Drake & Associates Doubles New Opportunities a Month With Advisor Video Ads
A Proven Local Playbook, Ready for More
Drake & Associates is a Wisconsin retirement planning firm started by Tony Drake, CFP®. Its advisors build straightforward plans for clients using their Retirement Ready Roadmap.
For years, many new clients came through dinner seminars and direct mail in its home market. It worked. But every year meant the same offer to the same people.
"You keep pounding the same market with direct mail. ... The amount of people that respond to that kind of advertising, they don't grow on trees."
For 2026, the firm wanted more good appointments for its advisors, at a reasonable cost. Director of Marketing Gleb Sergeyev led the search.
"We're looking to ... get people that are higher intent, right? Meaning that they do want to book right there in the spot."
Advisor Videos That Book Meetings on the Spot
Gleb found Clients Blackbox through his own search online. He chose us because our values lined up.
We started working together in May 2026. We write the scripts, Drake's advisors film them, and we edit the videos and run them on Meta.
Each video invites viewers to book a meeting with one of the advisors. No long sales process. No months of follow up.
One script, "Income Dilemma," really connected with people. So more Drake advisors filmed their own version of it.
“It's been the best performing campaign by a long shot.”
Gleb Sergeyev
Director of Marketing, Drake & Associates
Prospects can meet in person in Waukesha or Mequon, or by video call from anywhere in the country.
"Clients Blackbox, Inc. is very hands-on and meets all set deadlines."
All-Time Records in Three Months, and Still Climbing
Drake broke two all-time records in the same month. In July, the firm held more first appointments and brought on more new clients than ever before.
And the growth kept going. New opportunities per month doubled from May to October.
More of those opportunities are turning into real meetings. Discovery meetings held grew 72% from June to October.
Many of those meetings turn into clients. New families keep signing on every month, and October was an especially strong one.
They decide fast, too. Gleb says most new clients make their decision within two or three weeks of their first meeting.
The advisors who appear in the videos do best. They close about a third of their first meetings.
“People that record these ads, they are the people that probably benefit the most from those prospects.”
Gleb Sergeyev
Director of Marketing, Drake & Associates
Every month adds to the pipeline. This fall, the advisors' discovery calendars are booked weeks in advance.
"We're trying to obviously close out the year strong, but then also put us in a really good spot for 2027."
“Clients Blackbox knows the financial service industry very well.”
Gleb Sergeyev
Director of Marketing, Drake & Associates
"There's nothing they need to improve."
Results described are this firm's and are not typical. Volume, cost and close rates depend on each firm's market, offer, creative, advisor capacity and sales process.
Figures come from the client's CRM, campaign tracking and the client's own published review, and have not been independently audited. Appointments booked are not clients, and nothing here describes investment performance.
"Clients Blackbox, Inc. knows the financial service industry very well."
"Clients Blackbox, Inc. knows the financial service industry very well."
Gleb Sergeyev, Drake & Associates
Director of Marketing
Want to Scale Your RIA?
Book a call and we'll walk through the math for your firm. How many appointments you'd need, what the unit economics look like, and whether we're a fit.
FAQ
Answers based on what we've seen drive top performance across years of data.
First appointments typically hit the calendar within the first 1–2 weeks after launch. Month one is optimization. Month two is when things stabilize and become predictable.
2–3 hours of video recording every 3–6 months. That’s it. We handle everything else.
We’ve worked with over 250 financial firms and their compliance teams. We know what gets approved under Special Ad Category restrictions. We build compliant from the start and coordinate directly with your team.
Total marketing budget starts at $17,500 per month and ranges up to $120,000 depending on your goals, ad spend included. Engagements run on a 12 month minimum.
No. And you should be skeptical of any agency that does. Guarantees in this space are a red flag. They sell you a feeling, not a strategy. What we offer is a proven methodology, a team that has managed over $12 million in Meta ad spend for financial firms, and a track record of $60B+ in AUM pipeline generated across 250+ firms. The firms that follow our methodology and commit to the process see results. That's why we're selective about who we work with.
Most agencies try to do everything — Google, email, social, websites — and they’re mediocre at all of it. We only do Meta Ads for financial firms. We’ve spent over $12 million in this exact channel under Special Ad Category restrictions. We know what works because it’s all we do.
Good. Most of our clients do. We’re not replacing your marketing person or your agency. We’re adding the one capability they probably don’t have: Meta Ads at scale with branded video for financial services under Special Ad Category. We plug in alongside whatever else you’re running.
No. We do Meta Ads. That’s our entire focus. If you need those other services, we’re happy to recommend partners, but that’s not what we do.
Click the button below to apply. If it’s a fit, we’ll schedule a strategy session to walkthrough timelines, pricing, and how AUM OS would work for your firm.