Clients

The small practice rollercoaster
Over the course of my 30-plus years in financial services, I’ve had the privilege of working for some amazing organisations of various shapes and sizes both in Australia and overseas. I’ve spent almost half of this period as a business owner and CEO, so I have a deep appreciation of the pressures and pleasures that come…
The four verses of the client experience mantra
Even before Business Health was launched, we were disciples of the "client experience" mantra. And based on recent events, I can report it's more relevant than ever. Not long ago, I conducted a workshop with a successful practice based in my hometown of Brisbane. Going through the process confirmed to me, once again, the…
The four verses of the client experience mantra
Even before Business Health was launched, we were disciples of the "client experience" mantra. And based on recent events, I can report it's more relevant than ever. Not long ago, I conducted a workshop with a successful practice based in my hometown of Brisbane. Going through the process confirmed to me, once again, the…
Listen now to the Upfront podcast
If you’re in the financial services industry, listen up. Bold, frank, honest and totally unlike any other financial services podcast, Upfront is here to tackle the industry’s challenges and help build financial advice businesses people truly love (yes, we said love). Listen here or get Upfront on your favourite podcast app…
Why I'm happy to be a generalist
In recent years, there has been a lot of talk around the benefits of becoming a specialist and focusing on a specific demographic or niche market. I'm not here to argue against this; I can see the merits and have considered this path myself several times. However, we have decided to stay in the “generalist camp” and I feel…
Why I'm happy to be a generalist
In recent years, there has been a lot of talk around the benefits of becoming a specialist and focusing on a specific demographic or niche market. I'm not here to argue against this; I can see the merits and have considered this path myself several times. However, we have decided to stay in the “generalist camp” and I feel…
What your clients don’t tell you
While research has shown that advisers provide significant value to clients, advisers often struggle to articulate that value. And despite the recent focus on affordability, client satisfaction often has far more to do with the overall experience and communication of the advice rather than how much (or how little) the…
How do you ensure a consistent client experience?
In follow up to my article No adviser is an island, I'd love to know what practices are doing to keep the client experience front of mind for everyone in the team? How do you ensure the clients receive a cohesive experience from everyone they encounter in your practice?
Creating your vibe
You need one thing above everything else, to create a vibe which is genuine and personal for your clients – you must truly know your clients. Unfortunately, it’s our experience that very few practices are taking full advantage of their CRM functionality to capture the information they need to create that key personal,…
Hyper-personalisation: the next frontier?
Twenty years ago, the best way to deliver a personalised service to your clients was to actually get personal. You’d find out what they do for a living, learn the names of their kids and make sure their preferred type of coffee was waiting for them when they arrived at your office. Today, technology enables the most…
Hyper-personalisation: the next frontier?
Twenty years ago, the best way to deliver a personalised service to your clients was to actually get personal. You’d find out what they do for a living, learn the names of their kids and make sure their preferred type of coffee was waiting for them when they arrived at your office. Today, technology enables the most…
What can you do that an AI can’t?
What is the primary function of a meeting between an adviser and their client? According to Inspired Money founder Conrad Francis and chief operations officer Sherree Coffey, it’s the deep conversation: the one where the client discusses their goals and aspirations and works with the adviser to translate them into…
Divide and conquer
Client segmentation can be a powerful strategy for helping financial advice practices determine which products, fee structures, and communication strategies work best for each client group—provided you go about it the right way. To clarify, there is no “wrong” way to approach client segmentation. “Advisers can segment…
Hearing what’s unsaid: it’s all new for clients
It’s often said that within the first seven seconds of meeting, people will form a solid impression of who you are and start to determine traits like trustworthiness. While this is a truly scary concept – and advisers should be mindful of it! – it’s also worth extrapolating the timeframe out a little and considering how…
Divide and conquer
Client segmentation can be a powerful strategy for helping financial advice practices determine which products, fee structures, and communication strategies work best for each client group—provided you go about it the right way. To clarify, there is no “wrong” way to approach client segmentation. “Advisers can segment…
Hearing what's unsaid: self-employed clients
This article is the first in a series of Business Health insight pieces drawn from the most recent analysis of our CATScan Client Satisfaction Survey data. The CATScan dataset now contains feedback from over 45,000 Australian clients, all of whom are using the services of a financial adviser. As such, these findings are…
Baselines, blind spots and black holes
What is an adviser’s true capacity?
