How Erin Talks Money Built 415k YouTube Subscribers (and Why She Joined Root)

Most advisors get boxed in the second they pass their last exam. Study for the CFP, study for the Series exams, check the box — and somewhere along the way, the natural curiosity that made you good at this in the first place quietly disappears. That's a problem, because the advisors who stay effective are the ones who never stop treating this business like something to keep learning.

This week James sits down with Erin Moriarty of Erin Talks Money — a 415K-subscriber finance channel built almost entirely on research, not recycled rules of thumb. Most creators (and most advisors) lean on the same tired talking points because it's easier. Erin's built her entire audience by doing the opposite, and this conversation gets into exactly how.

You'll hear how Erin turns dense research into content the "average Joe" can actually use, why she said no the first time Root approached her about a partnership, and what finally changed her mind. If you communicate with clients — or you're a creator trying to build real trust with an audience — this episode is a masterclass in doing it without sounding like everyone else.

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Advisory services are offered through Root Financial Partners, LLC, an SEC-registered investment adviser. This content is intended for informational and educational purposes only and should not be considered personalized investment, tax, or legal advice. Viewing this content does not create an advisory relationship. We do not provide tax preparation or legal services. Always consult an investment, tax or legal professional regarding your specific situation.

The strategies, case studies, and examples discussed may not be suitable for everyone. They are hypothetical and for illustrative and educational purposes only. They do not reflect actual client results and are not guarantees of future performance. All investments involve risk, including the potential loss of principal.

Comments reflect the views of individual users and do not necessarily represent the views of Root Financial. They are not verified, may not be accurate, and should not be considered testimonials or endorsements

Participation in the Retirement Planning Academy or Early Retirement Academy does not create an advisory relationship with Root Financial. These programs are educational in nature and are not a substitute for personalized financial advice. Advisory services are offered only under a written agreement with Root Financial.

Transcript

Meet Erin Talks Money

SPEAKER_00 0:00

Hey everybody, welcome back to another episode of the Root Ready Podcast. Very special guest on today's podcast following a fun uh announcement and launch last week. Today I get the privilege and the honor of speaking with Aaron Moriarty. Aaron, welcome to the show.

SPEAKER_01 0:16

Thanks for having me.

SPEAKER_00 0:18

I wanted to bring you on because for those who don't know you, you are an incredible YouTube creator. I'll just say creator in general, but with YouTube as a big presence. And for too many advisors I feel in the industry, we get in the sense of, even if we go back before becoming an advisor, there's this sense of school has so many benefits. Learning obviously has so many benefits, but you it can get to this point where it feels so rigid and structured of here's exactly what you need to know and exactly what you need to learn. But you lose sight of just like the natural curiosity or the natural learning process, maybe gets stifled a little bit. And I think it's, I would say, I'm I very strongly believe that it's the same thing in the financial advisor industry. Uh we get so programmed to say study for the CFP and study for the series exams and study for whatever, which all have very helpful components to them. But we lose sight of that natural curiosity of treating this like something to be learned, something where there's a whole bunch of nooks and crevices and nuance to everything that we can do. And uh in losing sight of that, we are we can lose our effectiveness as advisors. And one thing that I love about your channel is you do so much that's not just sane, the same repeated, almost tired message that's almost uh it just becomes boring. You hear it so much. You uh have this seemingly thirst to learn and con continues to like to push yourself and do research. And so I just wanted to learn more about your journey into creating content and where that came from. But is that before we start, is that fair? Do you feel like there's a natural curiosity you have towards just learning and learning about money in particular?

SPEAKER_01 2:04

Yeah, I think um I I have it around finance, but I also think that I'm just curious in life. Um, I have some unique passions that I'm usually researching, which would be planets and space. I just watched a huge documentary on Saturn. So I have a lot of facts on Saturn if you're looking about that. Um, World War II. Um predominantly it is finance. You know, I'm reading a book every single night as I go to bed. Um I have more books than I can count on my shelves. If I see a new release in finance, if I see a new study that was done, I find them fascinating. So yes, constantly reading.

