Showing posts with label thought leaders. Show all posts
Showing posts with label thought leaders. Show all posts

Sunday, October 11, 2009

Julie Littlechild, Advisor Impact, Client Audit

Hello – my name is Julie Littlechild and I’m the President of Advisor Impact and the creator of the Client Audit, a client feedback tool for financial advisors.

The #1 thing that I believe advisors need to do is to clearly define and communicate their value to clients. And I think I’m backed up by the more than 70,000 clients we’ve surveyed over the last several years about what they need, want and expect.

The good news is that overall satisfaction has held strong in the last year. The bad news is that it doesn’t matter that much. What we’ve found is that there are two groups of clients. Both groups would define themselves as satisfied, overall, and both would describe themselves as dissatisfied with investment performance. That’s where the similarities stop. For the first group their dim view on the market is creating a negative halo – they said they have no confidence in their plan for the future and don’t feel their advisor has managed the relationship proactively. The second group, however, may be dissatisfied with investment performance but can see their plan forward and feels the advisor is managing the relationship. Advisors with more clients in the second group have done a better job of defining their value and creating a disconnect between market performance and the value of advice. In the process, those advisors have reduced risk.

So what can we do? I believe that advisors need to define and then communicate their value. They need to be able to clearly explain to clients what they do for them in words that are meaningful for clients. They need to document that value, from fundamentals such as contact levels to descriptions of the planning process. Consider creating a service agreement as a tactical approach to communicating your value. Research shows a clear connection between client engagement and knowing what kind of service they can expect. We also know that if your clients can’t clearly describe the value you provide, they’ll never be in a position to tell anyone else, and that will have an impact on referrals.

If you’d like to learn more about our Client Audit process, visit www.advisorimpact.com

Sheryl Garrett, Garrett Planning Network

Hi, I’m Sheryl Garrett, founder of the Garrett Planning Network - a network of fee-only advisors offering hourly, as-needed financial planning.

The number one thing I want advisors to be thinking about is that our emerging profession is on the verge of–potentially–the most important re-regulation of investment advisors ever. The public at large has little or no understanding of what a financial planning professional does, nor do they have faith in the financial markets or financial advisors.

To truly evolve into a respected profession, we must get politically active now! The proposed re-regulation of all those that render investment advice needs to be clear, powerful and client-centered. To truly emerge as a profession, we must make competent, objective financial advice accessible to ALL people.

We must have regulatory reform that ensures that all consumers of financial advice can trust that advice to be rendered by competent fiduciaries. Our society is desperate for quality advice from professionals they can trust to put their best interests first, always!

If you’d like to talk further about this issue, or learn more about the Garrett Planning Network, please contact me through my website, www.garrettplanningnetwork.com

Blaine Aikin, Fiduciary360

Hi. I’m Blaine Aikin, CEO of Fiduciary360, an organization focused on promoting a culture of fiduciary responsibility and improving the decision-making processes of investment fiduciaries.

The #1 thing advisors should have on their mind is that soon, every advisory relationship will need to be treated as a fiduciary relationship. This change is happening, and soon will be made necessary either through new legislation and regulation or because the market will demand it. Either way, advisors need to be prepared for it.

The debate on financial regulatory reform has moved beyond whether or not a fiduciary standard will apply for advisory relationships, and on to how it will be applied and who will be charged with oversight. Once the details are decided comes the task of compliance. But advisors who are already following processes to the highest standard possible won’t have to worry about playing catch up.

Meanwhile, the financial crisis has caused investors to become more distrustful, while also becoming more informed than ever. Those advisors who are fiduciaries are reaping the benefits as more new clients want the assurance that a fiduciary standard of care provides.

Implementing fiduciary processes now puts advisors both ahead of the compliance curve for when a fiduciary standard is implemented and gives them a competitive advantage for new clients.

