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Breathe new life into your newsletters
In a world of changing technology and changing client needs, here’s how to make your newsletters more effective than ever
by Mark Michaud Despite the incredible influence of new technologies like the Internet, you may be surprised to learn that newsletters remain – by far – the most popular way for financial advisors to stay in touch with their clients. That’s because the original appeal of newsletters remains: they are rich in information and advice and they provide real value to your clients. By sending them regularly, you not only stay in touch, you demonstrate the value of working with a professional advisor. But it’s important not to rest on your laurels when it comes to newsletters. As clients become more educated and informed about financial matters, your newsletters will need to continue to demonstrate value. That means you may need to rethink what you put in them. Five years ago, a client newsletter may have been the only way for your client to learn about personal finance. Today, daily newspapers, financial web sites, and magazines all compete with your newsletters. So how do your crank it up a notch to stay relevant? Take a look at your practice. Five years ago, you may have spent most of your time recommending investments. Today, chances are that you spend much
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more time working on wealth preservation and transfer strategies, or on planning for your client’s lifestyle choices, such as early or partial retirement. Your newsletter should reflect this change in your practice and in your clients’ changing needs. The content of your newsletter will need to be more sophisticated and go beyond strictly financial topics. Here are some of the topics that your clients will want to hear about: Retirement lifestyles. It’s no secret that the baby boomers are heading towards retirement. As they do, their concerns will shift from saving for retirement to making the most of what they have saved, and ensuring that they have a high quality of life during retirement. Articles about retirement communities and housing options, for instance, will become increasingly important. Health and wellness. Once retired, health issues will be paramount to your clients. They’ll want to hear about long-term care options and long-term care insurance. Healthy lifestyle tips and information will also be prized. Self-employment. Financial planning for those who are self-employed will become more important. These clients need solid strategies about how to meet financial goals without the help of company pension plans and other forced savings strategies. Tax planning strategies will be highly valued for these people. How can you provide this kind of information, especially if it is outside of your traditional area of your expertise? If you use a newsletter service, chances are your supplier is already providing articles on these subjects. Another strategy is to look to your centre-of-influence network. Accountants, lawyers, doctors –
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even fitness trainers and nutritionists – can be excellent sources of content for your newsletter, as well as a potential source of referrals. If you still look at your newsletter as just a fancy business card, with your photo and phone number prominently displayed, think again. It’s time to put the effort into keeping your newsletter relevant to your clients, and ensuring it remains the best tool for retaining them. As with so many other things in our industry, standing still means falling behind.
Mark Michaud Vice President & Editorial Director, Financial Services
Mark has deep knowledge of the challenges facing financial advisors in today's crowded marketplace. For the past six years he has been responsible for developing and producing customized client communications programs that support the financial advisor-client relationship for more than 3,000 financial planners, brokers, and insurance agents across Canada. Mark has written articles on marketing and communications trends for Canadian financial advisors for the Web site advisor.ca and has spoken at conferences on the subject.