How a Love of Learning Turned Into a YouTube CareerThe Books That Started It

SPEAKER_00 2:43

When did that start? Has that just been something that was always part of you, learning and reading about finance, or is there a point in time that that became an interest?

SPEAKER_01 2:51

Uh I started reading about finance like around 16. One of the first books I read was Dave Ramsey, Total Money Makeover. So I'm like, oh, I guess we'll just never go into debt because at 16 I didn't have any. Um and then I remember an early book I read was Millionaire Next Door and Automatic Millionaire, um, Rich Dad, Poor Dad, all the classics that were coming out in the late 90s, early 2000s. And it was just kind of this concept that if you have control of your money, you have control of your life. And so I would live in bookstores and I would live in the library and like I said, just constantly learning.

SPEAKER_00 3:27

When did you get to the point where you you shifted from just constantly learning, as you're still doing, but say now I'm gonna start being the one that teaches some of this and I'm gonna put a camera in front of my face and record it and upload that to YouTube?

SPEAKER_01 3:42

I would actually say it took me a very long time. Um I think a love of education runs in my family. My dad had this saying uh, education doesn't cost, it pays. So he he always wanted us to go and get however many degrees we wanted. And so I followed that. And I would say I was a professional student for probably a few too many years that I should have been. Um, but then you quickly learned that being a professional student does it get you an income. And so um, I got my degree in finance and I wasn't really using it because at the time I was running my own business in the dental field and it was doing well. So I kind of felt like my degree was sitting to the wayside, but finance was always something I was passionate about. So I wanted to find an avenue that I could use it in, which happened to be YouTube, because I'm like, oh, I could film a video at five in the morning. I could film a video on a Saturday. It allowed me time flexibility to explore something and also, you know, make mistakes along the way and I don't have to report to anyone. So it just allowed me to teach things that I liked and I felt like I knew a little bit about because I always think if you talk to someone, they probably know something more than you in one area or another. So I kind of hope that I'm talking to someone who's maybe one or two steps behind me on the path. I assume they're very well educated on finance, but maybe they're just looking to learn one more tidbit.

The First Video, 415K Subscribers & Going Full-Time

SPEAKER_00 5:14

I love it. Do you do you recall what your first video that you ever recorded was on?

SPEAKER_01 5:19

Um probably an emergency fund. I think that was the first one. Um, which I do believe is the foundation of every good financial plan. So I still believe that to this day. It is not online anymore when I started. I was terrified to look at the camera. And I would look to the side and I would read off a script because I just couldn't look forward and I was so shy. And, you know, thankfully YouTube broke that over the years, but I think it was an emergency fund.

SPEAKER_00 5:49

And how many years ago was that?

SPEAKER_01 5:52

Seven.

SPEAKER_00 5:53

Seven years ago. Very cool. So seven years later, what's your subscriber count at today? 400 and how many thousand people?

SPEAKER_01 6:00

415,000 as of this morning.

SPEAKER_00 6:03

Which is amazing. Going from uh just an interest in finance to uploading a frankly, at least compared to today, probably not very good video in an emergency fund to 415,000 subscribers, growing like crazy, um, impacting people across the country with their finances. Tens of millions of people haven't seen your content plus at this point. It's amazing. It's very cool. Um, what what does that look like day to day? You know, how how do you how frequently are you recording? How do you decide what to record? Like how much of your life is this, and how much of it's just like this is kind of a thing I do on the side, and I do it when I feel like it.

Behind the Scenes: How Much Work Goes Into One Video?

