Download "Client Engagement Survey And Email Template" below, and check out "Gathering Feedback That Counts: Crafting Client Surveys To Offer Services That Matter Most" on how client engagement surveys can be a powerful tool for advisors to identify what matters most to clients.
Client Engagement Survey And Email Template
Welcome everyone! Welcome to the 427th episode of the Financial Advisor Success Podcast!
My guest on today's podcast is Sten Morgan. Sten is the owner of Legacy Investment Planning, a hybrid advisory firm based in Franklin, Tennessee, that oversees $220 million in assets under management for 90 client households.
What's unique about Sten, though, is how he realized that the team that helped his firm reach an initial level of success as a $1M+ practice was not the team hed need to take it to the next level… and ultimately found he had to turn over 100% of his original team, led by a new Director of Operations who eventually re-staffed the entire firm, in order to rebuild the team for his firms next growth stage.
In this episode, we talk in-depth about how Sten recognized that while his firm appeared to be performing well (in terms of AUM, revenue, and other metrics) its culture was not resulting in the collective skillset and team member initiative needed to reach his growth goals, how Sten handled difficult conversations with team members to find the best resolution for both them and for the firm (which quickly brought his firms headcount down from 8 to 4), and why Sten decided to hire a new full-time director of operations to serve as an integrator to make even more changes to get both staffing and day-to-day firm operations back on track.
We also talk about how Sten and his operations director implemented a five-step process for hiring (which includes a resume review and screening call, an asynchronous video interview using the JobVite platform, an in-person interview, a work assignment, and then finally a team debrief to select a candidate), why Sten waits to interview at least four to six candidates for a position before making an offer to ensure his firm doesnt settle too quickly for the first candidate that appears to be qualified, and Stens best practices for using recruiting firms to support the hiring process (including the need to get guarantees from the firm in case the hire doesnt work out).
And be certain to listen to the end, where Sten shares why his firm is currently focused on hiring and maximizing internal operational efficiency before going through its next growth phase, why Sten recommends that firms try to be more proactive in hiring (for example by hiring today for a position that is going to be needed six months from now) rather than waiting to hit the next capacity ceiling to do so, and the process Sten uses to iterate on his own creative business ideas (taking time to think through ideas both in his mind and with the help of outside experts) to ensure they are well-vetted before taking action so he doesnt try to implement too many different ideas at once and focuses in to the few that will matter most.
So, whether youre interested in learning about making the difficult personnel decisions needed to take a firm to the next level, best practices in hiring (and how hiring a director of operations can help), or a process for iterating on new ideas for the business, then we hope you enjoy this episode of the Financial Advisor Success podcast, with Sten Morgan.
Welcome to the March 2025 issue of the Latest News in Financial #AdvisorTech – where we look at the big news, announcements, and underlying trends and developments that are emerging in the world of technology solutions for financial advisors!
This month's edition kicks off with the news that Morningstar Office will be shutting down in early 2026 as a part of Morningstar's ongoing effort to refocus on its core investment data and analytics business – forcing advisors currently using the tool to switch (which might be a net positive for many of those advisors who have long complained about Morningstar's lack of investment into Office but have avoided making a change due to the arduous process of switching to another platform). And while Black Diamond has cut a deal with Morningstar to be the 'default' option for Office advisors to move to, a host of other portfolio management platforms are offering their own incentives as well, leaving Morningstar Office advisors with an opportunity to evaluate a large and crowded landscape of options to find the platform that will work best for them (so they don't have to endure another platform that they're unhappy with simply because of the high cost of switching)
From there, the latest highlights also feature a number of other interesting advisor technology announcements, including:
- All-in-one portfolio management platform CircleBlack has acquired AssetBook, which was one of the few remaining standalone performance reporting tools on the market, in a move that was likely more about gaining AssetBook's client base of small- and mid-size advisory firms than it was about acquiring new technology (given that CircleBlack already has a performance reporting solution on its existing platform) - which suggests that perhaps we've reached a saturation point in the portfolio management technology space where the most cost-effective way to get new clients is to acquire competing solutions, and perhaps heralds a forthcoming wave of consolidation in the crowded portfolio management category?
