Proving your value to affluent clients

In your best clients' eyes, are you a knowledgeable, informed resource? Do you know about issues that are of greatest concern to your affluent clients? And if you're not an expert in a particular area of interest — and most clients understand that you can't know everything — do you have access to those who do know? Since you can't do and know everything, offering clients access to information such as white papers and research reports can be an effective way to share knowledge from experts and complement your own ideas. The challenge is finding the right materials. Advisers are typically so busy that many are not aware that some of the best materials are available at no cost from industry organizations and product companies. Some of these come already compliance-approved, but always check with your compliance department before using any materials. One Midwestern adviser I know, who assigns tasks and follow-up actions immediately following each client meeting, has several research pieces ready to deliver at each review. Clients welcome these materials — which can be delivered in person or through e-mail — because they want to stay on top of the latest developments. The first place to look for resources you can use is your firm's marketing department. Ask the wholesalers who visit your offices, and don't forget industry groups. The Washington-based Money Management Institute, for instance, recently released a white paper entitled “Understanding and Managing Investment Risk: A Resource Guide for Prudent Investors.” The piece was written by industry experts and addresses events leading to the global economic and market downturn. It details how to identify and understand key risk factors for investing, and then how to employ strategies to mitigate risk in various phases of investing. Check with your firm to see if it is a member and if you can access the member section of the mminst.org>MMI site. The key to leveraging third-party resources is to find a few timely pieces that have been approved by your compliance department, develop your own talking points based on them and then share your insights with clients — especially your affluent clients. Next week: Leveraging beneficiary audits with affluent clients.