SPEAKER_01 6:44

It was something I did on the side for the first four and a half years. Um I worked a traditional eight to five job, and there was actually a time where I was working dual remote jobs. I don't necessarily recommend it, but it allows you to save a lot. So I was working two eight to five jobs and kind of had two computers that I was working on. And then I would do YouTube in the off hours. That was really hectic. Um and then I got to like year five, and I decided let's go all in on this. And it became 40, 50, 60 hours a week. I would say right now, and this has been true for the past year. I went as much in as you can go. I do a video five days a week, Monday through Friday. Some days I film one video a day, some days I film two videos a day, and then I can have a day off of filming, maybe Wednesday, because that way I don't get to put makeup on. Um, every once in a while you want to not be in front of a camera. But my day starts, and I'm usually filming at 8:30. Um, I take my morning to hang out with my son. He is two. I bike him to school, we get breakfast. Every parent out there can relate to that. Um, then I put makeup on. I sit in front of the camera, I do the thing that looks polished and professional, and then I upload it to editors who can go and make it beautiful. And then I sit down and I get in scrub muffin clothes and I write a new script. I read the research papers that are coming out. Um, and then I pick my son up from school, and then we hang out until it's bedtime. Then once he goes to bed, I go back to work. And I'm usually doing LinkedIn posts or Instagram or polishing up something that I want to change, like a description of. So I work too much right now, but I'm okay with that.

SPEAKER_00 8:33

I think that's a big misconception people have is they say, wow, Aaron, you're so incredibly polished. You did that, you know, one one take, that was a 15-minute video or 20-minute video. You must just you know crank these out like no problem. I think people don't see that's the tip of the iceberg in how much time you spend finding papers to research, reading those papers, constructing the outline, uh, the outtakes, the the uploads, the getting it back to my editors. So you if you're you know, how much time would you estimate goes into one video when it's all said and done? What does that look like?

SPEAKER_01 9:08

Um on my side, I would say at least a minimum of five hours. If it's a heavily researched one, I mean you might be beyond 10, 11, 12. Um, then I send it off to editors and we've got to count their time. It usually takes about five, six days to get it back. And my editors work very hard on finding a way to beautifully display these examples. And sometimes I look at them and I'm just like, good luck to you on this one.

unknown 9:39

Figure it out.

SPEAKER_01 9:40

And I'm like, this one's gonna be hard. But I believe in you because I don't have an art bone in my body. Nobody wants me to make these things beautiful. But if I they say the same thing, you know, sometimes they have a video that takes six, seven hours to edit, sometimes it's 20.

SPEAKER_00 9:56

Wow. So uh a lot of time to make it look like an effortless.

SPEAKER_01 10:03

And that's why the bloopers

The Secret to Explaining Complex Finance Simply

SPEAKER_01 10:04

are there.

SPEAKER_00 10:05

So for who anyone who hasn't seen Aaron's channel, go go check it out. Aaron Talks Money is a channel on YouTube, it's incredible. And and specifically for advisors, like learn from Erin, both in terms of the information she is saying that she's presenting. I think because so much of your content is research-based, it's not just this generic um, here's a few rules of thumb, cool. Go to the one of the reasons I have to imagine you are so popular with your audience and growing so quickly is there's a lot that you're bringing, like you are cramming so much into a relatively short video that you just mentioned. That's that's five, ten hours of your time plus several hours of editors' time. Like, there's so much that all advisors can learn from both what you're saying and in and more importantly, in some ways, I would say how you say it. Because I know it's we can get so into the weeds on this strategy and that strategy, and it's so cool in the spreadsheet. We forget that we're talking to humans and we can become robotic in terms of the way we say things. So, how did you master that part of what you do? Is that been natural to you, or did that come with lots and lots of reps?

SPEAKER_01 11:19

I would say it's something I've been practicing a very long time. Um, I had this amazing teacher in high school. His name was Mr. Bryant, and I took his class first in ninth grade. It was physical earth and space science. And then he also taught, I believe it was biology, but this is also 24 years ago. So bear with me on that. Um, but what I loved about him was that he was the best at explaining everything. There was never anything complex in the way that he would explain it. He explained it in a way you could always understand. And I feel like I could make a video where I'm using analytical terms or I could use textbook terms, but I don't feel like that would help anybody. I feel like the way you make someone excited about finance, which is sometimes not inherently an exciting subject to people, the way you do it is to kind of build the psychology into it. And my goal is always to explain things as simply as possible, but not more simple than necessary. So I want like the average Joe to be able to watch it and fully understand it.