- Advisor-focused AI meeting note solution Jump has completed a $20 million funding round, which reinforces its status as the emerging market leader in the crowded AI meeting note category – a status that may only increase from here if AI meeting notes, like most established AdvisorTech categories, evolves into a "winner-take-all" market where the top 1-2 solutions gain the vast majority of market share (with the caveat that Jump still faces significant competition from free or less expensive general-purpose AI meeting note tools like Zoom and Fathom that could hinder its ability to fully dominate the category)
- Archive Intel, an AI-focused communications archiving and monitoring provider, has announced a $1.5 million funding round, highlighting the increasing need for solutions that can archive a wider range of client communications, including not just email and social media but also "off-channel" communications like SMS text and messaging apps like WhatsApp – raising the question of how many firms will be open to archiving those channels with access to a platform that can do so, rather than simply banning employees from using them altogether?
Read the analysis about these announcements in this month's column, and a discussion of more trends in advisor technology, including:
- Datalign Advisory, a data-driven advisor lead generation platform, has raised $5 million, with the announcement underscoring the reality that despite the many complaints from advisors about the cost and quality of paid lead generation services, the demand for those services is still such that they can raise capital and increase their prices (as long as they can generate a reliable stream of prospective clients for the advisor to meet with)
- Estate planning and document preparation platforms Wealth.com and Vanilla each announced the launch of new capabilities for automatically summarizing and visualizing estate planning documents like wills and trusts, with the aim of streamlining the process of reviewing and updating documents – which, while addressing a common pain point for advisors in reading and summarizing estate planning documents, raises the question of how much advisors will trust AI tools to correctly interpret all but the simplest estate planning documents (which take the least amount of time for an advisor to do themselves, meaning the actual time savings of an automated tool might not really be all that great?)
And be certain to read to the end, where we have provided an update to our popular "Financial AdvisorTech Solutions Map" (and also added the changes to our AdvisorTech Directory) as well!
*And for #AdvisorTech companies who want to submit their tech announcements for consideration in future issues, please submit to [email protected]!
Enjoy the current installment of "Weekend Reading For Financial Planners" - this week's edition kicks off with the news that CFP Board this week released a checklist of ethics guidelines for the use of generative Artificial Intelligence (AI) tools. The guide notes the promise of AI-powered tools for a variety of functions, including generating meeting summaries and ideas for public-facing content, but warns against reliance on these tools for work that requires a reasonable understanding of assumptions and outcomes (e.g., developing recommendations for clients) given the chance of mistakes or 'hallucinations' by AI tools, suggesting that advisors who take a systematic approach towards the use of generative AI (e.g., by establishing firm-wide policies for its use) could benefit from the efficiencies and creative power that can come from these tools while ensuring the accuracy and security of client data!
Also in industry news this week:
- The Department of Labor's (DoL) Retirement Security Rule remains in limbo as the Trump administration has been granted time by a court to decide on its approach to the Biden-era rule
- The Corporate Transparency Act (CTA) is back in effect (at least for now), with a deadline of March 21 for affected businesses (including some RIAs) to file the required Beneficial Ownership Information (BOI) report
From there, we have several articles on retirement planning:
- How advisors can help hesitant retired clients spend more by transforming portfolio assets into regular income streams
- How stress testing retirement plans (and leveraging flexible income strategies) can help build client confidence to spend more in retirement
- While sequence of return is often a focus of advisors and clients alike, a positive sequence of returns can allow clients to increase their retirement income over time
We also have a number of articles on client conversations:
- Why a combination of open- and closed-ended questions can help advisors explore clients' goals and pain points as well as focus them on potential planning solutions
- How advisors can reframe client questions to unearth hidden assumptions and expand the range of planning possibilities available to them
- A scorecard that can be used to assess an advisor's ability to make clients feel understood during planning conversations
We wrap up with three final articles, all about interpersonal communication:
- Why asking for "advice" rather than "feedback" can provide more actionable information for those looking to improve their performance
- Six (and a half) components that make up a good apology, from taking accountability head-on to identifying ways to ensure the subject of the apology doesn't occur again
- How honesty, credibility, and sincerity are at the heart of the best compliments, which can boost workplace productivity and relationship quality
Enjoy the 'light' reading!
Welcome everyone! Welcome to the 426th episode of the Financial Advisor Success Podcast!
My guest on today's podcast is Jennifer des Groseilliers. Jennifer is the CEO of The Mather Group, an RIA based in Chicago, Illinois, that oversees $15 billion in combined assets under management and advisement for approximately 4,400 client households.
What's unique about Jennifer, though, is how her firm has rolled out an equity compensation plan, built around providing grants based on performance and meeting goals (rather than requiring a buy-in), that’s designed to align the entire team towards the firm’s client service and profitable growth goals in the coming years… with 85% of the firm’s team members participating in the equity program.
