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Financial advisors have the potential to offer significant value to investors. I say “potential” because any value must be something we are experienced in, execute well, and message that value effectively. It is in the latter that advisors often fail – the art of messaging. Oftentimes how we say something can be just as impactful as what we say. Unfortunately, little thought and effort is put into how we say things.
Defining Your Value
So, what is your #1 value to investors? Take a second and think about it. For some this may be easy, but could be quite difficult for others. What do you want investors to think and feel about you? Whatever you say helps identify what your #1 value is, or at least what you should focus your messaging on.
Some advisors might say their value is to maximize their client’s return. Or to help clients reach their financial goals. Or to provide comprehensive and holistic planning. All of those may be true, but none of them speak to the most pressing issue (psychologically) that most investors have – whether they are aware of it or not. That is to minimize regret – current and especially future long-term regret.
Framing Your Value
You may be familiar with the acronym, WIIFM, “What’s in it for me?” No matter which value you settle on as your #1 value, it must be messaged (framed) in a way that clearly and concisely tells investors how they benefit.
Every time we make a decision, we are susceptible to experiencing regret. This is because a decision may contain many options, and the more options we face, the more likely we will make a suboptimal choice. We may not consciously acknowledge the role of regret in daily life, but it has the potential to influence our mood, perspective, and future decisions. Minimizing regret is a major contributor to maximizing happiness. It’s hard to be happy and content when we are regretting a past decision.
Investors often experience regret in the following ways:
- Invest in what has been hot – just in time to participate in its fall from grace.
- Anticipate a market decline and sell only to see the market head higher and wonder what to do.
- Making a financial decision without considering all information. We tend to make decisions based only on the information at our fingertips. This regret often expresses itself as, “I wish I had known”…this is a huge one for your value.
- Not doing something they should have because they didn’t know. Financial topics like estate planning, tax planning, and education funding. Just mentioning those topics isn’t sufficient, you need to highlight why they need you – what mistakes they could make (which would cause regret).
The bottom line is that there are many ways investors could experience regret. Your job is to frame your #1 value in ways that will minimize their future regret because of the knowledge, experience, and know how that you have.
Your Call to Action
My invitation is to consider your #1 value and how exactly you would say that to clients and prospects. “Holistic/comprehensive financial planning” or mentioning topics such as “estate planning” doesn’t do it. It has to explain what’s in it for them. Optimally, it would illustrate how working with you will minimize their future regret.
If you would like to give it shot and get my two cents (along with some helpful tips) click the button below to send me an email with your value statement.