I talk about my son a lot. If you’re a parent, you get it. If not, you're likely to find it highly annoying. (Sorry.)The reality is that it’s not just our kids; we all talk about the things we care about most – our pets, our parents or our causes. And if you can help your clients help the people (or things) they care most about, there’s a good chance they'll talk about that to others as well. I’ll let the data do the talking on this one. Never mind retaining assets, this data speaks to the power of multi-generational planning to impact your growth in even more significant ways. And even if multi-generational planning isn't your thing, there's a significant opportunity to add value and drive referrals.

The Science of Kids and Referrals

I asked just over 1,000 investors if their advisor works directly with any of their children. (At the risk of stating the obvious, I only asked this question of those who had children.) I then applied the ‘referral filter’, separating those who indicated they had referred in the last year and those who had not.

Enough said. This question highlighted one of the biggest differences between those who referred and those who did not.

Adding Value Without Working Directly With the Children

But there’s more. You don’t need to work with the children of your clients to drive deeper engagement. Let’s face it, you may not be the best fit for the children of some of your clients. If that’s the case, you can still support those children in making better financial decisions and, in the process, drive deeper engagement. We asked clients if and how their advisor is supporting their children in making better financial decisions and applied the same ‘referral filter’. The differences are substantial. You can see from the data below that the biggest difference between the two groups is having an advisor who offered to meet directly with the children, followed by providing information your clients can use to help educate children themselves.

‍Q: Think about any children who do not work directly with your advisor. Which of the following does your advisor do to help them understand money or investments?

A: Yes, this is offered today.

This is what’s happening today. I also wondered about the potential demand for this kind of support going forward. You can see that a substantial number of clients, who did not provide a referral, are interested in this kind of support. Let’s face it, you only need to encourage a referral from a few clients to make a significant impact, so these are meaningful statistics.

‍Q: Think about any children who do not work directly with your advisor. Which of the following does your advisor do to help them understand money or investments?

A: Not receiving today, but would be of interest.

The reality is, of course, that not everyone has children so this is only part of the story. My personal view is that the same theory applies in other circumstances. If you can help clients to help the people and things they care about most, they will talk about you to others.

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Thanks for stopping by,

Julie