In this episode, we talk in-depth about why Jennifer’s firm has taken an approach to grant equity rather than require buy-ins (and intends for every employee to either have equity, or at least a path to equity if they’re still new), how Jennifer’s firm sets individual performance targets for its client-facing wealth advisors to earn equity based on annual client retention (seeking to hit a target of 98%) and revenue managed (with a target of $1.75 million per lead advisor) to encourage very high levels of client service and advisor productivity, and how Jennifer’s firm ties the vesting of these equity awards to a future liquidity event for the firm as a whole (with could include a sale to an external party or the firm being rolled into one of its private equity owner’s subsequent funds) to ensure team members have aligned incentives to increase the firm’s enterprise value (which then feeds into the value of their individual equity stakes).
We also talk about how Jennifer identified the need to put systems in place (from performance management and individual team member goal setting to business planning and leadership development) to allow The Mather Group to operate more efficiently and effectively (despite it already having become a multi-billion-AUM firm before she joined), why Jennifer is an advocate of using the SMART goals system (which stands for Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Realistic, and Timebound) for both employee and firm goal setting to promote real accountability for achieving goal targets, and how Jennifer’s firm uses the HiBob HR management system to record and track the goals for the firm’s 180 employees in an organized manner.
And be certain to listen to the end, where Jennifer shares how her firm has achieved strong organic growth in part by separating the roles of inside sales associates (who reach out to external companies to identify potential prospects [with the firm’s target client being an executive at a large company who is one to three years from retirement]), business development advisors (who are responsible for convincing prospects to become clients), and then the wealth advisors themselves (who provide ongoing planning services for clients), how Jennifer leverages an internal advisory council made up of approximately 25 firm leaders to give key stakeholders a voice and influence over the firm and where it’s going, and why Jennifer thinks that developing high levels of emotional intelligence and self-awareness… often gleaned from setbacks when an management situation with a team member doesn’t go well… are ultimately the crucial steps on the path to becoming an effective leader.
So, whether you’re interested in learning about offering equity to a broad base of employees, putting systems in place to help a firm run more efficiently, or establishing separate roles for business development and ongoing client service, then we hope you enjoy this episode of the Financial Advisor Success podcast, with Jennifer des Groseilliers.
Enjoy the current installment of "Weekend Reading For Financial Planners" - this week's edition kicks off with the news that a recent study by Cerulli Associates finds that while financial planning clients (particularly high-net-worth clients) are overwhelmingly satisfied with their advisors, many advisors face client acquisition challenges despite investors being increasingly willing to pay for advice services. The study identifies a potential cause as confusion among some prospects about how their advisor would be compensated, suggesting that increased transparency from advisors (and linking their fees to the value they provide) could help remove this barrier to seeking an advice engagement.
Also in industry news this week:
- A majority of married women are their family's primary financial decision-makers, according to a CFP Board study, which also identifies the sometimes-differing planning priorities of female and male clients
- A report from AdvisorTech firm Orion finds that while a majority of advisory firms plan to increase their tech spending in the coming year (by an average of 19%), many advisors aren't taking advantage of the full suite of software and features available to them
From there, we have several articles on financial advisor value:
- A new study finds that clients working with an advisor would see a 2.39%–2.78% annual return premium (based on investment and tax planning services) over those without an advisor, after accounting for inflation and fees
- How offering client 'touchpoints' during the year can help an advisor demonstrate the work they put in for clients between regularly scheduled meetings
- Nine ways advisors add value to clients when it comes to portfolio management, from leveraging tax-efficient investment strategies to freeing up the client's time and mental bandwidth
We also have a number of articles on college planning:
- How legislation from the past few years has made saving for college in 529 plans increasingly attractive
- How advisors can help clients with children in college understand and correctly apply Forms 1098-T and 1099-Q
- A review of non-traditional pathways to an undergraduate degree, which can offer money and time savings for interested students and their families
We wrap up with three final articles, all about company culture:
- The importance of leadership access, transparency, and camaraderie when it comes to building a strong company culture
- How firms can establish team rituals that are both durable and promote employee engagement
- A step-by-step process to bring a (virtual) team together for an in-person retreat
Enjoy the 'light' reading!
Many financial advisors approach prospect meetings with a mindset of giving potential clients ample space to consider the relationship before making any commitments. Asking them to "think it over" after an initial meeting is a common strategy designed to help clients feel comfortable and avoid the perception of being pressured into engaging in the relationship right away. This approach allows prospects to consider if the relationship is the right fit for them while also mitigating the risk of the advisor coming across as too aggressive and ‘salesy'. As such, some advisors have formalized this step into their prospecting process.
