LIVE FROM FPA EXPERIENCE: 'Seller beware' atmosphere means need for new client approaches

With access to a broad array of investment information, wealth management choices and worldwide communication, clients are gaining the upperhand in their relationship with their adviser. Traditonally "the seller" has had more information and it's been a "buyer beware" situation, said Daniel Pink, author of "To Sell is Human: The Surprising Truth About Moving Others," at the Financial Planning Association national conference in Orlando on Saturday. New technology is giving more power to the consumer. "All kinds of markets have gone from those with information asymmetry to a world where consumers have lots of information, lots of choices and lots of ways to talk back," Mr. Pink said. "Now it's seller beware." Mr. Pink offered advisers a few unconventional tips for bringing today's clients on board and getting them to agree with investments and other decisions that are in their best interest. For one, he said that actually changing a client's mind on a particular issue or investment matters less than giving them a way to act on particular concerns. Giving clients a way to take a step forward with an investment or other idea may be more fruitful than spending too much time just trying to convince a client to buy into an entire strategy or concept. When "the facts are on your side," Mr. Pink said, asking clients some suggestive questions often beats providing those answers to clients.