THE INTERGENERATIONAL DIVIDE: DON'T LET YOUR BOOK DIE WITH YOUR CLIENTS

PREPARE FOR THE NEXT BIG WEALTH TRANSFER

Connect with the family. Retain client assets.

Want to sustain your practice for the long term? Helping older clients visualize the next chapter and creating a bond with their loved ones or heirs will be instrumental. This module is filled with new ideas on how to engage, plan and communicate with the future generations of your most-valued clients.

We’ve provided you with:

Comprehensive resources for effective family meetings, with sample family meeting agendas, descriptions, facilitation tips and opening scripts
Client-approved worksheets including a Personal Information Checklist and a Beneficiary Audit Worksheet, to help organize their financial lives and communicate with their loved ones
Valuable information about the roles and responsibilities of key players in the estate-planning process

As the key advisor to the older generation, the keeper of the family financial history, and the overseer of assets, you hold a crucial but potentially unseen role to the family members in the next generation. In order for the rest of the family members to have a sense of the older generation’s regard for your counsel, you need to meet them. An in-person family meeting is an effective springboard for building relationships with the next generation of family members.

In a conversation with your client(s), you can position the family meeting as an essential step to getting everyone on the same page. In the family meeting, they will gather their loved ones to talk about issues and topics of consequence to the family. Your clients will want to introduce you as the family’s trusted financial professional. You and your clients can field any questions family members may have. You should forewarn your client(s) that the absence of effective and honest family communication could lead to conflict and significant strain on family dynamics in the future.

Here is an example of how to raise the topic of having a family meeting:

” Joe, have you considered the value of a family meeting? Many families find it helpful to gather their loved ones together in a casual setting to talk about the plans they’ve made for the future. In this setting, you could communicate the plans you have made, and explain how you came to those decisions. Everyone will have the chance to raise questions and express concerns.

And, if there are certain areas that may be sensitive, you can take time to walk them through your thought process and address any frustrations or objections head-on. The family meeting is also a great way for me to meet your family, so that we are comfortable and can establish a relationship that will benefit us, should we need to work together on your behalf in the future. ”

By leveraging our sample agendas, facilitation tips and scripts, you can streamline the steps so it becomes easier and easier for you to host these meetings with your clients.

For further ideas on how to connect with the next generation of your most valued clients, request access to exclusive content below

More from The Advisor Partnership Program (TAPP)®