Enjoy the current installment of “Weekend Reading For Financial Planners” – this week’s edition kicks off with the news that a recent benchmarking study suggests that a number of RIAs are looking to move ‘upmarket’ and work with wealthier clients by expanding their service menu to include family office services, investment banking, and/or trust services. Nonetheless, given that adding services requires an investment on the part of the firm (often in the form of increased staffing to offer high-touch services and add needed expertise), firms appear to be analyzing the costs and benefits of offering these services in-house versus adding value to clients by referring them to trusted professionals in these areas to ensure that they can truly scale profitably (and not ‘just’ grow in terms of assets).
Also in industry news this week:
- While many pre-retirees feel unprepared for retirement, longitudinal survey data suggest most will end up living a comfortable retirement, suggesting a role for financial advisors to show them projections of what their retirement could actually look like
- According to a recent survey, high-net-worth individuals are largely satisfied with their financial advisors, though some respondents indicated that communication with a client’s other advisors (e.g., attorney and accountant) could be improved
From there, we have several articles on investment planning:
- How the “60/40” portfolio has historically offered a strong ‘win rate’ of positive returns for long-term investors, even when adjusted for inflation
- The factors that could drive the future correlation between stock and bond returns amidst concern that the “60/40” portfolio has lost some of its diversification value
- Why private investments could potentially play a valuable diversifying role in an ‘alternative’ 60/40 portfolio
We also have a number of articles on advisor marketing:
- 3 ways advisors can adjust their websites to convert more referrals into clients
- Best practices for financial advisors looking to win referrals from fellow advisors, including the importance of demonstrating emotional intelligence
- Recent research indicates that client referrals are ‘contagious’, with previously referred clients more likely to make referrals themselves
We wrap up with 3 final articles, all about thank-you notes:
- Why sending thank-you notes throughout the year (and not just for major occasions) can offer benefits for both the writer and the recipient
- An argument against written thank-you notes and alternative options to show gratitude
- A 4-sentence structure for writing thoughtful (and efficient) thank-you notes
Enjoy the ‘light’ reading!
