan is Missing:

✓ Digital asset provisions
✓ HIPAA authorizations
✓ Updated tax strategies (estate tax exemption was $400K then, it's $13M now)
✓ Remote notarization options
✓ Cryptocurrency language
✓ Privacy protection from online searches
✓ Multi-state property considerations

The flux capacitor isn't real. But your outdated estate plan's problems are.

If your documents are older than Back to the Future, they're not protecting your family from 2025's reality. They're protecting them from problems that don't exist anymore while ignoring the ones that do.

My sons loved the movie. "Why don't they just text each other?" asked the 13 -year-old during the climax.

Exactly, kid. Exactly.

The world changed. Your estate plan didn't.

Time to bring your family's protection back... to the present.

(No DeLorean required. Just a conversation with someone who understands both where we've been and where we're going.)

The Legal Documents That Are Like a House of Cards - Remove One and Your Business Collapses

Your business isn't protected by the documents you have. It's destroyed by the ones you're missing.

Think of your legal structure like Jenga. Every piece supports the others. Pull one out? The whole tower becomes unstable. Pull two? You're watching it fall in slow motion.

𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝟲 𝗗𝗼𝗰𝘂𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁𝘀 𝗧𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝗔𝗿𝗲 𝗟𝗼𝗮𝗱-𝗕𝗲𝗮𝗿𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗪𝗮𝗹𝗹𝘀:

1. 𝘖𝘱𝘦𝘳𝘢𝘵𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘈𝘨𝘳𝘦𝘦𝘮𝘦𝘯𝘵 → 𝘉𝘢𝘯𝘬𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘙𝘦𝘴𝘰𝘭𝘶𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯𝘴
Your operating agreement says who can sign checks. But if your banking resolution doesn't match? The bank follows their paperwork, not yours.

2. 𝘌𝘮𝘱𝘭𝘰𝘺𝘮𝘦𝘯𝘵 𝘈𝘨𝘳𝘦𝘦𝘮𝘦𝘯𝘵𝘴 → 𝘕𝘰𝘯-𝘊𝘰𝘮𝘱𝘦𝘵𝘦 𝘊𝘭𝘢𝘶𝘴𝘦𝘴
Your non-compete is worthless if the employment agreement doesn't properly reference it (𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘪𝘯 2025 𝘪𝘵 𝘮𝘢𝘺 𝘣𝘦 𝘶𝘯𝘦𝘯𝘧𝘰𝘳𝘤𝘦𝘢𝘣𝘭𝘦 𝘢𝘯𝘺𝘸𝘢𝘺). 

3. 𝘉𝘶𝘺-𝘚𝘦𝘭𝘭 𝘈𝘨𝘳𝘦𝘦𝘮𝘦𝘯𝘵 → 𝘓𝘪𝘧𝘦 𝘐𝘯𝘴𝘶𝘳𝘢𝘯𝘤𝘦 𝘗𝘰𝘭𝘪𝘤𝘪𝘦𝘴
Beautiful buy-sell agreement. $2M valuation formula. No funded life insurance. Partner dies, surviving partner can't buy out the estate. Widow becomes your new 50% partner. Now you're explaining quarterly reports to someone who thought you sold widgets, not software.

4. 𝘊𝘭𝘪𝘦𝘯𝘵 𝘊𝘰𝘯𝘵𝘳𝘢𝘤𝘵𝘴 → 𝘓𝘪𝘢𝘣𝘪𝘭𝘪𝘵𝘺 𝘐𝘯𝘴𝘶𝘳𝘢𝘯𝘤𝘦
Your contract caps liability at $50,000. Your insurance deductible is $100,000. Congratulations, you've guaranteed you'll pay the first $50K of any claim out of pocket. The gap between your contracts and coverage? That's where lawsuits live.

5. 𝘐𝘗 𝘈𝘴𝘴𝘪𝘨𝘯𝘮𝘦𝘯𝘵𝘴 → 𝘞𝘰𝘳𝘬-𝘧𝘰𝘳-𝘏𝘪𝘳𝘦 𝘈𝘨𝘳𝘦𝘦𝘮𝘦𝘯𝘵𝘴
Your contractor agreement says you own all IP. But no work-for-hire language? They still own it. One developer held a startup hostage for $200K because the code he wrote was technically his. The IP assignment referenced work-for-hire terms that didn't exist.

6. 𝘊𝘰𝘳𝘱𝘰𝘳𝘢𝘵𝘦 𝘔𝘪𝘯𝘶𝘵𝘦𝘴 → 𝘈𝘤𝘵𝘶𝘢𝘭 𝘈𝘤𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯𝘴
Minutes say you approved a $100K equipment purchase. Never actually bought it. Minutes say you issued stock options. Never filed the paperwork. The disconnect between documentation and reality? That's where veil-piercing arguments begin.

𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗗𝗼𝗰𝘂𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁 𝗗𝗲𝗽𝗲𝗻𝗱𝗲𝗻𝗰𝘆 𝗔𝘂𝗱𝗶𝘁:

-> Map Your References
Every document that mentions another document. List them. Check they exist. Check they match.

-> Test Your Gaps
What happens if Document A disappears? Does Document B still work? If no, you've found a critical dependency.

-> Fund Your Obligations
Buy-sell needs insurance. Employment agreements need handbooks. Contracts need coverage. Unfunded obligations are just expensive paper.

Because your legal protection isn't your strongest document.

It's your weakest link.

The house of cards doesn't fall because you removed the wrong card.

It falls because you never noticed one was missing.

Until the whole thing comes crashing down.

Tony Rubin's post below isn't just good advice. It's critical protection for your family.

Beneficiary designations override EVERYTHING. Your will. Your trust. Your wishes. Your marriage certificate.

That checkbox is more powerful than any document I can draft for you.

Check them. Today. Then check your spouse's. Then call your parents.

Because the most expensive estate planning mistake isn't hiring the wrong lawyer.

It's forgetting to update a free form.

Do yourself a favor and check the beneficiary designations of your retirement accounts. Then check your spouse's and your parents' beneficiary designations! 

Best Practices for IRA beneficiary designations: 
1. Name both primary and contingent beneficiaries. This ensures that if your primary beneficiary predeceases you, the IRA won't default to your estate, which could trigger probate and less favorable tax treatment. 
2. Avoid naming your estate as the beneficiary. Doing so subjects the IRA to probate and limits distribution options. Estates are considered non-designated beneficiaries, which means heirs may face accelerated withdrawal requirements and higher taxes. 
3. Review designations after major life events. Births, deaths, marriages, divorces, and changes in relationships or financial goals should prompt a review of your IRA beneficiary forms. 
4. Coordinate with your overall estate plan. Ensure your IRA designations align with your trust and will. Conflicts can lead to unintended outcomes and legal complications. 
5. Consider tax implications for beneficiaries. For example, naming a trust or charity may have different tax consequences than naming an individual. Use caution and consult with a tax advisor when naming non-individual entities. 	

Wells Fargo Advisors does not provide legal or tax advice.

His Wife Discovered His Business Partner Was His Ex-Girlfriend...

My friend told me about this over coffee this weekend, and this one should be made into a movie (it could be a double feature with 𝘉𝘢𝘤𝘬 𝘵𝘰 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘍𝘶𝘵𝘶𝘳𝘦)...

He'd built a $3M construction company with his "business partner" Sarah. His wife thought Sarah was just good with numbers. Smart hire. Professional relationship.

(𝘛𝘶𝘳𝘯𝘴 𝘰𝘶𝘵 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘺'𝘥 𝘣𝘦𝘦𝘯 𝘦𝘯𝘨𝘢𝘨𝘦𝘥 15 𝘺𝘦𝘢𝘳𝘴 𝘢𝘨𝘰. 𝘉𝘦𝘧𝘰𝘳𝘦 𝘩𝘦 𝘮𝘦𝘵 𝘩𝘪𝘴 𝘸𝘪𝘧𝘦. 𝘉𝘦𝘧𝘰𝘳𝘦 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘬𝘪𝘥𝘴. 𝘉𝘦𝘧𝘰𝘳𝘦 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘣𝘶𝘴𝘪𝘯𝘦𝘴𝘴.)

The operating agreement read:

"In the event of death, the deceased partner's shares transfer to the surviving partner."

Sarah owned 49%. Now she owns 100%.

Twenty years of marriage. Three kids. And his wife just learned her husband's business partner, the woman at every company BBQ, every holiday party, was not only his ex-girlfriend, but now owned everything they'd built.

Here's what nobody tells you about mixing business and secrets:

The Legal Landmines:
• Operating agreements override wills for business assets
• Buy-sell provisions don't care about your marriage
• Your spouse has no automatic rights to your business shares
• Death triggers immediate ownership changes

What Actually Happened:
• Wife got the house (still mortgaged)
• Kids got the life insurance
• Sarah got a $3M business
• Family discovered 15 years of lies

The construction crews? Still working. The contracts? Still valid. The bank accounts? Under Sarah's control by Monday.

The wife tried to contest it. Spent $50K on lawyers. Lost.

Why? The operating agreement was bulletproof. Drafted when they started the company. Never updated after marriage. Never discussed with his wife.

The Brutal Truth About Business Partnerships:

Your business documents don't care about your personal life.

They execute exactly as written. No exceptions. No mercy. No consideration for the family you leave behind.

His widow now works two jobs. Not because he didn't love his family. But because he couldn't have one uncomfortable conversation.

"Hey, honey, my business partner is actually my ex. We need to update our agreement."

Thirty seconds of discomfort. Versus thirty years of financial ruin.

