Easton, MA

Wednesday, June 20, 2012

As Independence Day approaches, this is a good time for financial advisors to learn how to talk with female clients about financial independence. According to a recent survey of 12,000 women from 21 countries by the Boston Consulting Group for its Global Inquiry into Women and Consumerism study, of all industries, women are most dissatisfied with the financial services industry, on both a service and product level. These statistics provide strong evidence the financial services industry has missed the mark with female clients.

"Women are looking for female-friendly advisors to work with now and in the future to help them receive, build and pass on wealth," explains Kathleen Burns Kingsbury, wealth psychology expert and founder of KBK Wealth Connection. Based on her upcoming book, How to Give Financial Advice to Women: Attracting and Retaining High-Net-Worth Female Clients (McGraw-Hill, September, 2012), Kingsbury offers five tips to help financial advisors become more female-friendly and talk with female clients about financial independence.

1. Demonstrate curiosity. When you are curious, you ask open-ended questions and really get to know how your clients think and feel about money and wealth. The gift of being curious is you suspend judgment, stop making assumptions and instead let your client be the expert of her own experience
2. Show your clients that you are human. Allow yourself to be wrong occasionally and to not have all the answers. She will feel safer and trust you more when you do
3. Be trustworthy, transparent and honest. Follow through on your promises. Apologize if you make a mistake. By being trustworthy, you are reassuring your female clients that their assets and their family's future are in good hands
4. Listen. This is a simple word that describes an action that is often hard to do. When a female client feels heard, she trusts you more, stays with you during times of transition and refers her friends to you
5. Celebrate milestones in your female clients' lives. Send an email when she gets a promotion, a card when her son graduates from college or a note when she reaches a benchmark in her financial plan. Celebrating together is a great way to connect and build a more solid, trusting relationship

 

 The author of How to Give Financial Advice to Women: Attracting and Retaining High-Net-Worth Female Clients, Kathleen Burns Kingsbury, says, "Female clients want you to validate their thoughts and feelings as part of the advising process. This helps them feel understood and cared for, which are both important to women who are striving to achieve financial independence. 

About Kathleen Burns Kingsbury

Kathleen Burns Kingsbury is a wealth psychology expert, behavioral change specialist and frequent keynote speaker at financial industry conferences across the country. As an expert on financial psychology, Kathleen has been quoted in the Wall Street Journal, MSNBC's Today Money and Forbes's Forbes Woman, to name a few. She is a faculty member of the Certified Private Wealth Advisor (CPWA) program and an adjunct lecturer at the McCallum Graduate School of Business at Bentley University. She holds a Master's in Psychology and is a Certified Professional Co-Active Coach (CPCC). Her third book How to Give Financial Advice to Women: Attracting and Retaining High-Net-Worth Female Clients (McGraw-Hill) is due out September, 2012. For more information, visit www.kbkwealthconnection.com.

Kathleen Burns Kingsbury

Wealth Psychology Expert

KBK Wealth Connection

Easton, MA

617-803-6046

First Url: www.kbkwealthconnection.com

Second Url: How to Give Financial Advice to Women: Attracting and Retaining High-Net-Worth Female Clients