Celebrating Advice: Measuring a clients’ needs

While most advisors quickly realized they needed to change lanes on risk-allocation, and pull the brakes on emotionally charged, recession-ravaged clients, Jeff Swanson, owner of Vancouver-based Swanson Financial Footprint, says he avoids speed bumps by keeping greed firmly in check during bull runs.

“The good times are the most dangerous times and I know how important my role is in keeping clients from making any big mistakes. My job is to not let their emotions drive their investment decisions. A lot of people come to me because they haven’t had that discipline before from their advisor or from doing it on their own.” The strategy seems to work.

In his ten years as financial advisor, Swanson hasn’t once had to prospect for clients. His business has grown 100% through referrals from clients and other professionals in the field such as accountants or lawyers. “And in my whole career, I’ve only had two clients leave and that happened because they both had a family member that started in the business. One of them actually came back.”

At 35, Swanson says he’s pretty close to where he’d like to be in his practice. “I’m starting to limit the clients I take on now. I’m becoming a lot more specific with the people I work with.”

Swanson and his two business partners work primarily with successful business owners, executives, professionals and financially established families. They specialize in providing customized wealth management for every client, varying it based on the complexity of each situation.

The practice is commission-based, “exclusively front-end zero and based on assets.” Swanson swears by his custom-built brand of advice, and even named his practice Financial Footprint because he believes every client’s situation – just like his or her footprint – is unique.

“We take the planning part very seriously. It frustrates me there are still a lot of sales people not providing actual advice. I wish there was less promotion of financial transactions and more advice. I think we all get pooled into the salespeople stereotype and that isn’t true for many of us,” Swanson says.

Starting this year, Swanson will further customize service by offering three levels of service, gold, platinum and diamond, depending on client assets. For example, platinum clients – worth $5 million and more – will enjoy more sophisticated estate planning, access to additional investment opportunities, private wealth management services and better fee structures.

Financial Footprint concentrates on retirement, estate, investment and insurance planning. The initial meeting – the footprint assessment – lasts one to two hours, and Swanson says is in many ways the most important part of the planning process. During this meeting, he strictly defers from touching upon the financial side of things. His goal is to just talk to his prospective clients, get to know them and what makes them tick. “It’s imperative to understand the people ahead of the financial stuff. Most people come to me with stacks of financial papers, I tell them to put it away and we just talk.” Questions at the first meeting include things clients love, and hate, spending money on. “Simple questions like ‘Why are you here to see me?’ give me insight into the problems they’re facing or the barriers they see to succeeding.”

The responses are a revelation not only for Swanson, but sometimes for the clients who have never before addressed these questions. “A lot of times spouses aren’t on the same page. They aren’t communicating. I can take care of the numbers and the financial stuff, but we really need to get them on board so they have a better understanding of each other and what they want to do going forward.”

Some of his clients have actually told him he saved their marriages by addressing those basic questions. “It’s amazing how much grief and happiness finances can cause people. Once couples see the clarity, when we do their retirement planning for example, it’s unbelievable – the comfort in their eyes. Sometimes I almost feel I’m their marriage counsellor, not advisor.”

And non-intimidating comfort really is the mainstay of Swanson’s practice. Even his office décor reflects that. “It’s an open concept. When people come in our door they don’t see a big intimidating desk with a receptionist,” Swanson says. “We have created a small living-room-like space with a television, magazines and nice leather couches at our front entrance, so people aren’t sitting in a traditional waiting room. We’re not like banks; and we really try to separate ourselves.”

Swanson’s clients aren’t just based in Vancouver; close to 40% are actually outside the city. So he has zealously adopted technology to stay connected.

Clients have a login system that allows them access to his desktop so they’re looking at the same things he is. “I feel the old-school way of getting into a car and showing up at somebody’s house at dinnertime to do their financial planning is really a thing of the past. Instead of spending time in a car, I utilize it doing planning work for my clients.” Part of Swanson’s credibility, he says, comes from his long list of credentials. A CFP, CLU, RHU, and insured and licensed in three provinces, Swanson says designations are critical. “The barriers to get into this business are not that big. That frustrates me. My goal is to always stay at the forefront of education, and give the absolute best and most specialized advice to each client.”