Combatting uncertainty: Five essential tools to ease client anxiety now

(March 2003) With the current chaos in global politics and the ongoing volatility in the stock market (and many investment portfolios, by extension), it’s natural for your clients to be anxious right now and to have some questions. That’s why you’re there for them and that’s why Advisor.ca has assembled this special package of five powerful tools to combat client uncertainty:

Send out this customizable template letter to let your clients know that you are thinking of them during this period of global crisis and are at their beck and call if they have any questions about their investment portfolios or overall financial plans. This gesture alone may be all a client will need to feel less anxious.

Chaos or calm, bull market or bear, the investment policy statement (IPS) is equally invaluable when it comes to managing expectations, keeping clients focused on their investment objectives and preventing any knee-jerk, emotional decisions based on market or world events such as the current Iraq crisis. It will definitely require a time commitment to complete a proper IPS with each of your clients, but we’ve done the legwork for you with this detailed IPS template you can open as a Word document and customize to your specific needs.

Do you have clients who have had enough of the equities market roller coaster for now and are asking you for information on some more conservative and safer investment options? Educate your clients and debunk a few myths about bonds and bond funds with this downloadable “Bond basics” PowerPoint presentation.

Any strong advisor-client relationship ultimately comes down to trust and one way to build trust is to communicate on a regular basis, in good markets and bad. If a client is kept in the loop at all times and is reminded frequently that you are always looking out for him, you will have a more educated and most likely calmer client when difficult times do come around. Use this client communication calendar to set your plan for the rest of the year and deepen your relationships in the process.

Do your clients need more convincing about staying invested or investing more in equities over the long term? Here is a fairly compelling graph showing past capital market returns over a 44-year period.

Staff

The staff of Advisor.ca have been covering news for financial advisors since 1998.