What Should've Happened:
✓ Full disclosure to spouse (yes, even the awkward stuff)
✓ Spousal consent on major business documents
✓ Buy-sell funded with life insurance TO THE SPOUSE
✓ Regular operating agreement reviews
✓ Transparent succession planning

Your business partner's past matters.
Your spouse's future depends on it.
Your secrets become their nightmare.

The most expensive business meeting isn't the one where you lose a deal.

It's the one where your family discovers who you really were.

Update your operating agreements. Tell your spouse the truth. Protect what actually matters.

Before your secrets destroy everything you built for them.

The Black Friday Deal That's Actually Killing Your Business (And It's Not What You're Buying)

You'll spend $2,400 on Black Friday deals. New laptop. Software subscriptions. That standing desk you've been eyeing.

Meanwhile, your business is bleeding money through holes you can't even see.

Last Black Friday, a client bought $3,700 worth of "business essentials." Same holiday weekend, his ex-employee used their still-active login to download his entire client list. Started a competing business Monday morning.

The security software he didn't buy? Would've cost $89.

𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗕𝗹𝗮𝗰𝗸 𝗙𝗿𝗶𝗱𝗮𝘆 𝗣𝘂𝗿𝗰𝗵𝗮𝘀𝗲𝘀 𝗧𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝗔𝗰𝘁𝘂𝗮𝗹𝗹𝘆 𝗣𝗿𝗼𝘁𝗲𝗰𝘁 𝗬𝗼𝘂:

1. Operating Agreement Update
That template you downloaded in 2019? Worthless. Get it professionally updated before someone tests it.

2. Cyber Insurance
Every business needs it. Most don't have it. One ransomware attack costs $200K average. Do the math.

3. Password Manager for Business
Not the free version. The one with audit logs and terminated employee lockouts. Because "Password123!" isn't protecting anything.

4. Professional Email Migration
Still using firstname@gmail for business? That's evidence you're not serious.

5. Legal Audit
Review contracts. Update banking resolutions. Check authorized signers. Boring? Yes. Necessary? Ask my client who lost $280K to an ex-partner.

The gadgets are sexy. The software feels productive. The ergonomic chair makes you feel successful.

But your LLC with missing documents? Your contracts from 2020? Your ex-employee with admin access? Those are ticking time bombs.

𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗥𝗲𝗮𝗹 𝗕𝗹𝗮𝗰𝗸 𝗙𝗿𝗶𝗱𝗮𝘆 𝗦𝗵𝗼𝗽𝗽𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗟𝗶𝘀𝘁:

1. Review every employee/contractor access (TODAY)
2. Update all banking authorizations
3. Get cyber insurance quotes
4. Schedule that legal audit
5. Buy the boring stuff that actually protects you

That 65" TV for the office? It won't save your business.

A properly updated operating agreement might.

The best Black Friday deal isn't 70% off something you want.

It's paying full price for protection you need.

Your future self will thank you. Your lawyer definitely will.

(𝘈𝘯𝘥 𝘪𝘧 𝘺𝘰𝘶'𝘳𝘦 𝘳𝘦𝘢𝘥𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘴 𝘸𝘩𝘪𝘭𝘦 𝘣𝘳𝘰𝘸𝘴𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘈𝘮𝘢𝘻𝘰𝘯 𝘥𝘦𝘢𝘭𝘴, 𝘢𝘵 𝘭𝘦𝘢𝘴𝘵 𝘶𝘴𝘦 𝘺𝘰𝘶𝘳 𝘣𝘶𝘴𝘪𝘯𝘦𝘴𝘴 𝘤𝘢𝘳𝘥.)

CRO To Make Your Bank Account Dance 🕺🏼 | Scaling D2C Brands | $30 Million In Incremental Revenue Added Through CRO | 400+ Websites/Landing Pages Average CVR 5.37% | Co-Founder @ Solvexmedia | We Are Hiring |

Looking to lower your customer acquisition cost and supercharge your sales?

▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬ 
5 Million In Spend - 30 Million In Tracked Revenue - 6x ROAS ( Hit me up for the proof ) 

We can help you: 
💠 Build a website that CONVERTS like CRAZY
💠 Run Facebook™ Ad Campaigns advertising that generates a POSITIVE ROI
💠 Email & SMS that opens a floodgate of REPEAT PURCHASES
💠 Funnel creation - Taking someone from UNAWARE to a RAVING FAN
▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬ 
Who we work with: 

👔 Online eCommerce entrepreneurs who want to scale fast. Whether you’re just starting out or already have a 7-figure business, I’ll work with you to create a custom plan to hit your goals. 
▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬ 
𝐑𝐞𝐚𝐬𝐨𝐧 𝐛𝐞𝐡𝐢𝐧𝐝 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐫𝐞𝐬𝐮𝐥𝐭: 


Working at Deloitte gave me direct exposure to Fortune 500 companies looking to diversify their marketing efforts into digital. My three years there consisted of handling ad-spend budgets in excess of $1,000,000 a month all while generating a positive ROI and meeting all KPIs.  

