New generation of planner forces change

A new generation of financial planning groups is driving change in the industry, forcing existing planners to start valuing their clients and fighting for their loyalty, according to Marketing Solutions president Dan Richards.

Speaking at last week's Financial Planning Association (FPA) conference in Melbourne, the Canadian-based Richards says on average clients have 14 different financial planning contacts.

He says unlike 10 years ago when clients "use to stick to their own knitting" they are now shopping around for advisers who provide a strong quality service.

"Every client sees advisers in a different light. Being a friend isn't good enough anymore, he says.

"Planners need to offer a solid level of value to their clients, and as clients increase in value then they get more of the advisers time."

Richards addressed the convention on the topic of 'Competing for tomorrow's client' and says there are four strategies to help advisers deal with client and industry change.

"Planners need to have a clear value cycle for their clients. The cycle should include a financial plan, a plan to offer quality advice, client investment and product alternatives, a plan to give the clients ideas of their outcomes and provide them an increased level of service. That is how you keep your clients," he says.

"If you aren't getting a competitor mad each and every day you are not doing your job."

Richards says it is time for planners to act now, not in three or six months, but immediately. He says for planners who thought they had changed their client value structure in the last year they should now be prepared to change further.

"For those of you who have changed in the past who thought that was traumatic, that was just trivial. The amount of change you have done is nothing like the change you will have to do in the future."