Money clubs can often be though of as being similar to a sports team. Both are made up of members who are trying to work together to learn more about their trade, achieve an ultimate goal, and rely on the leadership of certain members more than others. Thus, the leaders of the money club are equivalent to the coaches of a football team. For every championship team there has to be a good game plan and all investment clubs that are worth their salt have formulated one. It is these strategies that play a key role in whether an individual should join a particular money club or not.

Choosing a Club

No highly touted high school athlete would choose to play for a college if they did not like the coach or the team’s on-field strategy. The same is true for investors as they should not join a money club if their personal investing approach is not in line with the overall approach of the club they are considering joining. Feeling comfortable with the club’s timeline, investment vehicle selections, and overall stability of the club is a key ingredient to deciding whether or not to invest.

Long Term

The very nature of a money club lends itself to long term thinking. This is because of the large number of members that are required to make each decision as well as the fact that the club does not meet everyday. Most money clubs meet about once every month. Therefore, investing strategies that favor long term outlooks are more investor club-friendly because it is very hard to get a large group to make decisions quickly.

Association

Investment clubs can join associations to gain credibility as well as benefit from any information that is provided to them through the association. The National Association of Investors Corporation (NAIC) is an association dedicated to helping existing money clubs as well as with the creation of new clubs. Half of the clubs that have joined this particular association have seen increased performance by outperforming the S&P 500. By using an association to supplement a money club, the club stands to benefit from the knowledge of other clubs in the association and gains an advantage based on shear numbers alone.