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Some estimates show that women will control as much as two-thirds of the nation’s wealth by 2030. But are financial professionals prepared to engage and retain these female investors as clients – especially in a virtual setting? Associate Retirement Director Marquette Payton shares best practices for conducting virtual meetings that exceed clients’ expectations.
As we near the end of Women’s History Month, it’s a good time to look back and appreciate the strides women have made over the last century.
Just 100 years ago, women weren’t allowed to wear pants, vote or serve on a jury. Today, women control 51% of American personal wealth and are expected to control as much as two-thirds by 2030.1,2 Couple this with the fact that women live longer than men, divorces in the age group of 55+ are on the rise,3 and 90% of women will be solely responsible for managing the long-term financial planning at some point in their lives,4 and it’s clear that successfully engaging with female investors will be an important part of building your practice over the next decade and beyond.
If that statistic isn’t enough to make you question the level of service you’re providing this key segment of your client base, consider the virtual world in which we find ourselves today, where it’s more challenging than ever to make meaningful connections. Then ask yourself, are you doing everything you can to create positive virtual experiences for your female clients?
Dr. Meghaan Lurtz, a researcher at the University of Maryland, has been thinking about this new paradigm of client engagement for the past year. While videoconferencing platforms like Zoom and Teams have only recently become ubiquitous in our socially distanced world, they have been used extensively in the therapy world for years. Dr. Lurtz compiled some best practices that translate very well from the therapy world to financial services, and I will share those with you here.
Janus Henderson conducted its own research in March 2020 that looked specifically at client communication during the pandemic. Our survey found that a surprisingly large number of respondents (42%) who use a financial professional claimed they had not been contacted during the market correction that took place at that time. But it’s the disparity between genders that was especially striking: 60% of female respondents said they had not heard from their financial professional during the March downturn compared to just 29% of male respondents.
Before we get into Dr. Lurtz’s best practices, let’s consider some of the pros and cons of virtual meetings. While some dread the prospect of Zoom replacing in-person contact, for many clients, a video call is much easier than coming into an office. They don’t have to fight traffic, they don’t have to pay for parking, they don’t even have to change out of sweats and slippers! And if it’s a female client who perhaps has not participated in conversations with you in the past, a video call could be a more comfortable and less committing way for her to ease into that relationship.
From the financial professional’s perspective, virtual meetings translate into more frequent but less lengthy touchpoints. That’s positive because if a is off track, you don’t have to wait 12 months to find out and can instead identify those issues sooner rather than later. Virtual meetings also make it easier to bring in other experts such as CPAs, as well as the client’s other family members, as needed. Also, people who feel guilty about cancelling appointments may be less likely to cancel a Zoom meeting than an in-person office visit.
With all of this as our backdrop, let’s take a look at Dr. Lurtz’s best practices.
In closing, I’ll leave you with this insight from the World Economic Forum survey we referenced above:
If you enjoyed this article, I’d encourage you to explore more of the resources – including our Women and Wealth program – available through our Knowledge Labs® group. Knowledge Labs provides timely insight and perspective, with programs designed to hone your skills and a team of accessible experts committed to helping you exceed expectations – in business and in life.
To learn more about our team’s capabilities, contact your Janus Henderson representative.
1,2Virginia Tech, “Women in Leadership and Philanthropy.” 2016.