If you’d like to learn more about this important issue further, I invite you to visit www.fi360.com

Deborah Fox, Fox College Funding, Fox Financial Planning Network

Hello. My name is Deborah Fox. I have been a practicing financial planner for 25 years and have personally coached many financial advisors all over the country. I am best known in our industry as the founder of Fox College Funding, a specialty planning company. Just this year, I have introduced a new training program for financial advisors called Fox Financial Planning Network, a complete financial planning delivery system. If you want to learn more about me or my programs, just put “Deborah Fox financial planning” in a Google search or stop by booth #651 – “The Industry Thought Leaders’ booth”.

My message today is “Systematize, Document and Delegate.” Over the years, I have come to realize advisors who master and implement these three things are likely to not only have built a best-in-class practice, but also be in a position where they truly enjoy their work and can live a balanced life. Do you feel like you work too many hours and your practice is in disarray? Michael Gerber, author of The E-Myth points out that when most people go into business for themselves, they don’t run a business, they merely create a 12 hour-a-day, 6 or 7 day-a-week job for themselves.

What’s the solution? Every client service you deliver should be systematized, documented and then assigned to a person who is responsible for delivering that service. Whether it’s a back office task or something that is done in front of the client, there should be an order and a system for everything you do. By designing a workflow for your practice and then delegating tasks that you personally shouldn’t be spending time on, you can stop working a job and start living the life of a true entrepreneur by having time for the things that are important to you in your life.

Systematizing and documenting your practice can also make possible for you to offer a higher level of service to your clients and can prevent you from being left in a debilitating position if you lose a key member of your team. Ever since I documented my entire practice, I have been able to focus on the higher level activities of my practice that I am both good at and enjoy doing. This is just part of what I teach through the Fox Financial Planning Network where I literally hand over to you all the documented mechanics of my complete financial planning process.

If you'd like to learn more, visit my website, www.advisortrainingcenter.com.

Susan Galvan, Galvanic Communications

Hello, my name is Susan Galvan. I was co-founder of the Kinder Institute of Life Planning. The last two years I've had my own company, Galvanic Communications.

The quality that planners need to bear most in mind going into 2010 is Trust. Over the past year or so, there have been many challenges to trust in the relationship between planners and clients. Not because planners themselves are lacking in that area, but because circumstances have been so tumultuous that there's been a lot of confusion for everyone. We can all agree that trust forms the cornerstone - the foundation - of the planner/client relationship.

To begin re-building this trust, we need to see a change in the industry to a more client-centered, fiduciary approach. The question is, how do we make that change from being a sales-based culture to being a service-based culture?

First, we must realize that it takes a skill set of both communication and relationship skills that facilitate a relationship of trust. Additionally, I would recommend broadening your view of the planner/client relationship going forward. We should examine how our profession can shift towards a more holistic approach, ensuring that the planner helps a client look at all dimensions of their life. Finally, we need to integrate the financial with the personal to get a better picture of what the whole can be within the financial planning framework.

If you'd like more information, go to our website at www.galvaniccommunications.com, or contact me at galvanic@thegrid.net

Brett S. Ellen, American Financial Network / Securities America

Hello. My name is Brett S. Ellen, president and CEO of American Financial Network.

The one thing I want advisors today to ask themselves is “Am I really covering all of my clients’ needs or am I only focusing on their personal finance?” It is a big world out there with untapped opportunities, especially among business owners and senior executives with an array of business-related financial challenges.

These challenges might have to do with corporate benefit programs, deferred compensation solutions, tax strategies or insurance plans and your clients may want help with these issues. As their trusted advisor, you are in a perfect position to provide the resources and support they need. Not only can you add value to your client relationships, but the growth opportunity for your practice is real, as well.

There are more than 275,000 mid-market companies in the United States. With revenues between $5 million and $500 million, these businesses generally have a small group of decision makers who can listen to recommendations from trusted advisors and make decisions quickly about how to move forward. Imagine the value you’d bring to your business-owner clients if you could be their go-to advisor for all of their business-related issues.

