{"id":7071,"date":"2025-01-20T16:53:06","date_gmt":"2025-01-20T16:53:06","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.blueleaf.com\/blog\/4-strategic-ways-to-virtually-enhance-the-advisor-client-relationship\/"},"modified":"2025-01-20T16:53:06","modified_gmt":"2025-01-20T16:53:06","slug":"4-strategic-ways-to-virtually-enhance-the-advisor-client-relationship","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.blueleaf.com\/blog\/4-strategic-ways-to-virtually-enhance-the-advisor-client-relationship\/","title":{"rendered":"4 Strategic Ways to Virtually Enhance the Advisor-Client Relationship"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Most of us were unfamiliar with the term \u201csocial distancing\u201d before the 2020 pandemic. In a relationship business, words like that are taboo. Financial advisors thrive on social interaction. Eliminating face-to-face meetings was a major disruptor last year.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Fast forward to 2021. The fear of Covid-19 still lingers, but folks are beginning to venture out. Masks are coming off and business luncheons are once again an option. Financial advisors can go back to business as usual, but is that the right choice? The world is very different now.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Our new normal is more than just a sociological shift. The pandemic taught all of us that we could do business virtually when the face-to-face option was removed. Advisors were able to change the way they operated by using virtual tools and online communication.      <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Winston Churchill once said, \u201cThose who fail to learn from history are condemned to repeat it.\u201d In 2020, we learned that wealth managers can effectively manage clients online. That\u2019s a dimension of our industry that we should continue to cultivate. Here\u2019s how:           <\/p>\n\n\n\n

#1: Increase Transparency with Better Technology<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

According to Statista<\/a>, the in-home data usage of smartphones increased by 34% in March 2020, the first month of Covid-19 lockdowns. Social media was the largest recipient of that traffic, but you can bet that Google Finance and Robinhood are high on that list too.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Your clients have questions and they\u2019re more financially savvy than many of us give them credit for. They\u2019re perfectly capable of doing research and even trading on their own. You can avoid them going off on their own by being transparent in your reporting and communications.  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The ongoing discussion about transparency has led to the development of new technology to give clients more of what they\u2019re looking for. Blueleaf is one of the platforms at the forefront of this with a client portal that aggregates held away assets and creates transparency.        <\/p>\n\n\n\n

#2: Employ Active Listening in Client Meetings<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

How often have you \u201czoned out\u201d when your clients are speaking? It happens to the best of us. Employing active listening and repeating key points they are trying to make helps to build advisor\/client trust levels.  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

In the age of Zoom, active listening is even more<\/em> important. With the in-person element of client relationships removed \u2014 and many social cues along with it \u2014 it is more critical than ever to practice good listening skills. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Not only does active listening ensure that you\u2019re paying attention and capturing essential information that your client may be communicating, but it\u2019s another way to forge an important connection with your client \u2014 even on Zoom (i.e., virtually). <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Modern financial advisors have evolved into holistic wealth managers who spend a lot of time coaching their clients on productive financial habits. Active listening is a big part of that process, so this should not be underestimated. It\u2019s critical to your retention rates.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Center for Creative Leadership (CCL) published a great piece on this a few years ago titled, \u201cUse Active Listening to Coach Others<\/a>.\u201d It\u2019s not specific to advisory practices, but it can help you to further develop your skills in this area. The article is only a five-minute read.  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

#3: Maintain Consistent Communication with Automation<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

This step can be simplified by using the automated email feature in Blueleaf to send weekly or monthly updates to clients. It can be enhanced by using retargeting to keep your firm\u2019s branding in front of them as they surf other sites on the internet.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

One of the benefits of living in this technological era is that artificial intelligence (AI) has reached a new level in marketing. The ability to capture and follow prospects and clients after they visit your website gives you a chance to make sure your firm is always top-of-mind.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Connect your client portal to your website so clients must pass through there on the way to logging into their account. Set up retargeting to kick in when they click on the portal page link. It\u2019s that simple. They\u2019ll see your logo everywhere they go.   <\/p>\n\n\n\n

#4: Eliminate Industry Jargon when Speaking with Clients<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

This is one of my pet peeves. As financial professionals, we speak a language amongst ourselves that outsiders have difficulty understanding. Don\u2019t do that to your clients. Showing off how smart you are with industry jargon doesn\u2019t instill confidence. It causes confusion.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

This is another area that deserves special attention as many meetings have moved to virtual platforms. Zoom meetings and phone calls are already stripped of some important context that elevates communication. Adding unnecessary confusion to the mix by tossing around industry jargon is not doing you or your clients any favors. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

It\u2019s possible to simplify financial information without \u201cdumbing it down.\u201d Speak to your clients in plain terms that the average person can understand. If they turn out to be more knowledgeable than expected, crank it up a notch. They\u2019ll appreciate that.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

On a video call, the nuances of facial expressions can be easily missed. Confused clients don\u2019t always ask for an explanation and you can\u2019t read the tells on your iPad or mobile phone. That\u2019s a problem. You can\u2019t build a relationship if you\u2019re not connecting with the client.   <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Building Client Relationships Requires Situational Awareness<\/p><\/blockquote><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

There\u2019s no magic bullet. Each of the four steps listed above is dictated by the environment we\u2019re working in and the communication tools we have available to us. Financial advisors need situational awareness and the willingness to adapt to the new normal.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The world has changed in just two short years. Enhancing client relationships today requires a virtual component for advisory firms to thrive and grow. The pandemic opened the door for this new business model. Your clients have come to expect it. It\u2019s up to you to implement it.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\n\n\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Most of us were unfamiliar with the term \u201csocial distancing\u201d before the 2020 pandemic. In a relationship business, words like that are taboo. Financial advisors thrive on social interaction. Eliminating face-to-face meetings was a major disruptor last year. Fast forward to 2021. The fear of Covid-19 still lingers, but folks are beginning to venture out….<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":7072,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"content-type":"","om_disable_all_campaigns":false,"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"_uf_show_specific_survey":0,"_uf_disable_surveys":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[28],"tags":[61,37,51],"class_list":["post-7071","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-communicating-with-clients","tag-advisor-tips","tag-client-communication","tag-financial-advisor"],"aioseo_notices":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.blueleaf.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/7071","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.blueleaf.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.blueleaf.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.blueleaf.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.blueleaf.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=7071"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.blueleaf.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/7071\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.blueleaf.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/7072"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.blueleaf.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=7071"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.blueleaf.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=7071"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.blueleaf.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=7071"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}