How All Advisors Can Attract Women Clients & Staff

Lynn Ballou, CFP® & Erin Voisin, CFP®, MS, CDFA®, ChFC®

Today’s Journey

• Insights – Communication and Decision-Making

• Building An Exceptional Client Experience For Women

• Developing Opportunities For Women Professionals and Colleagues

Insights –Communication

& Decision-Making

Insights – Communication Styles:Men Women

Direct Indirect/PoliteCompetition Cooperation

Highlight differences Look for similaritiesTransmit information Form connections

Goal oriented Relationship orientedKey points All her criteria

Facts and features Stories and detailsCredentials Values

Solve problems Share problems

Insights – Decision Making:Men Women

Processquickly Processcompletely

Wanttotakeaction Wanttothinkitthrough

Compartmentalized thinking Holisticthinking

Prioritizeoptions Compareoptions

Focusonimmediategains Focusonlong-termbenefits

Short-termplanning Long-term planning

Focusonachievinggoals Focusonachievinggoalsandavoidingbadoutcomes

Motivatedbyrewards Motivatedbyconsequences

Building an Exceptional

Client Experience for Women

Why Are We Here?• 70% of widows/divorcees leave their financial advisor within the

first year

• 44% are the primary breadwinners in their household

• Only 4% of women are not involved in financial decisions, with the remaining 96% either sharing in, or primarily in charge of, financial decisions

• 53% of women do not have a financial advisor• 75% under age 40 do not have an advisor

How To Make A Great First Impression

• Create a welcoming environment

• Put the cell phone away!

• Look her in the eye

• Ask both spouses questions

Develop a Meaningful Bond

•Understand her WHY

•Share your WHY

•Introduce her to your team

Setting the Stage for an Unparalleled Client Experience

• Your guiding motto: set and exceed expectations

• Ask questions- the 80/20 Rule

• Talk honestly about pros, cons, upsides and downsides of all the aspects of planning and investing… and how they relate to her plan!

• Utilize agendas that reflect everyone’s goals for the meeting

• Ensure the meeting is reflective of her learning style… Communicate and educate

The Client Experience

• Show her you care about her and what is important to her

• Collaborate with her team of advisors

• Recap and prioritize the action items

• Host events that educate and empower women

Developing Opportunities For Women

Professionals & Colleagues

Why You Want Women On Your Team

• Organizations with women in key roles adapt to market shifts better

• Businesses with the most women in top teams are more profitable

• Companies with the most diversity have lower turnover

You Can’t Put a Price On Culture

• Flexibility and work-life balance

• Everyone says they have a women’s initiative: how is yours unique?

• Collaboration reputation

• Compensation and opportunities

Hiring: Time to Think Outside the Box

• Embrace diverse backgrounds

• Internships

• Community outreach

• Why isn’t your daughter working at your firm?

• Job fairs

Provide Real Growth Opportunities For Women Employees – Not Just Lip

Service• Create career ladders for all positions, not just planners and advisors

• Provide mentorship and be an advocate whenever you can

• Provide training

• Involve your staff in all aspects of the business

• How many of you have staff here today? Women staff?

Even A Little Encouragement Goes A Long Way

• Goal setting

• Study groups

• Showcase your team!

And a Lot of Encouragement Goes Even Further

• Women cannot be what they cannot see…be seen!

• Share the spotlight!

The comradery and culture you

can build cannot be over-

emphasized. We are living

proof!

Action Items & Takeaways

Let’s make a commitment to each other that we will each work to move that needle by 5% per year until women and men are on

equal footing in this and related fields. Let’s encourage women to be seen and grow together.

Reach out to us on LinkedIn and tell us YOUR success stories.

Now is the time for action!

THANK YOU!

QUESTIONS? COMMENTS?

Lynn Ballou, CFP® - lballou@epwealth.comErin Voisin, CFP®, MS, CDFA®, ChFC®- evoisin@epwealth.com