One way I’ve built a successful practice is by utilizing a brain trust of fellow professionals called the Financial Solutions Alliance. I use the alliance, along with the resources offered to me through Securities America where I have consistently ranked as one of their top advisors and registered representatives, to augment my financial planning and wealth management services. The breadth of expertise of the alliance partners includes accounting, investment banking, business consulting, law, real estate and other services. Developing relationships through our alliance allows each member - and their clients - to benefit from our collective knowledge, experience and independent point of view.

It would be nearly impossible for an individual financial advisor to have the range and depth of expertise in all of these areas. But with the team approach, it makes each of the alliance members more valuable to their clients.

Over the years, I’ve been approached by many advisors, asking how I have expanded my practice to its current size - which is approximately $1 B in assets under advisement. If you are interested in learning more about my approach, visit my website, www.afn-net.com.

Geoff Davey, FinaMetrica

Hello. I’m Geoff Davey, co-founder of FinaMetrica, a psychometrics-based risk profiling software company. Prior to founding my company, I was a financial planner for 20 years.

In this current market environment, I believe that the number one thing advisors should be thinking about is how to turn the negatives of the past 12-18 months into a positive for themselves and their clients, and into opportunities to convert prospects into clients.

Risk has been very evident recently and many would be unsure about where they stand and what they should be doing. Now is a good time to be doing a risk-based review with clients.

The best place to start a risk-based discussion is with an objective assessment of your client’s risk tolerance - and for couples, individual assessments of both. They and you need an objective starting point now that the turmoil has subsided. They and you need to be confident that their new plans are soundly based, and risk tolerance is a critical base point.

Prospects won’t need any persuading that their risk tolerance is important as is your understanding of it. Your ability to demonstrate expertise in risk tolerance assessment will be a big marketing plus.

The industry standard approach to risk tolerance has always been theoretically flawed and these flaws came home to roost in the Global Financial Crisis.

The only way to make a valid and reliable assessment of a client’s risk tolerance is with a properly-constructed, plain-English, psychometric test - everything else is rubbish!

Take this best-practice opportunity to reinforce relationships with existing clients and build relationships with new clients. If you’d like to learn more about psychometric-based risk tolerance assesments, visit www.riskprofiling.com

Scott Hanson, Hanson McClain Retirement Network

Hi. I’m Scott Hanson, CEO of Hanson McClain Advisors and co-founder of the Hanson McClain Retirement Network. I’ve been a financial professional for almost 20 years and have seen a lot of change in the industry during that time.

The #1 thing that I feel advisors should recognize is that if they don’t have a market niche that they are focused on, they are dead in the water. While that may sound like an extreme statement, I am quite certain that our industry is much like the medical profession. We all know that the general practitioner is a dinosaur. Specialization is the name of the game in medicine, and it’s the wave of the future for financial advisors.

Niche marketing not only enables you to become well-versed in the needs of your chosen market segment. It also allows you to build systems and processes into your practice that help increase your efficiency and improve profitability. This is especially true if you serve the mass-affluent, whose needs, for the most part, are not highly complex.

In my firm, for instance, we focus on employees in the telecommunications and utilities industries. We make it our business to know the details of the companies’ retirement plans so that when the employee retires or when an offer for early retirement is on the table, we can help them make the best decisions and complete the necessary paperwork. Because of the depth of our expertise, we have been able to connect with employees prior to their retirement, providing education and building relationships so that we are the advisor of choice when an individual is ready to make the move. We view what we are doing in these companies and industries as “ground-swell marketing” - a few people in a company get to know us and word spreads rapidly. Employees eagerly attend our retirement education seminars because they know that what they learn will apply directly to their situation. This approach has enabled us to keep the pipeline full, which, as you well know, is the key to a thriving practice.

