“Seek advice on risk from the wealthy who still take risks, not friends who dare nothing more than a football bet.” – J. Paul Getty
You can’t blame an everyday person for being skeptical about online investment advisors. When it comes to money, most of us are preconditioned to be protective about what we have and risk-averse about what we invest. Nobody wants to get “taken,” and many of us still see the internet as an untamed landscape where takers roam the streets.
So, when considering whether to retain the services of an online stock advisory service like Gorilla Trades, it’s perfectly reasonable to wonder whether you’ll get enough in return for the expense and time you invest. Just what are you getting into – and is it worth it?
Are stock advisory services worth it?
What are they anyway?
Just like the phrase suggests, stock advisory services are online resources that help investors pick stocks for their portfolios. They’re like digital versions of personal investment advisors and stockbrokers in the physical world — with a couple of very significant differences.
The people behind online stock advisory services, by and large, have extensive, public backgrounds in securities investing. Some have worked for big investment firms on Wall Street. Some have experience as business journalists and writers. Others have doctorates in subjects like macroeconomics.
Every stock advisory service has a different business model and method of distributing its information. But they all essentially do the same thing. They use market analysis and research to find stocks they believe offer the most promising returns on their subscribers’ investments. These picks are issued via email newsletters, alerts, online articles, or other announcements.
Subscribers pay a fee, usually annually, to access all this information. This fee can be quite expensive, especially for investors who don’t have a lot of money tied up in the stock market. Traders who have more capital invested in securities may consider these subscription fees just drops in the bucket.
Why are they different from “human” advisers?
One big difference between online stock advisors and real-world investment firms and financial consultants is the investing mindset. When you hire a financial advisor in the “real” world, they conform their recommendations to your specific financial goals. If you’re a passive investor who wants to leave most of your money alone in a safe place, a financial advisor will craft a strategy to achieve those goals.
Online stock advisory services, however, are more geared to finding the most profitable stocks. They lean away from rock-solid blue-chip companies that won’t lose money but don’t always generate huge dividends. Stock advisory services instead look for growth stocks: companies that have small-to-average market exposure but are expected to generate an outsized profit in the fairly near future.
Another way of looking at stock advisory services is that their general goal is not just to “grow along” with the stock market, as a financial advisor might suggest. Rather, stock advisory services seek to beat the stock market and help subscribers grow their investments at a substantially higher rate than the stock market indexes will.
Naturally, there’s an element of risk involved with stock advisory services. But there’s a risk with all aspects of the stock market. Experts behind stock advisory services try to mitigate that risk by conducting thorough analyses and offering sound reasoning behind the stocks they pick.
What are the benefits?
They do the analysis for you. The most pertinent selling point of stock advisory services is that they do all the legwork. They pull the numbers, make quantitative and qualitative reasonings, bury themselves in research, and conclude what stocks to invest in. That’s what most everyday investors want since they don’t have deep expertise or day-to-day experience in analyzing the stock market. They may not have a lot of time to devote to that research, either.
The more you invest, the more valuable they are. Subscription fees for stock advisory services are all over the map. Some offer their service for annual fees of $100 or less. Others cost upwards of $1,000 a year, and a few run more than $5,000. All of them represent a considerable expense. But if you’re investing a fair share of money in stocks, many of the mid-range services may pay for themselves after a month or two of steady gains. Some may not even take that long.
They’re right more often than they’re wrong. Stock market analysts would not stay in business if they kept making the wrong decisions. If an online stock advisory service has more than a few years of operation under its belt, you can safely assume that the majority of their stock picks have turned out to be the right calls.
They use hard data. Stock advisory services don’t work on “hunches.” Gut feelings play an extremely small role in their analyses if any. Investment research is based on actual statistics: past results, current financials, reasonable projections, market, and consumer trends — numbers that have hard values. Emotions should never enter into the picture of stock decisions. Advisory services understand that, and they’re as empirical and fact-based as they can be.
Some drawbacks
They charge a fee. The cost of admission is probably the most common obstacle when it comes to signing up with a stock advisory service. What’s more, the range of fees a stock advisory service might charge varies widely. Those new to the stock market might balk at the sticker shock of some of these services, especially those charging four figures or more for annual dues.
Not all stock advisors are reputable. The internet’s still a relatively new frontier. It allows access to both trusted, reliable advisors and those with questionable tactics, or scammers. It can be difficult to tell the difference between those who rely on solid tactics and those who are out to make a quick buck, especially in this era of “hot takes” and sensationalist media.
Passive investors may not need them. Conservative investors who just want to keep their money safe may not have much need for stock advisors who try to steer their subscribers towards promising growth stocks. The lower the risk an investor is willing to take, the less guidance they probably need.
They’re not always right. No stock advisory service is going to be 100% right all of the time. That’s reflective of the ingrained unpredictability of the stock market.
These are all solid concerns for the wary online investor — but we do have some level-headed responses to them:
-All stock advisors, whether online or in-person, charge people who use their services. Some charge additional fees as commissions, especially those in the physical world. Many online stock advisors offer solid financial advice that ultimately saves more upfront money than a personal, live advisor.
-You’ll usually find that a shady online investment advisor — or any disreputable online service — will be cagey or reluctant about what they do. The best, most reputable services don’t mind explaining their methods and are transparent about their operations.
-Online stock advisors concentrate more on helping subscribers profit from growth stocks, rather than value stocks. But the better ones do so responsibly. Most will advise you to put a percentage of your capital investments in a solid, dependable blue-chip stock as a foundation while helping you find growth stocks to enhance and increase your profit potential.
-Even the most successful stock investors of our time don’t bat 1.000; even Warren Buffett has hit a clunker or two in his lifetime. You’ll always entail some risk when investing in stocks. Stock advisory services try to mitigate that risk with intensive, patient, data-based research. With the best ones, you’ll turn enough profit to lessen the impact of your losses.
What to look for
If you’re ready to take the dive and sign up with an online stock advisory service, here are some qualities the best ones will always have:
Proven success. Stock advisory services should display net-positive results on their investment portfolios. They’ll have both winning and losing stocks — but the winners will far outweigh the losers.
A long history. Simply put, a stock advisory service that doesn’t give sound advice won’t be around for long, whether it’s online or not. If the advisors you consider are still around after a couple of decades, that’s an impressive sign that they’re stable, sound, and doing the right thing.
Complete transparency. Reputable online services that benefit their customer bases have nothing to hide about their methods. They’ll always be upfront about what’s working in their portfolio and what’s not.
Clear, understandable strategy. You don’t have to understand every single in-depth calculation an online stock advisor might make in their line of work — but you should be able to grasp the thought behind each step in their strategy. And they should have the patience to explain them to you, so you comprehend it fully.
Policies that back up reputation.
Free trials and money-back guarantees aren’t just hustler come-ons. Online stock advisory services offer them as stakes on their credibility.
Are stock advisory services worth it? Decide yourself with Gorilla Trades
Gorilla Trades understands you have plenty of fair questions about trusting online stock advisory services. That’s why we go the extra mile to ensure you’re aware and informed of every step in our methodology. We always encourage our subscribers to make reasoned, informed decisions about their investment strategies, even if they get advice from us.
We’ve helped everyday investors earn substantial profits since 1999, using a straightforward, easy-to-execute strategy that’s easy to grasp and simple to execute. We’re more than happy to explain our process before you sign up and answer any questions you have. Contact us today to find out more and start a free limited trial.