We’ve all heard the clichés and seen the studies. People are more willing to talk about any other personal subject other than money… especially their own money. Nearly half of all Americans are afraid to talk about their personal finances, which likely explains why only half of Americans are invested in the stock market and even more are woefully unprepared for retirement.

To borrow a phrase from The Big Lebowski, the classic 1998 Coen Brothers film, “Investopedia does not abide!” This website has been dedicated to educating people about investing and finance since 1999 and we take every opportunity to further the ongoing conversation about money and financial planning.

That’s why we are delighted and honored to announce our inaugural Top 100 Most Influential Financial Advisors list.

The INVESTOPEDIA 100 recognizes financial advisors who spread the message of financial planning and retirement readiness—those with the greatest reach and impact across social media and content channels including TV, radio, blogs and books. Investopedia’s content sciences team identified advisors across the country who are best able to engage with their audience as measured by reach, frequency, engagement and media mentions. Those included on this list were also rated on the quality of the information they produced and shared across media channels. Tens or even hundreds of thousands of Twitter followers is not enough—their message needed to be sound, balanced, and truly useful to the public.

At Investopedia, our mission is to educate, inform and promote important conversations among investors and financial professionals of all levels, everywhere. This list is our salute to advisors who embody that same ethos and contribute thought leadership and industry insights as far and wide and as unselfishly as they can. We know and expect advisors to use these channels to grow their businesses. We admire and encourage this kind of marketing tactic, and we understand how these kinds of efforts can benefit investors at every stage of the wealth accumulation process.

In 2016 we launched Advisor Insights on Investopedia as a platform for advisors to share their expertise with our 25 million monthly users, and contribute their insights on the most important issues facing investors of all ages and incomes. The INVESTOPEDIA 100 is another opportunity for us to celebrate the enormous value that advisors contribute to that conversation.

On behalf of Investopedia and our millions of readers, we thank you and congratulate you. To see the full INVESTOPEDIA 100 list, click here.