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4 Things I’ve Learned From The ETF Store Show

Nathan Geraci is President of The ETF Store, Inc. and host of the weekly radio show “The ETF Store Show“.

Nearly three years ago, we launched The ETF Store Show with the hope of providing an entertaining way to help educate investors on Exchange Traded Funds.  I always tell the story of walking into a local coffee shop back then and taking an informal poll on who had heard of ETFs and their potential benefits.  I might have been lucky to see one or two hands raised.  The sole reason we created The ETF Store Show was to help close this ETF knowledge gap and share our passion for an ETF-based approach to investing.  ETFs have come a long way since that time and we have been absolutely thrilled with the response to our show.  Most weeks, along with spotlighting ETFs and talking investment basics, we are very fortunate to be joined by leading experts from across the investment universe – top ETF providers, prominent research firms, award-winning authors, well-respected journalists, popular bloggers, etc.  As we approach the three-year anniversary of the show, I thought I might share four things I’ve learned from this amazing experience:

1. The level of ETF innovation is truly staggering. When I step back and think about the range of ETFs we have highlighted on the show, it is hard not to be blown away by the sheer innovation.  ETFs hedging currency exposure, ETFs weighting holdings by dividends or intrinsic value, ETFs tracking cybersecurity stocks or airline stocks, ETFs replicating hedge funds, gold and oil ETFs.  The list goes on and on.  Investors now have access to investments and investment strategies they could not have dreamed about ten years ago.  Even more incredible is the pace of innovation seems to be quickening.  Some have called ETFs the “Uber” of the investment world.  Simply based on the conversations we have each and every week on the show, I have to agree.
2. There are a lot of very smart, talented people in the ETF industry. While this may not come as a surprise to many, it is hard to overstate the level of intelligence that exists in the ETF arena.  Where there is groundbreaking innovation, you will typically find highly intelligent people.  They say talent flows to the greatest innovations and I believe ETFs have borne this out.  One of the true pleasures of hosting The ETF Store Show has been the opportunity to interact with some of the smartest minds investing has to offer.  I have learned exponentially more about investing over the past three years because of this experience.
3. Investor interest in ETFs continues to increase. When we first began broadcasting, I had zero background in radio and you would have been hard-pressed to find someone who heard of The ETF Store Show.  Three years later, the show has been downloaded in every state in the country and in over eighty countries around the world!  Given our humble beginnings and the fact that we are still a work in progress, this clearly illustrates increasing investor interest in ETFs.  While I like to think we do a decent job with the show, the bottom line is that investors are thirsting for more information on ETFs – wherever and however they can get it.
4. The future of ETFs is bright and investors will continue reaping the rewards. Over the past three years, I have noticed that no matter the specific ETF topic being discussed or the guest joining us, certain themes have a way of always working themselves back into the discussion:  lower investment costs, greater tax efficiency, more transparency, index-based investing, and diversification.  These are all potential benefits of investing in ETFs and combined with the aforementioned innovation and talent in the industry, it is easy to see why the future of ETFs is bright.  But more importantly, it is investors who are reaping the rewards.  ETFs have disrupted the mutual fund status quo and more often than not, disruptive innovation leads to positive change.  In the case of ETFs, it is investors who are benefitting most from this positive change.

I would like to take this opportunity to thank all of our wonderful listeners and guests for making The ETF Store Show something I look forward to each and every week.  We will continue striving to deliver value-added content on Exchange Traded Funds and as always, your feedback is welcomed!