By SAMANTHA ETTUS
Scripps Howard News Service
01-MAR-06

As tax season approaches many of us are looking for financial messiahs - experts who readily dispense advice - for free!  Suze Orman, the Martha Stewart of the financial universe, remains a superstar while paving the way for others to follow in her path.  Trusted by millions, Orman makes finance fun and approachable and the public craves her voice, as proven by her bestselling books, products and TV show. This week we take a look at the next wave of financial gurus - Jim Cramer, Dave Ramsey and Jean Chatzky.

Jean Chatzky
As the finance editor for The Today Show, editor for Money magazine, AOL's money coach and the author of four bestselling books, Chatzky is omnipresent in the media.  She has built her career slowly and steadily, first on Today and then as the pretty girl from Money, unassuming, just waiting to be discovered.   And with her likeable, soft spoken, brainy girl next door style, Chatzky has since been found.  Most recently she appeared as a debt coach on Oprah and she amasses more opportunities by the day.  Chatzky's appeal makes sense and cents: Her soothing and smart delivery provides the calm wisdom people seek in times of financial turmoil.  Her latest book declares war on debt and there is nobody better than the comforting Chatzky to deliver the message.

Dave Ramsey
Radio host Ramsey will soon be starring in a new CBS reality show, traveling across the country to help financially challenged families. Ramsey is a salt of the earth guy who learned his trade the hard way. After becoming a millionaire at age 26, he lost it all and sunk into personal bankruptcy.  But after pulling himself out of the mud, he applied his newfound financial savvy to proselytizing - both literally and figuratively spreading his message to the unconverted. He started a company to help others in financial distress and claims that his biblically based financial advice has helped millions, primarily through his wildly popular syndicated radio program. And with his new TV show, the number of converts is sure to multiply.  His credo, "Beat debt. Build Wealth", is a reflection of his signature style - straightforward and gruff. Yet his advice is easy to follow and, as Dr. Phil has shown, the market for tough love is bursting with buyers.

Jim Cramer
Cramer's CNBC show, Mad Money, magnifies his boisterous personality - akin to Seinfeld's George Costanza with a passion for finance. The ranting and screaming are his trademarks and he uses them to deliver investing advice to those who have already saved money and found their way out of debt. With his wide-ranging background - newspaper reporter, Harvard Law degree, a stint at a top investment bank, hedge fund manager, and a long time entrepreneur - he's lived more lives than a cat, but it's his latest incarnation that may be his most successful.  In the last three years Cramer has published three bestselling books, ratings for his TV show have skyrocketed, and his syndicated radio program has consistently thrived, while he continues to boast other fancy titles like financial columnist for tony New York Magazine and market commentator for thestreet.com, the online finance news hub which he founded. More Wall Street than Main Street, Cramer doesn't even attempt to be the finance guy for the masses.  He is the Wall Street man's finance guru and his focus is paying off. 

Remember: the most dependable road to the top is to treat your brand as your greatest asset.

(Samantha Ettus' latest book, "The Experts' Guide to Life at Home" (Random House) is now in bookstores. She welcomes your comments at Samantha@celebrityassets.com.)