However, what happens when an initial meeting goes exceptionally well, and the prospect is immediately ready to commit? In such cases, advisors may find themselves faced with a conundrum – should they keep their process and ask a prospect to "think it over", potentially stalling the momentum, or should they adapt to the prospect's readiness, which might introduce internal stress about compromising the process they've built and deviating from their usual routine?
In this 158th episode of Kitces & Carl, Michael Kitces and client communication expert Carl Richards debate the pros and cons of maintaining a longer prospecting process – especially when a prospect is ready to commit early in an advisor's process.
While "think it over" is often framed as a benefit to prospects, there are also compelling reasons for advisors to take their time considering the relationship before agreeing to move forward. For example, advisors operating a lifestyle firm generally have limited client capacity and may need time to evaluate whether the prospect aligns with their values and service model. Similarly, advisors who provide comprehensive plans as part of their value proposition might need time to put together the necessary information – and asking prospects to "think it over" gives both parties time to ensure a good fit.
On the flip side, being told to "think it over" can also be frustrating for prospects who have already done their due diligence and are ready to move forward. While prospecting can be nerve-racking for the advisor, it can also be challenging for prospects who feel ready to commit – they may interpret delays as unnecessary obstacles. Advisors can strike a middle ground if they want (or need) a longer prospecting process without disempowering the ready-to-commit prospect. For example, the advisor may frame a second meeting as an opportunity to review documents while having paperwork ready for those who are still ready to proceed. This can help a prospect feel empowered and heard while still giving the advisor time for their own process and consideration.
Ultimately, the structure of a prospecting process often reflects the personal style and comfort level of the advisor – while some may prefer a deliberate, multi-meeting approach, others might embrace quicker commitments when the fit feels right. The key is finding a balance that respects both the advisor's process and the prospect's readiness, ensuring forward momentum without compromising the integrity of the relationship!
When a client first begins working with an advisor, the relationship is often marked with a flurry of onboarding tasks, immediate issues to resolve, and long-term planning goals to establish. However, this heightened activity often settles into a familiar routine over time. And as clients come into monitoring meetings, they may increasingly describe their situation as "fine", with no pressing issues to address. This can shift the advisor into a more passive role, waiting for significant life events – such as job changes, health issues, or financial setbacks – to reignite the client's need for engagement. Yet, while "fine" may seem like a signal of stagnation, it can also present an opportunity for the advisor to reengage the client and reinvigorate the relationship by revisiting goals and exploring new possibilities.
This transition is a core element of the "Fix, Fine, Flourish" financial planning framework. In this model, clients begin in the Fix phase, addressing immediate challenges and stabilizing their financial situation. As their primary concerns are resolved, clients enter the Fine phase, where stability is achieved, but the absence of urgent needs may eventually lead to disengagement. However, by encouraging clients to shift their focus from managing the status quo to reimagining their goals and pursuing new aspirations, advisors can guide them into the Flourish phase – where they pursue goals and aspirations beyond the basics of simply maintaining stability.
Monitoring meetings offer a key opportunity for advisors to nudge clients into the Flourish phase. If these meetings focus solely on tracking progress and reviewing financial updates, discussions may start feeling stagnant. Instead, reframing this meeting to discuss evolving goals and holistic life changes can encourage meaningful engagement. Advisors can ask reflective questions, such as "What's changed in your life since we last met?" or "What changes would make you feel more fulfilled?", to encourage clients to think beyond their current circumstances and think more about new opportunities for growth.
The beauty of the Flourish phase is that it resets the entire Fix, Fine, Flourish cycle. As clients identify new aspirations, they raise new questions and issues to address, returning them to a new Fix phase to move through the cycle again. This iterative process keeps clients engaged, ensuring they view financial planning as an ongoing partnership to help them proactively realize their evolving financial dreams.
Ultimately, the Fix, Fine, Flourish framework provides an organic way to keep clients engaged and focused on realizing meaningful financial goals. By reframing "fine" as a stepping-stone to something greater, advisors can help clients connect the financial planning process to their broader life aspirations. This approach not only strengthens the client-advisor relationship but also helps clients thrive by aligning their finances with the vision of a life well-lived!
Welcome everyone! Welcome to the 425th episode of the Financial Advisor Success Podcast!
My guest on today's podcast is Sebastian Guerra. Sebastian is the President of Guerra Wealth Advisors, a hybrid advisory firm based in Miami, Florida, with nearly $15M of revenue and almost 60 team members, supporting over 1,700 client households.
