No matter which side of the political aisle you find yourself on, there’s no disputing the next four years will bring interesting times for the country and for the markets.
I can sympathize if you’re already tired of wondering where things will pan out.
The upcoming change in administration set off a market run and a buying spree in cryptocurrencies. But we’re already getting a sizable dose of political squabbling and mixed economic signals, and we’re not even out of December yet.
Amid such uncertainty, the easiest thing is to wait and let it all play out, cautious and diplomatic. But that’s the wrong tack to take.
This is the moment to communicate with your clients with clarity and authority. You gain much by being bold with your insights and outreach strategy.
Reflecting your unique value proposition, though, requires more effort than simply a desire to stand out from the crowd. Here are a couple of steps you can take to elevate the insights you share with clients and prospects.
Know Your Audience
When it comes to offering opinions, it’s all subjective. But if your message isn’t tailored for the audience you want to reach, it’s going to fall short of your expected goals.
There are two types of research you can engage in to understand attitudes, assumptions and questions you’re likely to encounter from client and prospect alike.
The first is to understand what’s out there in the public sphere making an impact on the perspectives of investors. That means following the investing news cycle and the obvious media outlets that people follow, such as CNBC. Don’t skip social media either – several public investing forums, particularly on Reddit, have hundreds of thousands of followers, and wield influence over investors as well.
The second is to review the notes and actions within your own client database. If you are using a complete wealth management platform like AdvisorEngine, it will include a CRM that lets you track client requests and interactions. Have they expressed concerns about the market? Are there upcoming requests that could be more complicated to fulfill in a volatile market?
Relying on this information can help you craft meaningful outreach that reflects the broader concerns they are being exposed to as well as their account-specific demands.
Keep It Simple
It’s tempting when you are developing messaging to layer in multiple analyses, examples and explanations that demonstrate your own expertise.
But you’re doing your firm a disservice when you make your outreach information dense.
There’s a reason that less is more. – While you might feel good that you’ve made your outreach hearty with input, a reader can get lost in the narrative you’ve created if you don’t have a succinct point underlying it all.
There’s a reason that less is more.
Rather than try to tackle multiple market issues or client concerns, pick one that your research shows is most pertinent to your specific audience. Outline the messaging you want to convey: Identify the issue, provide your firm’s understanding of the issue, and then offer your firm’s recommendations. Visuals are also essential – they can help convey in a snapshot your main point.
Also, explore other ways you can get the same messaging across different mediums. Video is a particularly powerful way of communicating with clients: According to Forbes, 95% of a message is retained when delivered by video versus just 10% when in text.
Make It Actionable
One thing I’ve learned in regularly developing content for Action! magazine is that information is only as good as its use to the reader.
In other words, if your intended audience doesn’t get something they can put into practice from your insights, they will move on to other sources that can give them more.
When you’re crafting your outreach, think about how you can go beyond what your audience is already getting from traditional news or social media.
Think about how you can go beyond what your audience is already getting.
This is probably one of the toughest challenges in developing any sort of content. But you can develop your own sources to inspire a unique “hook.” Rely on your client relations team and the network you serve, for instance, to gain understanding into the investing and goal-setting challenges your audience is facing.
As an example, it’s likely several of your clients are soon if not already transferring wealth to their heirs. How can you help them with estate planning and meeting younger investor demands? A dive into this topic could form the basis that helps your firm earn an introduction to next-generation clientele.
Suleman Din is Advisor Intelligence Lead at AdvisorEngine.