Got tired of corporate, decided to use the skillset I had to build a few ecom brands, made some money (two exits), then had some fun. 

Now back running the show at one of the fastest-growing growth agencies, Solvexmedia. With the goal of passing forth the knowledge, skills, and experience I have acquired by being in the trenches, getting my teeth kicked in, and learning the hard way.

▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬ 
𝐀𝐫𝐞 𝐲𝐨𝐮 𝐫𝐞𝐚𝐝𝐲 𝐭𝐨:

🔥 Have the processes and systems you need to have in place to facilitate incredible growth and mind-blowing valuations?
🔥 Have the resources, marketing and strategic guidance you need to navigate your way to the next major revenue milestone in your business?
🔥 Have the framework for incredible business valuations, multiples and exits?

𝐓𝐡𝐞𝐧 l𝐞𝐭’𝐬 𝐭𝐚𝐥𝐤!

🤙 Message me here or email kam@solvexmedia.com

Kam Hossieny

Don’t even THINK about A/B testing your website without reading this first.

A/B testing can give you as high as [%] conversion rate.

BUT jumping in without a plan can be a recipe for wasted time and unnecessary costs.\\

Before you start tweaking headlines and button colors–or even changing the entire website:

This is what I found most of eCom websites are doing till this day...

❌ Testing the wrong elements.
❌ No clear goal– you won’t know if your test are actually working.
❌ Don’t have enough data to be sure your results aren’t just a coincidence.

After helping hundreds of brands capture millions in revenue.

Here’s what we learned:

→ Figure out what "winning" means for your brand.
→ Get to know your audience.
→ Base test ideas on solid site data, not just best practices
→ Start with small focused tests and scale up the clear winners.
→ Track result daily & filter how different audience segments respond

See the difference?

A/B testing can be a powerful tool, but only if you use it STRATEGICALLY.

If you want a CRO that WORKS, you need an agency that gets it.

DM me if you need any help.

Talks about #mediabuying, #dtcstrategies, #funneloptimization, #customeracquisition, and #conversionrateoptimization

6 things to change in your eCom websites:

• Replace confusing menus with clear categories 
• Replace features with benefits
• Replace boring hero image into product in action shot
• Replace big claims with customer testimonials 
• Replace boring product description with pain-solution stories
• Replace limited payment option with well-known credit/debit cards, digital wallets

Incorporate them as much as you can.

Watch your conversion rate skyrocket.

Top 3 things your customers want you to know. (but are too afraid to say)

We all want happy customers.

But sometimes it's *incredibly* hard to know exactly what's going on in their minds.

Here are the top 3 things your customers really want you to know (but might be too shy to say directly):

1. They want to feel understood.

Your generic marketing messages and products might not be hitting the mark.

➜ Take the time to understand your ideal customer's needs, wants, and pain points. 

➜ Tailor your offerings and communication to resonate deeply with them.

2. They want a smooth journey (whether they decide to buy or not).

Here’s what you need to avoid at ALL cost:

❌ A confusing website
❌ A lengthy checkout process
❌ A frustrating customer service experience.

➜ Make sure your website is user-friendly.
➜ Streamline your sales funnel
➜ Invest in excellent customer service to ensure a positive journey from browsing to buying.

3. They want to feel valued.

They're not just a number on a spreadsheet. 

They want to feel appreciated and respected for their purchases.

Go beyond the transaction. 

➜ Offer personalized experiences, loyalty programs, and exceptional service to show your customers you truly value their relationship.

Understand these 3 unspoken desires

And you will undoubtedly create loyal customers who keep on coming back.

If this post resonated with you, consider showing some love!

1) Like this post.
2) Share to spread the word.
3) Follow me.

[CRO controversy #1] 

Does urgency truly drive sales or scare customers away? 
Pick your side.

A) Team "Limited Time Offer".
B) Team "Transparency All the Way".

Share your answers below. 👇 
(the *correct* answer might surprise you...)

Get these 5 *powerful* elements in your website and hook your customer in 10 seconds (or less!)

The truth is, you only have 5 seconds to capture your audience's attention.

And another 5 seconds to convince them to stay more on your site. 

= Total of 10 seconds.

A short window time, right? 

So how can you hook your customers within 10 seconds?

With the RIGHT website elements in place...

You can turn those fleeting visits into loyal paying customers. 

Here are the 5 persuasion powerhouses that will have your website visitors hooked in 10 seconds:

1. A captivating headline:

Your headline is like the opening line of a book.

It needs to grab attention and make them want to read more. 

✔️ Use strong verbs
✔️ Clear benefits
✔️ A touch of intrigue to draw them in.

2. A compelling value proposition:

What makes your business unique? 