SPEAKER_00 12:24

Yeah. Yeah. I I love that. You do a very good job of that. And again, for anyone listening, go watch the channel. If you want to get better as an advisor, what you know, you're not technically working as an advisor and working with clients, but the way you're speaking is the exact same way that advisors should practice and learn how to speak, which is speak simply, speak plainly, but learn how to take the most important aspects of whatever your message is and communicate that and that alone and get really, really good at that.

SPEAKER_01 12:55

I just feel like if um if somebody walks away from your conversation not understanding what you said, you're not serving them in any way. If you walk away with confusion, that doesn't help.

SPEAKER_00 13:06

Yeah. And if you can have the mindset of it's your fault that happened, not their fault, then you're that's good. Hey, you can improve, you can get better. And so knowledge is half the game, but the other half of the game is how you communicate that and as you're talking to a specific client. So

Why Erin Joined Root Creator Studio

SPEAKER_00 13:22

I think that is great. Now, I one thing that I'm I'm obviously very excited about, this just recently launched is Root Creator Studio. And as as we did that, it was it was our way of saying, how can we you know? So I'm on YouTube as well, not nearly as popular as good as what Aaron's do, and Ari's on YouTube. And the benefits of it are so incredible. Of so many people get to see this content, and and we get so many messages. I'm sure you I know you do too, of hey, I was able to retire because of watching Yule. I've learned so much from watching Yule. Like 99.9% of people who watch this, their lives can be better because of it. And then what it's done even for the business side is hey, we have a team of incredible advisors. And and if if we can grow and if they can serve their clients, not by going out and doing sales pitches to all their friends and family and people who don't need advisors, but instead people who are saying, Oh, I've learned so much from this channel, but I've gotten to this point where I don't want to do it by myself, where I'm realizing that I'm just I'm I I'm maybe not capable to do all the things that I need to do to fully implement this plan. There's a very natural path to say, okay, there's a really amazing advisory team that can work with me on this. And so Root Creator Studio is that say way of saying, how do we create more impact globally? But also how do we make sure for that for those people that are out there and say, man, I love what Aaron's talking about, I love what Aaron's doing. I don't know if I want to spend my retirement years doing that, or I don't know. Maybe I'm not capable to, or maybe there's some level of cognitive decline. Like I need to find someone I can trust to do that, that root can step in and be that for um for those individuals. So I would love to know from your perspective, because I know from my perspective, how I thought about this, but I approached you and I brought up this idea a while back now. What was your what was your initial reaction when I did that?

SPEAKER_01 15:15

Initially

Saying "No" at First & Learning to Trust Financial Advisors Again

SPEAKER_01 15:16

it was no, because I love the idea of DIYing it. And, you know, um, I love being able to talk about whatever I want without restriction. And I feel like the vast majority of people can manage their finances on their own because the vast majority of people do have simple situations.

SPEAKER_00 15:39

And what was it that after you felt that way, what changed?

SPEAKER_01 15:46

I repeatedly had people reaching out to me asking if I would manage their finances. And I have, I grew up in a family where I watched my grandma at one point being taken advantage of by a financial advisor. I've seen my dad taken advantage of by a financial advisor, and I've spoken pretty openly about this on my channel. My dad now has Alzheimer's, and it was that he was very easy as a target for a financial advisor. So I know that there are unethical advisors out there, and I know there are advisors who only try to pad their pocket and they don't look out for the client. So I started to research firms that I could potentially recommend someone to because not everyone wants to manage their finances, and that's okay. Not everyone wants to read the studies, or maybe their situation just feels complex. But when people were reaching out to me and I didn't have a direction to point them, I felt like I was letting them down.

SPEAKER_00 16:51

And what would you do prior to like what did you used to do when those people would reach out? Would you point them in the right direction, or do you just say, I'm sorry, I'm not able to help with it.

