TD Waterhouse opened its annual advisor conference today with two guidelines: no Schwab bashing and no strong-arm sales tactics. Nonetheless, Frank Petrilli, president and chief operating officer, started off with fightin’ words aimed at Schwab and Fidelity.

“We’re going after the behemoths in the industry,” he said to the audience of advisors. “We’ve got to outsmart them and outwork them.”

He also asked, “How’s our business model stacking up against our competition? Are we winning or losing? We are winning.”

TD Waterhouse is looking to bring on more advisors and also farm its customer base of 3.3 million direct retail clients who might be interested in hiring on an advisor. Petrilli said the company aims to have a branch within twenty-five miles of 85 percent of its customers. With recent openings, he said TD Waterhouse is close to that figure, but it also needs local advisors within its network to service those customers.

What is TD Waterhouse using to sell its services to advisors?

In an introductory video, the company put forth four focal points: service, technology, products, and overall business support. In a further cut to its competitors, the video featured “behind the scenes” footage of interviewees, shot from behind and exposing filming equipment. The shots emphasized the transparency and therefore non-predatory nature of the company, underscoring a key strategic ploy in its David and Goliath battle against its bi-coastal competitors.  

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