Why should someone choose you over the competition? 

✔️ Clearly communicate your value proposition in a way that resonates with your ideal customer's needs.

3. Social proof & testimonials:

People trust other people. 

✔️ Showcase positive testimonials
✔️ Reviews
✔️ Case studies to build trust and credibility with your audience.

4. Clear calls to action:

Don't leave your visitors guessing what you want them to do next. 

Whether it's "Shop now," "Download our easy guide," or "Schedule a free consultation," 

✔️ Use strong calls to action to guide them towards conversion.

5. A User-friendly design:

Your website should be as easy to navigate as your favorite app. 

✔️ Clean design
✔️ Clear menus
✔️ Mobile-responsive layout

By incorporating these 5 elements, you can create a website that is both persuasive and user-friendly.

Don’t let those potential customers *poof* within seconds 

If you need help optimizing your eCom website.

DM me “Optimize me” for more.

Spots are limited.

10 power players that have the highest ROI for your eCom business:
(from my experience)

1. Targeted traffic
2. Fast loading website
3. Social proof & reviews
4. Clear value proposition
5. Seamless user experience
6. Stunning product images
7. Strategic use of promotions
8. Responsive customer support
9. Retargeting website visitors who haven't converted.
10. Constantly optimizing (growth mindset)

These power players are what I call your success multipliers.

Each one enhances your chances of success.

But when combined, they create an unstoppable force that cuts through the saturated market.

Statistically speaking, you're messing up.🫨

Running a test for two days with 10 visitors won't tell you anything real.

It’s like flipping a coin once - pure chance, not a winning strategy.
You need enough data to be sure your results aren't just a *coincidence*.

Here's why small tests can leave you frustrated and out of pocket:

😵 Fake wins due to small sample size
😵 Missed opportunities due to limited data

Here’s what you can do:

✅ Get enough real people visiting your site to make sure your results are legit. 

So, how many visitors do you ACTUALLY need?

There's no one-size-fits-all answer.

But it heavily depends on your website traffic and the size of the change you expect. 

The good news?

I'm helping ecom brand owners crush their conversion rates with data-driven strategies.

DM me “CRO” for more.

Spots are limited.

This is what happened to your sales once you started using CRO.
➜ Sales increase of up to 15%
➜ Capture quality leads and convert them into customers
➜ Faster checkout speeds
➜ Happier customers

How?

Conversion rate optimization (CRO) help you:
1) Decrease the bounce rate of website visitors by 20%-50%. ⬇️
CRO makes that a reality. 
By optimizing your website and landing pages with:
✅ Clear calls to action
✅ A smooth user experience
✅ Targeted messaging
We turn those visitors into paying customers. 
Leading to a sales increase of up to 15%.

2) Attract the right kind of customers.
The truth is, NOT all leads are created equal. 
You wouldn't want your sales team spending time chasing after someone who's just browsing, right? 
CRO helps you attract those genuinely interested in what you offer.
Saving you time and resources.
Remember:
❌ You don’t create desire.
✅ You leverage on the existing desires of your customer.
Qualified leads = more receptive to your offerings = high conversion rate

3) Decrease cart abandonment by 20%. ⬇️
Friction in the checkout process is a sales killer. 
CRO helps you streamline (make it smooth and speedy) your customer’s buying journey. 
How?
With: 
✅ Easy-to-understand forms
✅ Multiple payment options
A clear path to purchase = Gets your customers to the finish line (aka purchase!) faster.
You don’t want your impatient customers to wait around for a clunky checkout process, right?

[Be warned] Before making any website changes (big or small).
Stop second guessing what works or not.
Ensure success with data-driven CRO.
At Solvexmedia, we don't take chances - we dive deep into your target audience and user behavior first. 
With A/B/C/D testing and insightful analysis...
We craft a website that converts visitors into customers 24/7.
Don’t wait for Q4 to start before maximizing your website’s full potential.

Get your free CRO audit today. 

See and feel how we can help you achieve real results. 👇 

https://lnkd.in/gEFDR97z
 
(limited spots)

solvexmedia.com

Discovery Call

Optimizing a website is a skill you never stop studying

There will always be new:

- User behavior
- Competition
- Evolving customer needs
- Technologies

Treat it as a long-term investment for your eCom business.

5 things you should already know about 6 months in your eCom business.

This isn't just a catchy hook, it's a reality check for new ecom business owners...

Here are 5 things you should have a decent handle on by the 6-month mark:

1. Your ideal customer.

By now, you should have a clear picture of your target audience. 

> Who are you selling to? 
> What are their demographics, interests, and pain points? 
> Have you gathered enough data to refine your customer personas?

2. Sales & conversion trends.

Analyze your sales data for the past 6 months. 

> What products are selling well? 
>Are there any seasonal trends? 
> What marketing channels are driving the most traffic and conversions? 

