A Redtail Technology survey found that 76% of advisors said face-to-face meetings produce the best client engagement, while 66% said phone calls do. Redtail said the survey shows advisors are missing out on opportunities to communicate with clients via the latest technologies, such as texting.

Author Matt Oechsli offers five steps for dealing with tough prospects that may turn them into good clients. Among them are to ask nonthreatening questions and to paraphrase the prospect's answer to show you are actively listening.

To be successful, financial advisory firm owners need to understand why they are in the business in the first place, writes consultant Jarrod Upton. He describes a three-part process owners can use to discover their "why."

One thing that helps tech companies succeed is presenting their businesses as providers of services rather than stuff, writes Joe Duran, CEO of United Capital. Advisory firms should do the same and differentiate themselves through the way they deliver products, such as "how accessible the delivery is, how personalized it is and how much it changes and evolves with your clients," Duran suggests.

Contributions to a Roth IRA can be a good holiday gift for children and grandchildren, but it's important to understand the tax rules for these accounts, write William Byrnes and Robert Bloink. They discuss how to properly fund and maintain a Kiddie Roth IRA.

A consistent presence is one of the key components to making social media work for your practice, writes marketing expert Mari Shirley. She outlines some best practices and offers other tips to make sure the time you invest in creating a solid social media presence will pay off for you.

Financial advisory firms must continue to expand the services they offer or risk losing out on clients, according to Scott Hanson of Allworth Financial. Small firms that can't offer additional services such as tax advice and estate planning should look to partner with others who can, he writes.

The Financial Industry Regulatory Authority has selected Amazon Web Services to host the consolidated audit trail. "We are collaborating to ensure that FINRA CAT can deliver an industry-leading platform that provides accessibility and transparency of capital-markets data to protect investors and the integrity of the financial market," says Teresa Carlson, vice president for worldwide public sector at AWS.

The US Supreme Court heard arguments over a class-action lawsuit from Intel employees who want to pursue claims over the choice of investments in their retirement accounts. One central issue in the dispute is whether the case was brought within the legally mandated time period.

Social Security and Medicare are separate programs, but they interact in certain ways. For example, Medicare premiums are typically subtracted automatically from Social Security benefits.