While baby boomers have been the foundation clients for many financial planning businesses, it is becoming increasingly important for businesses to turn their focus toward to the next generation of emerging investors. The over 65s are the fastest growing age group in the country and, as a country, we stand on the cusp of the greatest intergenerational wealth transfer in history.

Strategies which introduce you to the children of your clients will let you take advantage of the opportunities available from this. Here are five different ways you can open the doors to your next generation of clients.

Family tree

Develop a family tree, either at the first meeting or a part of the ongoing relationship. For older clients this should include siblings as well as children and grandkids. This should uncover many conversations and ultimately lead to referrals from your clients to the next generation.

Advice pack

To help take the first steps to provide advice for family members, create a tailored advice pack for your clients to give directly to their children (and even grandchildren). This is a good first step for potential clients to understand the benefits of quality financial advice.

Seminars and meetings

Take the opportunity to invite your client’s family to join them. This could be in the form of an annual seminar on topics more relevant to the children, such as superannuation or insurance. Alternatively they could join a meeting with just you and your client. Either way, this is a good opportunity to show extended family to see what financial planning is all about, and how the right advice will help them achieve their future financial goals.

Important dates

As a part of running your practice, note down important dates of your clients and their family. This goes beyond birthdays to such things as wedding anniversaries. Enquiring about these occasions will keep the door open to further conversations with these people.

Family advice model

One step further, consider introducing a ‘family advice fee’ which lets younger generations access advice at subsidised, or discounted, rates.

Not only will these engagement strategies help you create a relationship for future financial advice, they can also help make the right decisions for your existing clients. Indeed, some of decisions are better made with the next generation including business succession planning, planning major purchases – or the sale of the family home, the most tax-efficient way to transfer assets, or the ongoing control of your client’s assets through testamentary trusts.

While baby boomers have been the foundation clients for many financial planning businesses, it is increasingly important businesses appeal to the next generation. This will often require proactive steps to reinvent your practice, from how technology is used, the value proposition and pricing models – or even pricing itself.

However, the financial needs of baby boomers’ children, such as risk insurance solutions, mortgages, cash flow management and maximising super are very different to their parents, in some ways may make it seem like ‘back to the future’.

Source: IOOF.