4 Ideas on How to Improve the Virtual Client Experience

Summer is almost here, a season when many financial planners take time to relax, enjoy a good book, and maybe listen to an episode of our new Heart of Advice Podcast. It’s also when planning teams have the bandwidth to try new virtual tools and experiences to optimize their practice.

Here, we present four ways your peers use virtual tools to get to know clients on a personal level, communicate more effectively with couples, streamline processes, and better serve a client niche.

Idea #1: Hosting a Virtual Client Event

“Recently, we held a virtual wine tasting to celebrate Abaris’s B Corp status. The wines featured were produced by underrepresented communities and organizations giving back through scholarships. It was a delightful experience.” — Abbey Henderson, CFP??, RLP??, CPCC??,?CAP??, AEP?? | CEO of Abaris Financial Group

Like many advisors, Abaris Financial Group CEO Abbey Henderson turned to virtual client events out of necessity during the pandemic. However, four years later she’s still hosting virtual events for clients, including a meditation meeting, a book club, and the occasional wine tasting.

She found that clients genuinely enjoy the opportunity to get to know one another. “If you had asked me in March 2020 whether I’d still be leading this meditation group in 2024, I would have said no. Yet here we are.” Learn more about Abbey’s approach to client service in our first episode of the Heart of Advice Podcast, “The Next Level of Personalized Wealth Planning.”

Idea #2: Drawing Out a Quiet Client

What if you serve a couple where one partner is the “quiet” type or the couple is in conflict, and one partner has shut down? How can you help both participate fully in a client meeting? Dr. Sonya Lutter says digital tools can be a way to break through to someone who is reluctant to speak up.

“We have ample opportunities now with the way that we interact with our clients digitally, allowing them to submit information electronically before the meeting. Ask them for responses to five questions, and then you can talk for them during that session. … Even if they don't feel like talking about it in that moment, at least you have some of the things that are going on in their mind that you can reference. You can do this through chat functions if you're using a video conferencing system.” — Sonya Lutter, Ph.D., CFP?, LMFT | Director of Financial Health and Wellness and Masters programs at Texas Tech University

Hear more of her insights, including how to improve your relationship with married clients, in episode two of the Heart of Advice Podcast, “Couples & Money: Keeping Clients on the Same Page.”

Idea #3: Trying Asynchronous Video

“That's a seven-minute video. I don't have to spend that seven minutes with every single client, I just have to spend seven seconds sending them the link to the video and saying, ‘Hey, watch this.’” — Yohance Harrison BFA?, CRPC?, on the Financial Advisor Success Podcast

Many eMoney clients have found success with screen sharing videos, from the example above that helps Yohance Harrison streamline client onboarding, to actually sharing a financial plan update so clients can watch it on their own time and respond. Some even use these types of videos, made using platforms like Loom and Vidyard, to attract clients. Dave Zoller, CFP?, uses an eMoney demo client in this video about taxes and Social Security on his practice’s YouTube channel. ?

Idea #4: Taking Your Planning Practice Fully Virtual

“For advisors with specialty practices, operating virtually means you don’t have to limit your client base to a small geographical area that may not have enough prospective clients seeking your services. Not being location specific is an advantage for clients as well.” — Chloé Moore, CFP? | Founder of Financial Staples

For Chloé Moore, metro Atlanta’s traffic was only part of the inspiration to create a virtual financial planning practice. Being a remote advisor also allows her the opportunity to serve a specific niche clientele of tech professionals.

From Kitces.com’s “How Financial Planners Actually Do Financial Planning” research, we know that advisors who specialize in a niche have clients averaging 25 percent more investable assets and generate 20 percent higher standalone planning fees. If you’d like to learn more about Chloé’s approach, read Considerations for Creating a Virtual Financial Planning Practice.

Power Up for the Journey Ahead

Here’s a quick roundup of three planning resources to check out.

Subscribe to Our New Heart of Advice Podcast: Episodes 1 and 2 are now available wherever you listen to podcasts, including Spotify, YouTube, Amazon Music, and Apple Podcasts. You can also sign up using the form on this page to get the newest Heart of Advice content, including podcast episodes, delivered to your inbox each month.

Celebrate Diversity for AAPI Heritage Month: Marguerita Cheng, an industry veteran, speaks about her journey to foster diversity in the financial planning profession in this article.

Boost Your Emotional Intelligence: Catch the replay of our recent webinar on how to establish deeper connections with your clients.

Here’s hoping these resources help you work smarter, not harder so you can free up valuable time this summer to relax and recharge.