SPEAKER_01 17:00

I would just say, I'm sorry, I I don't work with individuals and I don't know of anyone that I can recommend. So it was kind of like a good luck situation, which doesn't feel good either, because I know that these are people who are watching my channel and I know they trust me. And it feels bad to like tell someone no and then also not give them another door to open.

SPEAKER_00 17:22

Yeah. Yeah. Um, and going back to when I when I initially approached you about this idea, and I've tried this with you, and you said no, is that to me that was actually a very good sign. Okay, this is the that Erin really does truly care about her audience. I think a lot of people create content in all different spaces, but it's it's a means to an end. It's okay, I'm I'm doing this because now I can get a brand partnership, or I'm doing this because whatever, I can I can put ads on this. And the game becomes get more views so I can get more dollars with whoever's gonna, you know, pay me to do an ad or to do a brand partnership, whatever it is. And when I approached and you said, No, I I I I really value you know my independence and being able to talk to my audience and say exactly what I think they need to hear. And and I said, that's exactly why um I think this would be such a good thing. Like I've been well, I we had a you know, we had had a relationship at this point, like we knew each other, we'd done some collaborations. And I was like, your your meth, like I if if I look at root and if I look at you, like I feel like um doing different things, but with the same ethos and the same philosophy at the core of it, which is um how one, like how do we use money as this thing that enables people to live the richest version of their lives possible, not just money to accumulate for the sake of accumulating forever and sacrificing life along the way. But then also doing right by clients is and and whether that's audience or whether that's clients itself, there has to be this desire that goes beyond just the technical and beyond just the business side of it, but the desire to have a real impact. And I saw that you had an amazing impact with your channel. I obviously saw the impact we can have directly with clients, and it just felt so natural. But what was like what was it en route that you said, okay, like I do feel like I can get comfortable with us. I feel like this could be a great um partnership where I can trust that if clients go there, they're gonna they're gonna have a great experience with the advisor they talk to.

SPEAKER_01 19:19

Um, it was kind of uh a couple layers. So

The Conversations That Changed Erin's Mind

SPEAKER_01 19:23

I kind of grilled you in the beginning. I think that's fair to say. Um, you also let me speak with advisors, so I saw how they approach things. You let me speak with other members of the team, you let me speak with clients because I wanted to know what that experience was on the client side, and I want to make sure that people felt taken care of. I wanted to make sure that they were advisors that care. And I would say that the most defining moments came from the advisors because I had a close relationship with um in a local um law firm. And I they were estate planners, but they also didn't care about their clients in the way that I felt like they should. If someone got sick or if someone passed away, it was kind of just like, oh, whatever, that's a Tuesday, and that happens in life. And I always felt like that was very cold, and that's why that relationship is not there. Um, it was the exact opposite at root. I spoke with one of the advisors at the beginning, and he was telling me about his very first experience as a CFP. And one of the clients, the husband and wife, are heading to his office, different cars. One client got T-boned and he passed away on the day he was supposed to be retiring. And as this advisor is telling me this, he's crying because this is something he truly cares about. Then there was another advisor who was talking about a cancer diagnosis and how they completely rearranged this husband and wife's plan because of her diagnosis. And it wasn't, it was something that was going to shorten her life. And they wanted to make sure they had enough life that they enjoyed before that happened. And again, you could hear the emotion in his voice. And I just think if the advisor cares, if they truly want to take care of that person, that is there. And that is something that's very prominent in Root, I would say. Everyone there has a heart and they truly care.

The Most Rewarding Part of Creating Financial Content

SPEAKER_00 21:20

Yeah, yeah, I love it. Um you just even go back to the beginning. You've been doing this for seven plus years now. You've had millions and tens of millions of people view your content. Talk to me, like, what's what impact have you seen from doing that? Whether it's emails you get from listeners or comments or running into people on the streets. Like, what's what's the coolest impact that you've seen as a creator doing what you do?

