If advisors are not going to compete via price, they need to have exceptional service.  They can no longer do the bare bones, as technology will advance and competition will increase.

At the Financial Planning Association's annual conference in Chicago, Greg Menefee, director of institutional consulting at TD Ameritrade Institutional, spoke about elevating the client experience.

He started his presentation by asking the attendees, “How can we do better?”

Why Focus On The Client Experience?

Menefee cautioned that change will come, so financial planners need to look for ways to improve before they get left behind. He gave Uber as an example of a company that disrupted the transportation industry.

He also pointed out that most people believe they deliver a superior client experience, while very few customers believe they do.

“People compete on product, price and experience,” said Menefee. If products and price are not how financial planners are differentiating themselves, the client experience has to be the focus.

He gave an example of Titleist being known as the best product for golf balls, but there is not an emotional connection. He also gave Walmart as an example of an organization that competes successfully on price, but customers are not loyal if they can find something cheaper somewhere else.

Menefee stated, “We don’t have any firms that say, ‘We want to be known as the discount firm.’ You shouldn’t be competing on price. That leaves the experience.”

How Do You Continue To Elevate The Experience?

TD Ameritrade created a list of phases where advisors can evaluate their client experience. Universally, the digital presence, building location and community involvement can be reviewed. For prospects, client events, webcasts and written communications should be evaluated.

When a client is new, it is a great time to impress them. For an onboarding process, advisors can look at the account set up, technology and client preferences. As the client relationship continues, review meetings, get client feedback and appreciation events.

Is There More Than Just Meeting The Expectations Of Clients?

You get no credit for doing things that clients expect you to do, advised Menefee. However, it does become an issue when an expectation is missed, like being late for a meeting.

He mentioned that there should be a list of the most common client requests. Then each should be evaluated to see how well the requests are satisfied. Ask, “Can we elevate the experience? That is where you surprise and delight,” said Menefee.

He added, that is when people want to share it. They will start to tell people.

Menefee told the attendees to know their mission. He asked, “If you don’t know it, how can you expect your employees to know it?” A large percentage of employees probably do not know the mission, values and vision.

He wrapped up by asking the audience to know what the spread is in their client service self-assessment and a perfect score.  How do things need to improve?

Menefee asked, “How can we take the ordinary and make it extraordinary? Then they will start telling friends about it.”

The one key takeaway from this session: Know what your client experience is and how can it be improved!

Mike Byrnes is a national speaker and owner of Byrnes Consulting LLC. His firm provides consulting services to help advisors become even more successful. Read more at ByrnesConsulting.com and follow @ByrnesConsultin.