Can you spot the COI? Advisor’s Edge can help

(July 12, 2004) Would you know a centre of influence (COI) if you saw one? While many financial advisors are accustomed to finding new prospects through lawyers and accountants, but the list of potential COIs goes far beyond the traditional professional base. That’s the focus of the cover story in July’s Advisor’s Edge magazine.

“Rather than look at the usual accountants and lawyers, we decided to look at unconventional COIs that advisors might be using,” says Deanne Gage, managing editor of Advisor’s Edge. “There’s a closet organizer on the cover because he’s been a valuable COI to his advisor, referring 160 high net worth prospects.”

Other non-conventional COIs include mortgage brokers, funeral directors, travel agents, human resource experts — if they deal with people, they deal with potential clients. The lesson to be learned: Advisors need to get creative when thinking about who could be a good source of referrals.

This month’s issue also has an insurance feature that looks at the potentially touchy subject of discussing a client’s health.

“You here a lot of things in the media today about obesity and the hazards of smoking, for example, and this article looks at the role an advisor has to play when looking at these sorts of issues,” says Gage. “The article is about putting things into perspective for clients as much as possible.”

Aside from improving their health, adjusting their lifestyle could save your clients money. An insurance client may not realize how much lower their premiums could be if they addressed health issues, such as quitting smoking or getting their weight under control.

And if a client takes up smoking without updating his insurance policy, they could be setting themselves up for disaster.

In this month’s “Toolbox” section, Winnipeg-based Wellington West advisor David Christianson tackles the challenge of generating consistent yields for retired clients. Producing income for retirees has become increasingly difficult, as the low interest rate environment has driven down the yields on traditional vehicles like bonds.

“David walks through his strategy for these clients, because it has been an issue for him,” says Gage. “While his process isn’t perfect, it at least gets advisor thinking about various strategies they may need to look at for clients who are no longer accumulating assets.”

This month Advisor’s Edge launches Top Performers, a new supplement featuring the success stories of leading securities brokers. The cover of this supplement features Jacques Maurice, ScotiaMacLeod’s $2 billion man, who shares his tips on building such a massive book of business.

Filed by Steven Lamb, Advisor.ca, steven.lamb@advisor.rogers.com