2. Provide a wider array of service offerings. On average, independent advisors offer clients around nine services per practice, according to data from Cerulli Associates. Included among them are the usual suspects, like estate planning, asset management, retirement planning, trust services, tax planning and financial planning. Being a master advisor, though, means going beyond these core offerings that clutter the websites of virtually everyone in the industry and providing clients with something more unique. Elder care and end of life planning are good examples of this. Talk about dementia, terminal illness and death with clients, who often find that having control over the tiniest details in their final days—including, as morbid as it might seem, their own funeral arrangements—a surprisingly comforting, almost spiritual undertaking. Another is lifestyle and concierge services. This could be anything from helping a client buy a car to advising on a future vacation. Overall, advisors should take a look at what their service matrix looks like, and determine what “non-primary services” they can offer that could make their business stand out.
3. Build larger staffs with more specialization. In keeping with the above, providing a suite of distinctive solutions likely requires having not only a robust client service support team but also a greater level of specialization and technical expertise. Dedicated professionals focusing on one area, whether it’s financial planning, taxes, asset management, insurance or some other subject matter, allow the master advisor to “roam,” acting as a calming, reassuring influence for clients. Many advisors take pride in their versatility, but the fact of the matter is that no one person can adequately address all the needs of a typical client. Nor should they try (there’s a reason the saying “jack-of-all-trades, master of none” exists). Of course, not every firm will have the resources to beef up their staff by hiring more professional support. In those cases, think about joining forces with another advisor team with complementary skill sets to create more scale.
4. Build teams that reflect a greater level of cultural and demographic diversity. The face of wealth management is changing in tandem with demographics of the country. Women and ethnic minorities are gaining a greater share of wealth in this country with each passing day, a trend that will only escalate moving forward. Women already account for the majority of students on college campuses, and with minority enrollment growing, the professional and investor populations will soon be a more definitive reflection of a rapidly diversifying country. In many respects, these will be the clients of the future, and to attract them advisors will have to work to reshape and overhaul their businesses to evolve with the times.
While digital and online investing solutions are here to stay, clients positioned for personal financial growth will inevitably seek out the expertise offered by an independent advisor who can get to know them, their families and their life goals on a personal level, while providing conflict-free professional guidance.
These clients and their families will stick with those professionals who embrace the master advisor role by investing in a practice that is not only technology-enabled but also multi-disciplinary in professional expertise, and intergenerational in attracting talent of all ages.
Independent advisors willing to think beyond what has always worked in the past by enhancing their ability to deliver an advice-centric client experience will find themselves not only succeeding as business owners, but as trailblazers who are part of the transformation of the retail financial advice industry.
Rich Whitworth is managing director of business consulting for Cetera Financial Group.