SPEAKER_01 21:48

Um, I would say it's the emails I get. Because I get emails maybe once a week saying, I retired two years early because I watched your content and I know I have enough. And so you gave us two years that my wife and I. get to travel or I get to go spend with my grandbabies that I would have otherwise been at a desk. Or someone said that they now have the confidence to handle their own money or they actually have a number that they can go towards where it was abstract before. So the people who really watch and get something out of it and they're like, hey, I figured out my situation and it's better than I thought. Or if I'm going to do an early retirement, maybe I don't need five million dollars. Maybe I can comfortably accomplish that with less. Like I want to give people hope and make them feel like I can do this.

The Biggest Retirement Mistake People Make

SPEAKER_00 22:30

Yeah. Yeah. I love it. Out of curiosity, because going back again just to something that advisors can take away and not being so focused on the textbook answer and the whatever what do you see like when you read your comments or when people email you, are there common themes of people of things that people are actively looking for that they don't feel like they're getting great information on that you can then give to them I would say the biggest one that I think is a misconception out there is how much you can spend from your portfolio.

SPEAKER_01 23:02

I hear so many people that they only want to spend the dividends and they never want to touch the principal or they only want to spend 2% and they're so worried about running out of money. And yes, these are concerns. You want your portfolio to last as long as you do and perhaps longer and pass it on to your heirs or a charity or whatever is important to you. But I also don't want people to spend 30 or 40 years saving up and then restrict their life for the next 30 years or so either. So I think it's finding that balance between spending and saving and then getting to the point where you give yourself permission to spend safely.

SPEAKER_00 23:36

Yeah.

Advice for Financial Creators Considering Partnerships

SPEAKER_00 23:37

Yeah. I love it. For other people who maybe want they they have the love of education and love specifically even the financial side and learning about this. And they either already are creators or they're thinking about it. How like how do you this move that we that that you've done right now, obviously first and foremost impacting all kinds of people on YouTube absolutely for free. You have an audience there people can get a a masterclass in what they need to do at zero cost other than their time. What would you say those creators though, like when does it make sense to be part of something whether it's a root creator studio or otherwise to take that next step and be able to be even more impactful for the people that you're I would say if you feel like it's a fit, if you feel like you have people who are reaching out for that, I'm not a big person to do partnerships or sponsorships just for the sake of money.

SPEAKER_01 24:38

I I have one sponsorship that I've done on my channel and now I've partnered with Root. But these are companies that I believe in. I could very well do a sponsored post every single day and I would make more money. But I also think my superpower is knowing when to say enough. I have a pretty simple life I can pay for it. I don't need more money. So if you feel like there is a need there, I felt like the people who were reaching out to me needed a place to go because these are people who wanted someone to help them with their finances and I didn't have a place to point them it solved a problem. I wouldn't do it just because you think hey this is the next best thing to do. When the need is there, then I think it matters.

SPEAKER_00 25:22

Yeah. I think that's a smart way to approach life stop trying to solve problems that don't exist yet but if something becomes a problem is there a solution for that that makes sense and aligns with the way that you're you're doing things well Aaron, this is great. Again, for anyone who's watching and who has not already done so check out Aaron's channel Aaron Talks Money. Learn a lot, learn how to communicate learn about finance, follow Aaron online. Outside of YouTube, where's the best place for people to follow you? Is it LinkedIn? Is it Instagram? Is it something else?

SPEAKER_01 25:52

On Instagram I kind of post, you know, me doing random things with my family. So that's you're not going to get financial content there, but you might see my dog. On LinkedIn I do post financial related content, sometimes little sneak peeks of videos before they go live. And if you send me a message on LinkedIn I will get back to you but it might take a couple days because we get a lot of messages there. Or you can send me an email erin talksmoney at gmail.com but primarily YouTube is where I live.

SPEAKER_00 26:20

Love it. So check out the YouTube channel you won't regret it. And Aaron, thank you for taking the time to come on and chat about your journey into content creation and the impact it can have.

SPEAKER_01 26:30

Thank you for having me.