Whatever niche you choose to serve, whether it’s based on client segmentation or technical expertise, you want to be sure that you are proactive in learning all there is to know about current and perspective clients’ needs. If you’d like to learn more about how we do that at Hanson McClain, visit www.moneymatters.com, or read about one of our network members, Patty Larrimore, in What's Next, the cover story in the September issue of Financial Planning magazine.

There are no secrets to what we do. But, like anything else, it’s all in the execution.

Jill Hollander, Financial Connections Group

Hello, my name is Jill Hollander. I am founder of Financial Connections Group in the San Francisco Bay Area. I've been a fee-only financial planner and investment manager since 1993.

Marie has asked the question "what is the number one thing that financial planners should be mindful of as we move into 2010, and beyond?”

I think the number one characteristic we must have is adaptability. The dictionary says To Adapt implies a modification according to changing circumstances. A scientific definition is “the behavior that enables an organism to function effectively.”

Haven’t we all had to decide how to adapt? And function effectively for our clients based on recent dramatic events?

We decided to view last year as an opportunity.

One of the ways my firm adapted to the events of last year was to introduce periodic conference calls. Initially, we did not have the means to create this event so our technology grew in the process.

Our clients appreciated the commentary provided. We are able to “touch” them in an efficient manner, always encouraging them to come and see us. It is difficult to gauge how much is too much communication so it loses its effectiveness. It’s a little like Goldilocks trying to find the porridge that is “just right.”

With so many people having the foundation of their financial future shaken, we took the opportunity to modify and fine tune our hourly financial planning practice. We joined the Garrett Planning Network and blended our model and theirs. We hired a planner who just passed the CFP exam to help us with this offering. While it temporarily reduces our profit, we feel it is a down payment on a future revenue stream while helping people during this difficult period.

Going forward, I think our clients need us to be the voice of reason—to separate fact from fiction, knowledge from noise.

I think the trick to moving into 2010 and beyond is to challenge your own philosophy. And, if we continue to believe it is appropriate going forward, stick to it. However it is also necessary to stay flexible as the world around us does change and adapt to those changes that seem applicable to your clients. We have to be able to separate the latest fad or trend in favor of adaptability that promotes our clients’ well-being.

It’s never dull being a contrarian!

If you'd like to dialogue further, my website is www.financialconnections.com

Marie Swift, Impact Communications - Closing Comments

This has been a wonderful session. What a variety of great ideas! Thank you to all of our Thought Leaders -- and to all of you who took time away from the exhibit hall (and your lunch!) to be with us today. It is truly an honor to be here with all of you.

During FPA Anaheim: Be sure to stop by Booth #651 - the Industry Thought Leaders booth - and do continue the conversation at http://www.twitter.com/fpAssociation and http://www.fpatwitterlive.blogspot.com.

Sunday, October 4, 2009

FPA Twitter Live! with Industry Thought Leaders

Join marketing communications guru, Marie Swift, and 20 industry Thought Leaders for a new and exciting session - FPA Twitter Live!

Each Thought Leader will have two minutes to answer the question: "What is the number one thing that financial planners should be mindful of as we move into 2010 and beyond?"

This session will be in the FPA Learning Center in the Exhibit Hall.

Sunday, October 11, 2009
1:15 PM - 2:00 PM
Live Presentation

Be on time as this session will move FAST, from one Thought Leader to the next, and you won't want to miss a single thought. Who will join Marie Swift on stage at the FPA Twitter Live! session? Show up and find out!

Twitter Feeds and Blog postings will occur in real time Sunday October 11, 2009.

Can't be there in person? SIGN UP NOW to follow @fpAssociation on http://www.twitter.com. You'll get live Twitter feeds, in real time, direct from the conference room floor.

Watch http://www.twitter.com/fpAssociation for snippets of their wisdom and links to relevant information.

We'll also be posting blog entries and video clips here on http://www.fpatwitterlive.blogspot.com.

Conference information here: http://www.fpaannualconference.org

Full schedule of conference events here: http://www.fpaannualconference.org/ProgramSchedule/Sessions/FullSchedule/

Spread the word!