Editor’s Note: This is the first installment in a series on technology for advisors.
When some people hear that phrase, they cringe. Others embrace the vast expanse of processing and reporting in the digital world with ease. These two reactions, and every position along the continuum, are always going to be with us—especially in an industry like financial services, in which each practice is as unique as the individual who owns/operates it. In fact, many of the advancements in processing we see today were not available or even conceived of when most of the industry participants of today started their businesses 10 or 15 years ago.
So what is an advisor to do in the face of deciding whether they should implement technology and software while they continue to produce and serve their clients at the same time?
We believe the best place to start is learning what is out there. In this post, we hope to give advisors and business owners alike the lay of the land. What is available to help advisors build and leverage time and information so they can enjoy the benefits of advancement?
Let’s look at some of those tools and how to apply them to a financial practice. Whether a single or multi-professional organization, you’ll find this post will inform and provide confidence to your practice management. Please keep in mind we do not suggest you automate your entire way of doing business all at once. We do suggest you pick one area of your business that you believe could benefit from some innovation. Become comfortable utilizing it and seeing the benefits and rewards of this automation, before tackling the next one. Here we go!
Digitize File Stores
Picture this: An advisor sets an appointment with an existing client. Immediately, the advisor and, quite possibly their staff, begin searching through the paper files to find the client’s information. Of course, the advisor wants to remember what they did with this client the last time they met, or what the client told them about their hopes for the future, and did their daughter have their first grandchild yet? For those of you who are still using paper files, this might be your daily reality.
When you consider all the floor space physical file cabinets occupy, and how much it costs to house them, this option is almost a no-brainer. Simply scanning all paper documents in client physical files and logically storing the digital image on a computer or large document storage library is an easy task. This storage can either be local to your computer hardware or stored in a cloud-based environment, or both. Not only will this reduce the amount of paper you have stored in your office, but scanning papers for storage will lessen the chance of losing an important note or document you need to have for a later time.
It is relatively inexpensive as well! Some advisors will hire an intern to tackle the entire project at once. Others decide to set aside time for their assistant or even themselves to scan a little bit each week until all the files are converted. Once saved, the information in the digital storage will be much quicker to access. By simply typing in a few keywords or someone’s name or a date, all documents that fit your search will be listed right before your eyes. No more hide-and-seek games, and your office will have much less in the way of clutter and furniture!
CRM (Client/Resource or Relationship Management)
I’m sure many of us remember the trusty Rolodex. Taking time to write the contact information and clip it to the storage box or wheel may still be your favorite pasttime. Some of you may still have a binder with business cards. Our next suggestion is to consider a CRM. The CRM is the most basic of software that will provide the glue to any client database and all the information you have for them. In one place, an advisor can find all relevant client information. You can also keep all your notes, client interactions and key relationship information in one place.
When an advisor is preparing for a client meeting, having all their client’s information in a CRM is a major timesaver. It helps an advisor retain vast amounts of information on clients, details on likes and dislikes, associations or aspirations. Advisors can often store their impressions and opinions to help them maintain consistency in the relationship building that could be lost if an advisor has many clients in his/her practice. Keeping consistent data also helps with compliance to ensure you are documenting exactly what you have told your clients. Some say, “If it is not in the CRM, it basically didn’t happen.”
To make this transition less painful, we suggest that you first decide on which CRM to use. Implement the basics of the program, such as client contact information and your meeting notes. After you master this for all your clients, you can dig into the other benefits of the CRM you are using. The benefits can be endless, provided an advisor has the discipline to capture and keep current all the data necessary to support the workload they require. There is an old adage, “Garbage in, garbage out.” This is very true in this case. The ability to use the data effectively is only as good as the data that is stored in the CRM. Start slowly and build.
More to Come
In this series of posts, we will continue to address the various options for you to automate your practice to help you become more efficient. These include using an electronic calendar, electronic forms, electronic signatures, virtual meetings, digital marketing and social media.
If you are already doing these, great! If there is anything you are currently using or have heard about that you would like more information on, please let us know so we can incorporate it.
We hope you view these tools as an investment in your business. As with any investment you will need to be cognizant of the ROI and whether it is the best fit for you.
Toni E. Whaley is a financial planner with PlanMember Securities Corporation.
Opinions expressed are those of the author, and do not necessarily reflect the views of the NTSA or its members.
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