Finances can be complex. In my experience many financial advisers enjoy this complexity and find it stimulating.
Yet when it comes to giving a client advice there lurks a danger.
Why too much information can be bad for business
A financial advisory firm I worked with specialises in giving financial advice to SME business clients.
The firm’s process was to look at the client’s current situation, help them get clear on their outcomes, take away their findings, and agree to return with a detailed plan of their recommendations.
Nothing unusual there, right?
However, when the financial adviser returned to present their report and recommendations, they often experienced far more resistance, defensiveness, and push-back from the clients than they were expecting.
The clients would ask lots of questions and find reasons not to implement the changes and the advisers were at a loss to understand why.
The invisible factor that leads to greater success
Something that is highly relevant in client interactions but can easily be overlooked is this:
How people feel is massively important.
If people feel overwhelmed, swamped, overloaded, discouraged, or fearful, you can be pretty sure that it will be a poor meeting.
On the other hand, meetings will generally be successful if people are present, clear minded, calm, and relaxed.
The mistake of too much information
In the belief that a big, detailed report was helpful, the advisers were innocently over-complicating things.
Some of the clients were already intimidated by dealing with their finances. The big, detailed report, more complexity, and lengthy list of action points added to their fears, and this was why there was push-back and resistance.
There was nothing wrong with the work at all. The problem was the way they were presenting it.
Three simple adjustments to get more client buy-in
Once the advisers realised what was happening, they made three simple adjustments.
1. The advisers realised that it was essential for clients to be in a calm, clear and present state of mind when receiving the financial advice. The starting point was making sure that THEY went into the meeting in the right state of mind and making sure the clients were settled and comfortable.
2. Throughout the presentation, the advisers were sensitive to the level of engagement of the client and did what was necessary to keep the feeling in a good place. For instance, they made sure to check in with the client throughout the meeting that things were making sense and do-able for them.
3. They cut down their report to just one page with a small number of key suggestions. This made it manageable for the client and allowed them to roll out their recommendations at the right pace.
Common sense isn’t always common practice
I appreciate that these points may seem like common sense.
Yet the financial services profession tends to over-complicate things. So, it’s useful to check in with your own process on a regular basis and make sure that you create the best environment for success.
PS. Did you find this article useful? If so, you may also enjoy ‘Will your financial plan pass the ‘so what’ test? Click here to read.
