The review meeting is something that every advisor does. But CEG Insights’ latest research suggests it may be one of the most under-leveraged growth tools in wealth management.

The reason: Your clients want a different experience than the one you’re giving them. Provide your clients with the type of comprehensive reviews they seek, and they’ll reward you—with more assets, more loyalty and more referrals.

Here’s how to make it happen.

What is and isn’t working with client review meetings

Investors still value the idea of attending review meetings with their advisors. However, they’re not thrilled with the content they’re getting from advisors during those meetings. Consider CEG Insights research showing that:

46.7% of clients want more tax planning opportunities during review meetings.
41.7% want retirement and longevity projections.
32.3% want cashflow and spending analysis.
32% want estate planning discussions.

This should be a huge wake-up call to those of you who focus mostly or entirely on portfolio performance results in relation to a benchmark index. Yes, performance reviews are important, and they always will be. But clients want you to go well beyond the investment-based numbers. They want to know what they can do to save on taxes, manage spending and plan their legacies.

In short, they don’t simply want a weather report that updates what happened with their money over the past year—they want a flight plan that helps them chart a course for their future.

A performance review answers questions that the client didn't lose any sleep over. A comprehensive planning review answers the questions that are actually keeping them up at night. So if you're only talking about the portfolio, you can miss what's really important to the client that's sitting right in front of you.

The value of the financial flight plan to your practice

Guess what happens if advisors regularly review more than just the investments?

74.3% of investors say they would be more loyal to the advisor.
73.8% say their trust in their advisor would increase.
62% say they'd be more likely to refer.
54.7% say they'd increase the assets they invest with that advisor.

Think about this as you go out hunting for your next marketing tactic to get in front of new affluent prospects. One of the most powerful growth levers you have is already coming into your office at least once a year for a review!

A four-part comprehensive meeting structure

A strong review meeting should explain what happened in the portfolio, put that information in the context of what’s happening in the markets and the economy, and help the client see what they should do next. It’s that third part where you can really shine, because it provides the client with your judgements and ideas about action steps to take.

The meeting should have four key components:

1. Goals and progress. Start with the client’s life—not the market. What has changed in their life since you last spoke? Any developments with family, health, work, major purchases, etc.? This conversation is crucial because people so often are dealing with challenges that they don’t know how to bring up with others. Give your clients the freedom and permission to share their lives with you, so you can help them realize what’s possible for them.

2. Portfolio review. This is where you talk about performance, risk, asset allocation and all the “usual suspect” topics. Keep this part relatively short so you can focus more on the more value-added topics.

3. Planning opportunities. Discuss tax planning opportunities, estate planning possibilities, retirement income projections, debt management strategies and other advanced planning concerns.

4. Next steps. End with an action plan that has clear ownership and deadlines to hit before the next meeting.

Important: Every review has to be done this way if you want clients to see you as comprehensive. It can’t happen just once a year. Comprehensive reviews need to be the foundation of your client experience.

Prove your value

Ultimately, the review meeting is one of the best chances you have to prove your value—but only if it goes beyond simple performance reporting. Investors are telling us that they want help thinking through their whole financial life.

That means the review meeting is now an opportunity to enhance loyalty. It's an opportunity to build more trust. It's an opportunity to attract additional assets from the people right in front of you. And it’s an opportunity to get referrals to other ideal clients.

It's a moment to prove tangibly that you understand far more than just what's going on with the portfolio. Do so, and your clients will reward you.

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