by Melanie Stafford
If you have ever lost a woman client after her divorce or husband's death and wondered what happened, you might be surprised to learn that doing more of what you do well could help address this problem.
In a 2010 study by The Boston Consulting Group, 70 percent of the 500 women surveyed said wealth managers should tailor their services for women. "And they can do so by fine-tuning, rather than reinventing, their approach to serving women clients," the study stated. Because women in the United States and Canada control 33 percent of the wealth (defined as at least $250,000 in assets under management) in the region, and those least satisfied with their advisory experience (32 percent) held between $1 million and $5 million AUM, according to the study, it behooves wealth managers to do a better job of meeting their female clients' needs.1
The key to retaining and engaging women clients is your communication style, Holly Buchanan told attendees of FPA Experience 2011 in September. She is the CEO of Buchanan Marketing LLC, a consultancy specializing in marketing to and selling to women. She is also the coauthor with Michele Miller of The Soccer Mom Myth: Today's Female Consumer-Who She Really Is, Why She Really Buys.
Women Make Decisions Differently
In The Soccer Mom Myth, Buchanan argues that although it's important not to stereotype, some differences in how men and women use their brains when listening affect the way they process information. For example, men use the left, or analytical, side more and women use the right, or emotive, side in addition to the left.
"Men's brains are very compartmentalized. Women's brains take a more holistic look at their environment," she writes in a blog post at marketingtowomenonline.typepad.com. Women often have more concerns to be addressed, more questions to be answered and consult more influencers in order to arrive at a decision. In other words, Buchanan says, women generally have a more deliberate decision-making process involving a longer "checklist," and therefore need more time to commit to a product or service.
This means a financial planner need not assume that when a woman client says, "I need to think about it," she's implying she's not interested. Take her at her word that she really hasn't made a decision yet-she needs to gather more information, especially from the people in her network. Respect her time by giving her space to conduct her process.
Women's Communication Styles
It's especially important not to solve women clients' problems before they have fully articulated them, according to Buchanan. Women want to be heard, understood, empathized with, valued as equal players and recognized as decision makers.
"Women often relate their needs through stories and anecdotes," says Marti Barletta, founder of the TrendSight Group, in an article called "Corner the Market" in Round the Table magazine (May/June 2006). "A savvy listener will be able to help her translate this information into concrete financial goals that will provide the framework for her investment plan."
In meetings with women or couples, enhance your listening skills by maintaining eye contact with the woman, asking her directly if she has any further concerns you can address and being aware of her veto power in a relationship. A woman may let her partner do all the talking, but later veto the deal if she feels she has been misunderstood. When a woman leaves her adviser after her husband's death or a divorce, she may have felt sidelined in the process all along.
What do women want from the process? According to a study by Allianz Life Insurance, "Women have a unique financial profile: they want less worry, less aggressive investing, more security and predictability, more simplicity and easier access to understandable financial information."2
Nonverbal Messages
Many women are detail-oriented and are looking for clues as to who you are and whether your values resonate with theirs. Make your office reflect your personal story by displaying photos of your family and pets, a framed favorite quote, books that have changed your life, a painting done by you or someone close to you, a meaningful souvenir from your travels or a humorous calendar. You never know which seemingly minor detail is going to spark a connection between you and a client, offering an opportunity to share a story that helps her identify with you.
Connection Counts Most
Buchanan makes some broad generalizations about differences between how men and women perceive behaviors that can help planners more effectively shape their approaches. Men, according to her, tend to be impressed by your credentials, your ability to speak the complex language of financial products and services and your competitive spirit highlighting the differences between your firm and others.
Women are more likely to be drawn to commonalities with you, empathetic stories of collaboration with other clients and examples of how you contribute to a community. A woman client might even be alienated by a planner who tries to impress her with industry jargon and numerous credentials, misconstruing the planner's intent to demonstrate credibility as an assumption that she is ignorant. "Men tend to put more stock in experts; women want to hear from other women like them," Buchanan told FPA Experience 2011 attendees.
Women Tend, Befriend and Refer
The theory that women "tend and befriend" instead of "fight or flee"3 also applies to their referral behavior, says Buchanan. After you have engaged your women clients with your enhanced communication style and a personal elevator speech that appeals to their value of connectedness, they will refer you more often to their families, friends and colleagues.
Melanie Stafford is a senior editor at FPA. Contact her at Melanie.Stafford@FPAnet.org.
Endnotes
1. Peter Damisch, Monish Kumar, Anna Zakrzewski, and Natalia Zhiglinskaya, 2010, Leveling the Playing Field: Upgrading the Wealth Management Experience for Women, The Boston Consulting Group (July).
2. Allianz Life Insurance, 2006, Allianz Women, Power and Money Study, www.allianzlife.com.
3. Shelley E. Taylor et al., 2000, "Biobehavioral Responses to Stress in Females: Tend-and-Befriend, Not Fight-or-Flight," Psychological Review 107: 411-429.
Sidebar
3 Tips to Boost Business
Holly Buchanan suggests the following actions to grow your business with women clients:
1. Review the profiles of your top 10 women clients and create a plan to strengthen your relationships with them.
2. Identify five key female clients who are influencers and can be advocates for your referral program.
3. Tell them a compelling personal story they are likely to repeat about you, so that your clients know how to broach the referral.
