Infuse meaning in milestones to attract, retain women clients

If there’s one lesson from the collective trauma of the past two years, it’s that life’s too short to postpone either planning or pleasure.

Many women advisers are uniquely equipped to catalyze clients’ clarified values into plans and action, said presenters at the InvestmentNews Women Adviser Summit Wednesday in Chicago.

“What people perceive as male characteristics — stock picking, commissions, sales — that’s not what our industry looks like any more. The regulators don’t want it to look like that any more and the clients sure don’t want it to look like that," said Debra Brennan Tagg, president of BFS Advisor Group.

Now, advisers’ fundamental role is listening, and “does that play to our strengths,” she said rhetorically to an audience primarily composed of women.

Women advisers often intuitively understand a perspective often held by women clients, that building wealth is not an end in itself, but must be meaningful along the way.

“Women, especially, don’t just want that money in the bank. They want it to do something for them,” said Kristine McManus, chief advisor growth officer with Commonwealth.

“Let them see the joy,” added Jodi Manthei, a wealth adviser with Riverstone Wealth Partners, whether that’s a major gift that creates a legacy or small gifts that create memories for loved ones.

ADVISERS AS 'FIRST RESPONDERS'

Advisers are “first responders” when a family realizes that a member is succumbing to dementia, said Dr. Bill Lloyd, who is health director for Transamerica’s advanced markets and leads its Wealth + Health initiative. Advisers can help immediately with referrals to vetted local professionals who can swing into action to arrange medical diagnoses, legal help and practical caregiving assistance.

“If you do anything for these families, help shepherd them though legal capacity so they have a plan before it’s too late, to protect their financial assets going forward,” Lloyd said. Two key warning signs: clients who have challenges when planning or solving problems, or who have decreased or poor judgment.

DIVORCE PRACTICE

Developing a divorce practice is a chance to get to know potential clients in the process of a short-term engagement and decide if you’d like to convert them to a long-term relationship, said Mariella Foley, a partner with Round Table Wealth Management.

“Many clients want a new adviser for this new chapter,” Foley said, adding that client priorities that emerge during the dissolution of a marriage naturally roll into retirement, estate and even charitable planning.

Other highlights:

• Sandra Nies, an adviser with Hunken Ewing Financial Group, talked about how she launched a practice in the midst of the Covid-19 pandemic and rapidly gained traction through strategic volunteering with her local Chamber of Commerce and other causes that hold personal meaning.

• When clients envision how they will look, feel, live and love in mid- to late retirement, the payoff for saving today feels immediate, said Suzanne Norman, principal of Norman Coaching. “If you can meet your future self, you want to take care of your future self,” Norman said, outlining exercises that help clients see beyond financial goals to their underlying vision for the life they aspire to live.

The next Women Adviser Network Summit will be held in Denver on July 11-12.