“Who is your 401k with?” and “What does your financial wellness program look like?”
These are the two key introductory conversation questions to start with then meeting with a potential new plan sponsor client, says financial advisor Jeanne J. Fisher, CFP, CPFA, MBA.
Fisher, who is responsible for sales, business development and pipeline for RIA firm ARGI, is an unapologetic salesperson who shared “how she works” during a breakout session Monday at the Outcomes Conference 2019 in Denver.
Financial Wellness has become such a buzzword that the overall idea has become watered down. Fisher talked about how advisors can use auditor’s reports to customize their financial wellness sales pitch, personalize the conversation to the particular plan sponsor and their specific demographics, and leverage the existing retirement plan to pay for the program.
Regarding the introductory conversation questions, Fisher says of course she knows who the plan sponsor has their 401k with, but asking it helps her gauge at the very beginning where the relationship might be weak.
“If they say the recordkeeper, I know the advisor relationship is weak. If they say the advisor, I know the recordkeeper relationship is weak,” Fisher says, adding that she can use that insight to her advantage during the financial wellness conversation.
She stressed the importance of always identifying the role of the person you are speaking with and tailoring your talking points to their role. An audience that really cares about financial wellness is of course helpful. Noting most HR professionals are women, Fisher says working with a woman who is not necessarily financially savvy but cares about her people puts her in her wheelhouse.
As for the second question about what their existing financial wellness program looks like, Fisher says she uses the data she pulls from their audit to then help steer the conversation, providing information that helps them come to the realization that their current financial wellness program is lacking and understand the opportunity in improving it.
Fisher adds that a lot of her conversations with committees on the front end involve education. What good is offering all the right tools if you don’t have enough “boots on the ground” to educate employees about how best to utilize them?
She also spent time during the session stressing the opportunity in encouraging the use of Roth 401ks. “We believe very strongly in the Roth. Nobody else is talking about it,” Fisher says, adding that only about 7.6% of people are doing Roth referrals, which is only a fraction of those who should be using it.
She provided an illustration about how much a person can save on taxes with the Roth, and it can lead to some “a-ha” moments that can seal deals.
“It is a huge differentiator, Fisher says. “Everybody is focused on the rate; nobody focuses on the growth. This is a huge story that nobody is talking about.”