In today’s volatile and constantly evolving market environment, the affluent are uncertain. They’re wondering whether their existing wealth solutions are still on track to deliver the expected results, and they’re questioning whether they’re missing out on even better solutions that could help them get to their financial goals even faster.

The good news: All of that spells opportunity for you. By offering affluent prospective clients a service known as a stress test, you can set yourself apart from other advisors out there—and position yourself to potentially capture significant amounts of new assets.

Here’s how to make it happen.

Asking ‘What If?’
Stress testing financial plans can be a very smart way to help ensure that those plans will deliver as promised. The fact is, financial plans that might look great on paper sometimes prove to be much less impactful after they are implemented. It is not uncommon for there to be unintended consequences that can even derail the client’s agenda.

At heart, stress testing is when you ask “what if…?” about a variety of areas of a financial plan a client has or is considering adopting. When it comes to estate planning, for instance, a wealthy individual might ask questions like:

• What will actually happen to my assets when I pass on?

• How will my family be affected, precisely?

• Who will be tracking the hard assets such as artwork and jewelry to make sure they go to the designated heirs as opposed to vanishing?

• Who is going to make sure my estate plan is being executed as it’s supposed to be?

Stress testing is a powerful form of a second opinion—and getting second opinions is very characteristic of successful individuals and families.

How To Stress Test
To be effective and informative, stress testing should be done in a systematic manner. While there are some variations, the basic process starts by determining the individual’s or family’s goals and objectives—using a process such as deep discovery and a total client profile. The goals being sought, the problems to be solved and the opportunities to benefit from should be the driving forces behind the financial and legal solutions they employ.

Once the goals and objectives are clearly understood, the specific existing or proposed financial services or products can be evaluated. There are numerous ways to dissect and critically assess financial services and products. For example:

• Work the assumptions. Many assumptions underlie all services and products—and it’s common for professionals to use somewhat Pollyanna-based assumptions when trying to sell their solutions. In stress testing, these assumptions are modified to determine how the solutions will work when a given scenario changes.

• Evaluate alignment with goals and objectives. A solution might prove to work extremely well, but still not achieve the desired results. It’s essential to ensure that the services and products will accomplish the individual’s (or family’s) goals and objectives.

• Calculate cost structure. The intent here is to identify the best and most cost-effective solution possible. When calculating cost structures, all the expenses should be specified—including long-term costs.

Based on the stress test’s evaluation of the existing or proposed solutions, alternative products or services might be considered. It can be very useful to do side-by-side comparisons between the solutions being considered or currently used and alternatives, asking questions like:

• How do the assumptions compare?

• How do the alternatives rate when it comes to achieving the individual’s or family’s goals and objectives?

• Which solutions are more cost-effective?

The end result of the process is making recommendations. Based on those recommendations, there are four courses of action to consider taking:

1. If the stress testing found that the solutions being used or proposed are on target and of high quality, the recommended action is to stay the course.

2. If the stress testing finds what may be described as a system failure—the financial products being used are not going to achieve the desired results and might even blow up, for instance—the right move is to take a different course of action.

3. If the solutions are appropriate but the professionals involved are not up to the task of implementing them (or they charge too much money), it will usually make sense to switch to more capable and/or cost-effective experts.

4. If the solutions can be made more powerful with only slight modifications, the best route is often to stick with the original professionals and have them make the minor changes needed.

Frame The Offer Successfully
That’s how you do a stress test. But how do you get people to raise their hands and say yes to this process? It’s all about offering them the service in a benefits-focused manner. If you’re talking with an ideal prospect, let them know you offer a service that looks at where they are today and where they’d like to be, and then evaluates whether the strategies they’re using have them on the right track. Based on that evaluation, you’ll either recommend that they stay the course or suggest alternate approaches.

Framing a stress test in this way makes it virtually irresistible to today’s uncertain affluent individuals and families.

The upshot: Using volatile times to your advantage can position you to attract more of the exact types of clients you most want to serve in the months and years ahead.

John J. Bowen Jr. is the CEO and founder of CEG Worldwide and CEG Insights. Ready to become the go-advisor among affluent clients seeking guidance during uncertain times? Schedule your Play to Win consultation today to see how CEG Worldwide can help you accelerate your success and take your practice to the next level.