What's unique about Sebastian, though, is how his firm has implemented a financial planning quality control system, where a dedicated team member touches base with clients immediately after their meeting with an advisor, often before the client even leaves the office, to ensure that clients are receiving a high level of service, get feedback on where they can improve… and drive referrals, online reviews, and social media engagement by asking clients to engage immediately after they provide positive feedback.
In this episode, we talk in-depth about how Sebastian hired a team member to become a quality control specialist (and has now added a second) specifically to follow up with clients after meetings to ask about their experience with both their advisor as well as with other departments in the firm with which they interact (from the front desk to operations), how Sebastian's firm has received 400 client referrals annually (averaging nearly 25% of their total client count) in part by having these quality control specialists ask clients not to provide referrals, per se, but to name individuals they would reach out to if they ran their own wealth management firm (who then receive invitations to attend one of the Sebastian's educational events), and how Sebastian's firm has also gained more than 600 Google reviews through this quality control process (making the firm easier to find for prospective clients, and drowning out a series of three fraudulent negative reviews that a competitor once posted against them).
We also talk about how Sebastian's firm attracted and onboarded approximately 480 new households in 2024 (including through a one-day educational event that led to 115 prospect appointments all by itself), how Sebastian's firm expands its relationship with existing clients by tasking everyone, including operations team members, with the goal of having clients consolidate more of their assets with Guerra Wealth advisors, and how Sebastian enables his lead advisors to hold up to 35 prospect and clients each week by leveraging both technology (including Salesforce to prep advisors before meetings and AI to transcribe the advisors' meeting notes and follow-on tasks) and a robust service team to provide further support for each advisor.
And be certain to listen to the end, where Sebastian shares how using the Entrepreneurial Operating System has allowed him to clarify his firm's goals, vision, and mission at a time of rapid client and employee growth (as the firm has nearly doubled over the past two years alone), how Sebastian's firm leverages an in-house recruiter to hire fast enough to keep pace with its rapid growth while staying true to the firm's core values, and how Sebastian's roles as a new husband and father have begun to shift his priorities away from 'just' running a thriving business (and the long hours that doing so can entail) to also focus on the ability to delegate specific tasks to team members in order to spend more time with his growing family.
So, whether you're interested in learning about how to implement a financial planning quality control system to drive referrals and online reviews, how to leverage a single-day marketing event to generate planning prospects, or how to design firm operations to maximize advisor face-time in front of clients and prospects, then we hope you enjoy this episode of the Financial Advisor Success podcast, with Sebastian Guerra.
Enjoy the current installment of "Weekend Reading For Financial Planners" – this week's edition kicks off with the news of a recent survey indicating that while overall client satisfaction with their financial advisors remains high at 95%, potential threats to client retention lurk beneath the surface, particularly amongst clients who experience a major windfall or a life transition. Which suggests firms that can meet clients' evolving needs as they advance up the wealth spectrum (e.g., advanced tax and estate planning) and ensure that both members of client couples remain engaged in the planning process (to encourage a surviving partner to stay with the firm in case of a death of their spouse) could have more durable client satisfaction and, ultimately, higher client retention rates.
Also in industry news this week:
- The financial advice industry is facing a potential shortage of 100,000 advisors in the coming decade, according to a recent study, though this is due in part to (the good news) of greater consumer demand for human-provided financial advice
- Charles Schwab is planning to raise the fees on its custodial referral program, indicating continued interest in this lead generation tactic despite its steep price for firms
From there, we have several articles on IRA planning:
- 20 potential mistakes prospects and clients might make with regard to their IRAs, and how advisors can help fix them (or avoid them in the first place)
- The potential financial and psychological benefits of spousal IRAs for married couples
- How advisors can help clients and their tax preparers correct 'misleading' reporting regarding IRA distributions on IRS Form 1099-R
We also have a number of articles on practice management:
- A blueprint for how firms can create employee career paths that encourage staff to grow and advance within the firm, promoting retention and a more consistent client experience in the process
- How firms can establish and operate a successful internship program to create a solid pipeline of next-gen talent
- The value of hands-on training for newer advisors in giving them more confidence in applying their technical knowledge to actual client interactions
We wrap up with three final articles, all about workplace trends:
- How companies that integrate Artificial Intelligence (AI) tools while promoting collaboration among employees could see greater success in the years ahead
- Why employee engagement (on a national level) has sunk to a multi-year low and how building a strong firm culture and making a commitment to management training could help reverse this trend
- American workers are becoming more productive, according to recent data, creating new opportunities for employees and firms alike
Enjoy the 'light' reading!
