As I stood in front of New York’s Trump Tower in the midst of the American Presidential election campaign a few weeks ago, there was nothing to indicate that its owner would soon become the leader of the world’s most powerful economy.
Yet, the fact is Donald Trump will be the next President of the USA; this means that, regardless of our own views, what President Trump says and does over the next few years will impact on every aspect of our clients’ affairs.
I have experienced many eventful years during my career in financial services; however there are very few that have delivered the momentous twists and turns that we have seen in 2016. The results of the EU Referendum and the American Presidency race are unprecedented, and we have yet to see, or even begin to understand, the implications.
During times such as these, the role of the financial adviser is more important to clients than ever. Following the Brexit decision last June, we conducted a survey of firms served by SimplyBiz to evaluate how their clients were reacting.
Rather than the wide scale panic one might have expected, we discovered that most clients were reasonably relaxed about their post-Brexit financial future.
None of us know exactly how these changes will affect the economy in the long-term, however, aspects of the advice process such as gaining a thorough understanding of a client’s attitude to risk and long-term planning mean that, whatever the external drivers, advisers will be able to keep their clients’ goals absolutely central to the service they provide.
In addition, it seems like the work advisers put in to building and maintaining relationships of trust with their clients means that it is understood that an adviser can be relied upon.
We often talk about the importance and value of advice and it is at tumultuous times like these when this is highlighted. The seismic changes of 2016 are a golden opportunity for you to reinforce your client relationships by demonstrating that you are available for them to listen to and potentially calm their concerns.
If you are able to help your clients keep their head, when all about them are losing theirs, then you are providing a service which is not only incredibly worthwhile, but also unequalled in any other sector.
Ken Davy is chairman of SimplyBiz Group