Understanding these trends helps you refine your strategies and optimize your efforts.

3. Key metrics & performance.

Important metrics like:

• Website traffic
• Conversion rate
• Customer acquisition cost (that's how much it costs to get a new customer)
• Customer lifetime value (how much money a customer spends with you over time) 

… should no longer sound like gibberish. 

Track these regularly and use them to see how you're doing and where you can improve.

4. Competitive landscape. 

6 months in, you should have a good idea of your competitors in the market. 

> What are they good at? 
> What are their weaknesses? 
> How can you make your product or service stand out? 

Knowing your competition helps you develop a killer strategy to win over customers.

5. Marketing effectiveness.

Time to evaluate your marketing efforts. 

> Are your campaigns bringing in the right kind of customers? 
> Are you getting the bang for your buck? 

Use these past 6 months to analyze your marketing data and adjust your strategies for better results.

This is just a starting point.

Remember, the ecom journey is all about learning from your wins, losses, and everything in between. 

Keep testing new things, analyze your data, and adapt your approach for long-term success. 
You got this! :)

Want to make sure your website is working effectively and maximizing results?

Get your FREE CRO audit.

👇👇 👇

Website Secrets

After auditing over 647 websites, I've learned something that most eCom owners simply DON’T understand about conversion. 😤

“Conversion isn't just about getting visitors to your website.”

Don't get me wrong, website traffic is also important. 

But here's the key: Conversion is about guiding visitors on a journey. 

It's about understanding:

→ their needs
→ addressing their pain points
→ making them feel like YOUR website is the answer they've been searching for.

Here's what I mean:

• People don't convert in a vacuum. 

They need to be:

✅ nurtured
✅ educated
✅ compelled to take action

❌ Just throwing up a pretty website and hoping for the best won't cut it.

• Compelling websites tell stories. 

They connect with visitors on an emotional level and build trust. 

✅ They don't just sell products, they solve problems.

• It's all about removing friction. 

❌ Confusing layouts
❌ Unclear calls to action
❌ Generic copy 

... are conversion killers. 

A good website should be smooth sailing.

Guiding visitors effortlessly towards a *clear* conversion goal.

What does this mean for you?

If your website feels like a dry cactus (low leads, low sales). 🌵

It's probably time to rethink your conversion strategy. 

Last year, Q3 was a mad scramble for eCom brands trying to fix their sites at the last minute.

 (...and unfortunately, we had to put them on our waiting list) 

The difference-makers?

The brands who started tuning up their conversion rates (CRO for short) early on.

These folks saw the biggest wins because their sites were conversion machines by the time the busy season hit.

Don’t repeat last year’s mistakes. 

Start your CRO journey now and position yourself for a successful year-end.

Book a call with us today to chat about how we can help.

👇👇 👇

You won’t BELIEVE this life-changing secret about conversion that’s saving my clients from YEARS of unnecessary ad spend and frustration.

In just a few moments, I’m going to reveal what it is. 

But first, here’s why you should trust what I have to say...

For the past 2 years, I've been helping eCom businesses like yours achieve explosive growth through conversion rate optimization. 

I've seen it all, from the biggest mistakes to the most successful strategies. 

And let me tell you, this secret is one of the most powerful tools I've ever discovered.

8 out of 10 eCom businesses think conversion is just about getting people to your site. 

They spend a fortune driving traffic.

… but the *sad* reality is, those visitors just wander around and leave.

❌ Never converting into paying customers.

Here’s how we make *magic* happen:

✅ Guiding them on a strategically crafted user journey. 
✅ Uses a psychological framework to understand their needs, address their pain points, and build trust at every touchpoint. 
✅ Use data and A/B testing to optimize every element, from headlines and calls to action to the overall website layout. 

It's about making them feel like YOUR website is the answer to all their problems.

When you unlock this conversion secret, you'll see a dramatic increase in sales. 

My clients are reporting increases of 20% to 50% (and sometimes even more!). 

Imagine what that could do for your bottom line.

If you're tired of watching your money disappear into the abyss of unconverted traffic, then it's time to get a CRO audit.

Schedule your free consultation 👇

You hit the launch button. ✔️ 
Getting ready to see the sales roll in... nothing but *crickets* 😵

The culprit? Leaks in your conversion funnel.

Imagine your website as a funnel. 

You pour potential customers (traffic) in at the top.

BUT they're dripping out through holes before they reach the desired outcome.

The sweet kaching of a purchase.

Leaks in your conversion funnel are what's stopping those visitors from becoming customers.

Here's the secret to plugging those leaks: 👇

The secret isn't just about fancy website design (although that doesn't hurt). 

→ The real secret lies in understanding your customers and building trust. 

→ It's about removing anything that makes buying from you a hassle. 

