SmartAsset

SmartAsset operates a consumer personal finance website that combines editorial content and calculators with an advisor matching service. Consumers answer a questionnaire (the "advisor match quiz"), review vetted fiduciary advisor matches serving their state, and can hold introductory calls with those advisors at no cost. The matching service is presented as free to the consumer.

The site also publishes a library of guides, calculators, reviews and rate information across retirement, taxes, investing and banking, mortgages, estate planning and trusts, including an "Ask an Advisor" format in which advisors answer reader questions, and a "SmartReads" content stream covering topics such as portfolio optimization, bypass trusts, HSAs, life insurance and dividend reporting. A newsletter, SmartMoney Minute, is distributed to subscribers.

On the supply side of the marketplace, SmartAsset sells investor referrals to registered investment advisors and financial advisors seeking high-net-worth clients through a product called AMP, which the company positions as connecting advisors with high-intent investors.

Business model

Two-sided marketplace: free consumer-facing content, calculators and an advisor matching quiz attract investors, while registered investment advisors and financial advisors pay to receive investor referrals and leads through the AMP product.

Monetization comes from the advisor side of the marketplace via investor referral/lead generation subscriptions (AMP) sold to RIAs and financial advisors; the consumer matching service is offered at no cost.

Traction

The company states that over 50,000 investors visit the site each month looking for fiduciary advisors, that thousands of advisors use the platform to connect with investors monthly, and that its SmartMoney Minute newsletter reaches more than 850,000 readers.