Over the past few weeks, I have had the opportunity to speak with dozens of Financial Advisors and dozens of wholesalers. Here are some of my takeaway points from these conversations and some observations on how to best move forward.
- Virtual meetings are the new normal. Financial Advisors have adapted to working remotely, and all of their “disaster/contingency plans” seem to be working seamlessly. The byproduct of this is that we will see a dramatic decrease in FAs being present in the offices. EVERY Advisor I have spoken with has made clear that they will be spending less time in the office once the virus subsides. My personal opinion is this will have a dramatic effect on the office footprints. Branches will get smaller, and offices will look more like a WeWork office space where FAs are rotating in and out of vacant offices. This will take some time, but the amount of money that will be saved on commercial real estate leases will be substantial and will be a key driver in how they proceed.
- Financial Advisors are starving for content. The consensus from my conversations are that there are three knowns and two unknows. The knowns: we are in a bear market, there will be more volatility, everyone expects that this will subside in the next few months. The unknows: We will have a quick recovery, or there will be a prolonged bear market. Once you accept these factors, it becomes easier to engage with Financial Advisors and it should provide you with a pathway on how to navigate your conversations.
- Everyone is moving money around. I have not talked to one advisor that is not repositioning their client’s portfolio. Whether they are rebalancing, being opportunistic, managing risk, or even trying to trade their way through this market, there is a ton of activity, and it is probably going to continue given the expected market volatility. The good news is that most Advisors have formed an opinion on one of the two unknowns mentioned above, and they are looking for content that supports their narrative.
- Most of the wholesalers I have spoken to are having a difficult time engaging in with their Advisors. Everyone acknowledges it is nearly impossible to prospect in this environment, but even connecting with existing relationships are presenting headwinds. Most likely, your firm has produced some type of market commentary, and this has been “pushed-out” via mass emails. Unfortunately, this distribution method gets lost, given how inundated the FA’s inboxes have become with everyone’s opinion material.
Given everything mentioned above, here is how I would proceed.
Given your firm is pushing out market content, you need to worry about providing social content. Specifically, how you are fostering your relationships and being a valuable partner. You have to have a plan. I would spend every Monday and Friday trying to set up 10-20 meaningful calls per day (Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday). Send personalized emails that get their attention and let them know that you have been talking to a lot of advisors and would like to share some observations on best practices given this challenging environment. It doesn’t matter if this communication is done via email, text, LinkedIn, etc. What matters is that it is personalized, and the FA reads it.
All your conversations should revolve around three talking points:
- I just wanted to check-in and see how you are holding up? – let them vent and express their frustrations.
- What do you think of the markets going forward? – this allows you to learn which camp they are in (remember the two unknowns: We will have a quick recovery, or there will be a prolonged bear market).
- Would you like to hear a success story? – this enables you to provide a solution that supports their narrative.
Doing nothing is not an option, but you have to be methodical in how you are handling the current environment. Given this is the new normal, you need to be extremely comfortable with your phone skills, which means that every conversation you have has to have a set agenda and defined mission. It’s a waste of time to simply have calls where you are “checking-in” to see if they need anything. Lastly, your CRM is your new best friend because it should help you manage (and capture) your activities. It will help your marketing department respond accordingly, given all the data analytics it will provide. This current environment is a test of character, and we all need to make sure that our engagement level is operating at full throttle.