From The Globe and Mail with Dianne Maley
Published: November 8, 2018
If you’ve been an advisor for some time, this probably has happened to you: Without a word of warning, a good client whom you thought was satisfied submits a dreaded “request to transfer” form.
“I hereby request the transfer of my account and its investments as described above to” a rival investment firm. Suddenly, a six-figure account you worked hard to win is flying out the door. What went wrong, you ask yourself?
If you have to ask, then what we’ve got here is a failure to communicate. It could be you were too busy to call when the market was down, leaving the client to fret. Or your firm’s hard-to-understand client reporting might have frustrated him or her.
Whatever the reason, failing to communicate simply and clearly with clients in a way they understand can cost advisors business, experts say, or land them in hot water with their compliance departments and the regulators. Sometimes, clients sue.