Here's how we did it:

1. Become a customer whisperer.

Dive deep and understand your ideal customers:

✅ needs, wants, and pain points. 
✅ speak their language
✅ address their concerns directly
✅ position yourself as the solution they've been searching for.

2. Build trust. 

Nobody buys from someone they don't trust. 

Showcase in your website these CRO elements:

✅ positive customer testimonials
✅ highlight your expertise
✅ offer clear guarantees. 

Make them feel confident in their decision to choose you. 

3. Friction? we don't know her.

Streamline your buying process. 

Help your visitors easily find:

✅ the information they need
✅ complete forms with minimal effort
✅ navigate your site intuitively

Confusing layouts and unclear calls to action are conversion killers – MUST eliminate them.

—
If you enjoyed this post, then:

✔️ Like and share this post now.

✔️Follow me @kamhossieny for more landing pages and CRO tips.

I doubled my client’s sales by studying ecom stores in just 6 months.
Here's what I learned:
I optimized over 647 websites, and let me tell you.
Getting conversions can be tough.
But by understanding what works well in successful ecom stores.
I was able to implement CRO strategies that drove 100% increase in sales for my client.

Here are 3 CRO strategies we used:
1) People want to find what they need fast.
So we implemented:
➜ clear menus
➜ high-quality product photos showcasing details
➜ concise descriptions that focused on benefits. 
To make my client's website a breeze to navigate.
Visitors instantly understand their value proposition in just 5 seconds of landing.

2) They used powerful calls to action.
➜ Strong CTAs like "Add to Cart" were strategically placed near product details.
Making it easier for visitors to find and take the next step.

3) Successful stores rely on A/B testing to constantly improve.
➜ We test different headlines, product layouts, and CTA placements.
Based on the areas that need improvement and immediate attention.
We follow key metrics before making small or big changes.
✅ Conversion funnel metrics like bounce rate, click-through rate (CTR), and cart abandonment rate.
✅ User engagement metrics like time spent on page, scroll depth, and heatmaps.
This data-driven approach allowed us to identify the most effective elements that drove the most conversions.
—-
Want to double your sales in the next 6 months? 
Book a free strategy call here 👇

Every component you need to create an ecom landing page that generates $100k+.

- Captivating headline
- Announcement bar
- Subheadline
- Compelling hero image or video
- Social proof (testimonials/reviews):
- Pricing
- Scarcity & urgency
- Trust badges
- Security badges
- Product guarantees
- FAQ
- Footer
- Exit-intent popups (with caution) 
- Clear & compelling CTA
- A/B testing (as part of overall strategy)

Remember:

Your goal is to create a clear, concise, and persuasive landing page that focuses on your customer’s needs and conversion.

Don't overload the page with too many elements that might overwhelm or distract visitors.

Your landing page needs BOTH. 

➜ Traffic (Ad) 
➜ An optimized landing page 

= Conversion GOAL

In the world of e-commerce, conversions are king. 

But what drives those conversions? 

Many believe it's just about traffic.

The more visitors you have, the more sales you make. 

However, the reality is far more complex than that. 

Imagine this:

You're running a targeted ad campaign.

Driving high volumes of visitors to your landing page (lots of traffic!). 

However, if those visitors land on a confusing or poorly designed landing page...

They'll likely bounce and never convert.

That’s why, I always say this:

Both traffic and landing pages matter for conversions.

➜ High-quality traffic (targeted ads): Gets the RIGHT people to your site.

➜ Optimized landing page (CRO): Converts visitors into customers.

Think of it as a mathematical equation:

High-Quality Traffic (Targeted Ads) x Optimized Landing Page = Increased Conversions

DON’T neglect either side.

Remember: It's not about just traffic, and it's not about just a good landing page. 

It's about both working together to achieve your conversion goals.

If you need help achieving *real* conversion results.

Dm me “CRO” for a free consultation. (no commitment) 😊

Don’t just talk to your best customers.
Talk to the ones that almost got away too.
Studies show almost-lost customers convert at a *higher rate* than average customers. 
How? 
Simple.
Because they have addressed these customer concerns head-on...
hidden fees
confusing checkout process 
slow loading times
technical glitches
unclear product info
—these are all *solvable* problems.
➜ With a little CRO (Conversion Rate Optimization) magic.
➜ Understanding the psychology behind almost-lost shoppers.
You can capture the hearts and wallets of recovered customers any day you want.
(big brands like Amazon do this too 🤫) 
Follow these 3 psychology-driven CRO tips (and how to implement this in your website):
1) Exit-intent offers. 
Entice your potential customers back with discounts or free shipping when they show signs of leaving.
✅ Add a pop-up window that triggers when a user moves their cursor towards the top of the page (indicating they might leave).
2) Retargeting campaigns.
Remind them of abandoned items or similar products with targeted ads.
✅ Partner with ad platforms like Facebook or Google to run retargeting campaigns. 
Your ad campaigns must show the ads featuring the items that they abandoned.
3) Personalized recommendations.
Suggest products that complement their browsing history.
✅ Use website analytics tools to track user behavior and browsing history. 
Based on this data. 
You can recommend complementary products on the product page itself.
—
By incorporating these psychology-driven CRO tips.
You can now do 4 things at once:
➜ Address customer concerns
➜ Recover lost sales.
➜ Turn "almost-lost" shoppers into repeat customers.
➜ Transform your ecom business into a thriving one
So, the next time a shopper abandons their cart.
Don't despair. 🙅
Consider it an opportunity to create a new customer. 😉

