A brief conversation about ETF’s

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I get phone calls and messages almost everyday from different mutual fund wholesalers (and internals), calling to introduce themselves to me. On the off chance they get through to me, this is how the conversation goes typically:

1. First, they introduce themselves and their company… then…
2. they present a sales idea involving their mutual funds
3. finally, they want to know where their funds fit into my business.

Do you know what my answer is?

Well, you probably don’t, but if you’ve been reading this blog, you may be able to figure it out. The first thing I usually say is, “I appreciate your time but I use mostly ETF’s to build our investment portfolios.” This is usually followed by a remark on the other end of the line, something to the effect of, “I can understand that but our ABCDE fund has this and that….and these bells and those whistles…”

I once again say something like, “I really appreciate you calling me but there is little room for that in most of our portfolios, I’ll call you if I need anything.” I can hear the slight disappointment in his/her voice as they hang up the phone. A part of me feels bad for them because that’s a pretty hard job to have.

Believe you me, I know what it’s like to call people all day and get little to no response. I cold called for nearly a year, 250 dials a day and got hung up on and cursed out all day long. At least it’s not that bad for them. But I digress…

More and more familiar with ETF’s

Now this type of phone exchange is something mutual fund wholesalers (salespeople) are hearing more and more these days, as ETF’s have grown tremendously in popularity over the last decade. (If you don’t know the basics on ETF’s click on this link)

Please understand, I’m not close minded and unwilling to use mutual funds (especially in retirement accounts) but with so many excellent ETF’s to choose from it’s making it harder and harder for most mutual funds to compete.

Heck, I’m even starting to get phone calls from ETF wholesalers now, what’s the world coming to…

Tags: ETF, Mutual Funds