Building a practice is always an important concern. But when a circumstance such as that with which retirement plan professionals must contend this year—namely, a pandemic—intervenes, that effort becomes more complicated.
In a June 17 webinar, NTSA Past President Tamara Indianer, CFP®, AIF®, CRES Regional Vice President, New England Lincoln Investment, and NTSA Past President Adam Pearce, CFP®, CRES CERTIFIED FINANCIAL PLANNER™ Professional Lincoln Investment, offered insights on how to attract clients during a pandemic; they also discussed how the NTSA Certified Retirement Education Specialist (CRES) program and certification can help in that effort.
Technology Key
Access to school campuses had been a challenge for a variety of reasons even before the pandemic, but now is even more difficult to navigate. However, there are tools to surmount those challenges.
Chief among them is technology, which they noted can offer a more efficient way to work. “COVID has accelerated the time frame of adopting virtual platforms,” said Indianer.
Further, schools have delivery systems which a service provider can utilize. “We’re not in this alone,” Pearce said. “All our school districts are dealing with this, too, and developing virtual training programs. So it is not reinventing the wheel in providing training to teachers. You just need to plug in to what they’re doing.”
Pearce called Zoom “a blessing in disguise” in making it possible to seize new options and opportunities. He added that it is helpful in reaching rural districts, which in Arizona can be many hours away—which also holds true for other big states.
Even after a vaccine comes out, remarked Indianer, “I still believe that our marketplace has changed forever.” There will be some in-person contact, but there also will be more virtual interaction. And a mix of the two.
What the NTSA Is Doing
“Our main goal is to educate the educators,” said Indianer, referring to the NTSA CRES program.
Indianer cited the success of a CRES-style program, and CRES itself, in Hawaii. In 2019, the Hawaii State Department of Education began a project very similar to the CRES program with National Benefit Services to strengthen retirement plan education in the state and increase 403(b) participation. Nathan Glassey, TGPC, QKA, Vice President, Retirement Services for National Benefit Services, has written that in 2020, the program fully incorporated the CRES certification to help increase advisor participation, improve marketing and education materials, and add a national certification to the program.
The NTSA also formed two regional groups: the Arizona 403(b) Professionals and the New England Retirement Education Group (NEREG).
Pearce reported that the efforts in Arizona have yielded strong results. Between 2016 and 2020, 14 school districts adopted the CRES program. That benefits 35,650 employees at 376 sites. He noted that in every school district where they have made presentations, participation has increased.
And the group is not resting on its laurels. Pearce said that 41 school districts “are in the pipeline,” adding that “More and more school districts will quickly follow suit.”
NEREG has made 12 presentations; among the parties to which they have done so are the Massachusetts Association of School Board Officials (MASBO), Connecticut Association of School Board Officials (CASBO) and four companies. NEREG is scheduled to make eight presentations in Autumn 2020.
Tips and Ideas
Indianer and Pearce offered some ideas about approaches that retirement plan professionals can follow and actions they can take:
- Before making a presentation for public employees for public employees, seek approval from the relevant compliance department.
- The CRES Toolkit includes content that addresses investing during extreme market volatility and a guide to making presentations virtually.
- Play the CRES commercial for prospective clients.
- Work closely with districts to make sure there’s a call to action after you make a presentation.
- Remember that the CRES advisors are the ones to educate teachers regarding retirement preparation.
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