Grabbing your customer's attention is a race against the clock.
The million-dollar question is: how do you grab someone's attention online in 5 seconds or less?
Here’s how to grab *eyeballs* into your website in just 4 seconds.
My proven above-the-fold CRO strategy:
1️⃣ Headline Hero:
➜ Focus on the benefits. 
➜ Craft a clear and concise headline that speaks directly to your target audience's needs and desires. 
➜ What problem do you solve? 
➜ What value do you offer?
➜ Keep it punchy.
➜ Aim for 6-10 words and avoid jargon. 
➜ Use strong verbs and action words to grab attention.

2️⃣ Visual appeal.
➜ People process visuals faster than text, so make a good first impression.
➜ Use professional or captivating images that are relevant to your offer.
➜ Keep it simple. 
➜ Avoid cluttered graphics or overwhelming layouts.
➜ Pro tip: Test different images to see what resonates best with your audience.

3️⃣ Get to the point.

➜ Prioritize a clear value proposition.
➜ Explain what you do and why it matters in a concise and compelling way. 
➜ Focus on the benefits for the visitor, not just your features.
➜ Bullet Points are your new friend.
➜ Use bullet points to highlight key benefits and make the information easy to digest.

4️⃣ Call to action (CTA).
➜ Don't leave visitors wondering what to do next. 
➜ Include a clear and strong call to action button.
➜ Use action verbs like "Add to cart," or "Shop More" to encourage action.
➜ Make it stand out from the crowd.
➜ Use contrasting colors and clear text to make your CTA button visually appealing.

Want me to do the eyeball-getting part for your website?
Get your free CRO audit today. 👇

https://lnkd.in/gEFDR97z

 (only 9 Spots left this November).

Open article: Discovery Call by solvexmedia.com

Funny story - I almost didn't buy my coffee maker because the website didn't show if it was in stock. 
Paranoid? Maybe. 
Normal? Absolutely.
Turns out, we all have trust issues when shopping online.
So I tested something stupid-simple.
Adding this near the buy button: 
"✔ In Stock ✔ Ships Today ✔ 60-Day Returns"
The results? 
Before: 2.3% conversion rate 
After: 3.8% conversion rate 
Extra cash: $103,472 in 30 days
Why does this actually work?
You know that feeling when you're watching Netflix and see "3 episodes left"? 
You felt like you HAVE to finish it.
Same psychology here. 

These tiny checkmarks tell your brain "you're almost there!"

After testing this on countless stores, here's the magic combo:
1. Stock status 
❌ "Available" (meh) 
✅ "In Stock" (good) 
✅ "Only 3 Left" (better)

2. Shipping 
❌ "Fast Shipping" (what does that even mean?) 
✅ "Ships Today" (specific = trustworthy) 
✅ "Next Day Delivery" (even better)

3. Returns 
❌ "Easy Returns" (everyone says this) 
✅ "60-Day Returns" (specific number = more trust) 
✅ "Love It Or Return It" (personality bonus!)

@Article excels at this!

graphical user interface, text, application, chat or text message

Stop making customers think.
Copy-paste these 3 check marks that doubled my client’s revenue:
For Physical Products: 
"✔ In Stock ✔ Ships in 24h ✔ Free Returns"
(9+41% conversion)

For Digital Products: 
"✔ Instant Access ✔ Lifetime Updates ✔ Money-Back Guarantee"
(+37% conversion)

For Services: 
"✔ Next Slot Today ✔ Satisfaction Guaranteed ✔ Cancel Anytime"
(+33% conversion)

Then. place them near your buy button. 
No fancy strategies. 
No complex psychology. 
Just simple trust signals that’s proven to work.
Even big brands like @InsideWeather do this.

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Andrew Ayers

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taplio

The Battle

Andrew Ayers

Kam Hossieny

Followers

Posts

Engagements

Likes

Performance Score.css-goub6s{font-size:var(--chakra-fontSizes-md);font-weight:500;color:var(--chakra-colors-gray-600);display:block;margin-top:var(--chakra-space-1);}Andrew Ayers's LinkedIn Performance

Performance ScoreKam Hossieny's LinkedIn Performance

Ready to grow your LinkedIn presence?

Performance ScoreAndrew Ayers's LinkedIn Performance