As part of their ongoing conversations with clients, many advisors ask for feedback on how happy clients are.
That’s a good thing – as long as you ask in a way that allows clients to answer honestly.
In asking for feedback, remember that most clients are uncomfortable with conflict and with discussing difficult issues.
So if you say to a client “How do you feel about the job I’ve done for you in the past year”, the answer you’re likely to get is … “It’s fine”, regardless of how clients really feel.
Recently I spoke to an advisor still agitated after a client had pulled his account.”What really annoyed me” the advisor said “is that just a couple of months ago I asked this client how he felt about his account and he said he understood that everybody was down and he was okay with it.”
This advisor had made a common mistake. While he’d started off doing the the right thing by soliciting feedback, he had fallen down in the way he had asked.
Recently, a conversation with a successful advisor shed light on the challenges of getting buy-in from your assistant to changes in the way you work.
Due to an administrative error, a large order had not been filled for several days. Predictably, the market had moved significantly before this was discovered – costing the advisor several thousand dollars to make the client whole.
These kinds of issues are tough to take at the best of times – and especially so in times like these. The key issue when you encounter a mistake is how to learn from it and ensure it doesn’t recur.
Last week, U.S. discount broker Charles Schwab released a research report indicating that one in four American investors is considering changing firms or advisors, consistent with recent data on Canadian investors open to making a move.
An interesting insight emerged when investors were asked why they might switch. The top two factors, each mentioned 32% of the time, were desire for a better fee structure and better advice. Just behind in 29% of cases where investors are contemplating a move was the desire for more proactive contact.
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WSJ What's News Late Edition, March 11, 2010by The Wall Street Journal 11 Mar 2010 at 4:46pm
Stocks rise on a late run on financials; economists credit the Fed with getting the economy started again; and Americans' net worth grew in 2009
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Recently I spoke to an advisor still agitated after a client had pulled his account.”What really annoyed me” the advisor said “is that just a couple of months ago I asked this client how he felt about his account and he said he understood that everybody was down and he was okay with it.”
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