For those of you that own or work for an established firm, or are going to be starting in the business soon, what would be the ideal method of compensation upon which to build a practice? 

Assets under management?
Financial planning retainer?
Hourly?
Percentage of income?
OR a combination of any of these?

Also, is the money management element of a financial practice worth it? Or is “consulting” the way to go?  In other words, have online discount brokerages and account aggregation services begun to thin the information divide between planners and clients, with free performance reports and cash flow models a google away?

Note: This is not a “how do I milk my clients of as much money as I can” post, but a question regarding how one would start a practice given the flexibility of the RIA path and the rapid pace of RIA technology development.