A wise man once told me that the problem with the world today is that there is too much emotion and not enough data. Operating an advice practice always has, and always will be, a numbers game. Put more clients in the funnel to convert more new clients. Get clear on your cost to serve to build out your advice fees. And…
What are the top 3 things you do in your practice to provide a great client experience?
I loved @Kim-Payne 's latest video on Baselines, blind spots and black holes in the client experience. It can get so overwhelming to know where to start sometimes, focusing on those moments that really matter is a great approach. Have you watched the video? I'm keen to hear what top 3 things you do in your practice to…
Watch now: What your clients don't tell you
While research has shown that advisers provide significant value to clients, advisers often struggle to articulate that value. And despite the recent focus on affordability, client satisfaction often has far more to do with the overall experience and communication of the advice rather than how much (or how little) the…
No adviser is an island
There’s a lot that goes into what was once quite a straightforward adviser-client relationship – booking client appointments, ongoing fee arrangements, research, advice creation and file completion, to name a few. It’s nearly impossible for an adviser to handle all of these tasks by themselves, which is why many of them…
Hearing what’s unsaid: age matters
Does age really matter? The latest snapshot of our CATScan Client Satisfaction Survey database reveals that in the average Australian advisory practice, 55% of clients are over 60 and 48% are already retired or otherwise no longer gainfully employed. While you could see this as successful penetration of what has been the…
Hearing what’s unsaid: it’s all new for clients
It’s often said that within the first seven seconds of meeting, people will form a solid impression of who you are and start to determine traits like trustworthiness. While this is a truly scary concept – and advisers should be mindful of it! – it’s also worth extrapolating the timeframe out a little and considering how…
Report available now: Use it or lose it
We have put together a guide, developed in partnership with Business Health, that will help you develop your client engagement approach across four key areas: * Client value proposition (CVP) * Client experience * Processes and procedures * People Make sure you join Advisely here to access it. Click here to access the CPD…
How to code birthday greetings in XPLAN
Hi Everyone, we are looking for assistance in coding the birthday email for clients. We need help with setting up coding so that the birthday greeting shows only the client who is celebrating their birthday on that day. Currently, the coding is showing both the client and their partner names in the email template that goes…
How do you approach your self-employed clients?
In our latest post we commented that, according to our CATScan client satisfaction database, self-employed clients were generally less satisfied with their adviser when compared to the satisfaction levels of other client types (employed, retiree). We went on to offer a few tips to perhaps lift their overall satisfaction.…
Hearing what's unsaid: self-employed clients
This article is the first in a series of Business Health insight pieces drawn from the most recent analysis of our CATScan Client Satisfaction Survey data. The CATScan dataset now contains feedback from over 45,000 Australian clients, all of whom are using the services of a financial adviser. As such, these findings are…
Are you stuck in the past with risk profiling?
It is easy for risk profiling to become just another tick-box exercise that we need to do as part of the advice process. Often, we have questionnaires for our clients that were made up by someone in the firm many years ago, aren’t based on any researched methodology and, more importantly, don’t engage the client. I often…
Efficiency and compliance: striking a balance
Running a successful financial planning business while ensuring efficient and effective client service/engagement is paramount. But how do we balance this with compliance, which is often seen as stifling innovation and efficiency? Here are three aspects of advice efficiency and how can they seamlessly intersect with…
Client reviews
G'day All There is always a lot of focus on new client engagement and SOA production. Given most practices have way more ongoing clients than new, how are you finding the process of arranging review meetings and preparing review documentation? Could this area and the report we provide clients at review time do with some…

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