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?