Page 26 - Investment Advisor June 2021

WOMEN IN WEALTH

By Jeff Berman

Samantha Russell: Don’t Become the

Next Blockbuster

Advisors need to understand that shifting demographics are the key

trend affecting their business growth.

dvisors who aren’t stepping
up their game by using social
A media, video and other tech-
nology, and aren’t reaching out to appeal
to younger investors, especially high-
net-worth millennials, are in danger of
becoming the next Blockbuster, accord-
ing to Samantha Russell, chief evangelist
at FMG Suite and chief marketing and
business development officer at Twenty
Over Ten.
Advisors also should be open to
changing their fee models to appeal to
HNW millennials and other new inves-
tors, she said.
In an interview with Investment
Advisor, the digital marketing expert
talked about those and other industry
trends to which advisors need to pay
close attention.

Investment Advisor: What are the top Capgemini, HNW clients are expected The firms that will benefit from this
one or two concerns of your clients and/ to transfer around $68 trillion within the demographic shift will be the ones who
or the industry right now and why? next 20-25 years to their heirs, and 80% are forward-looking.
Samantha Russell: Even though there of those heirs are likely to change firms What shifts are just too big and
are many concerns wealth management after inheriting their parents’ wealth. important to ignore? Where are your
firms are dealing with right now — the That’s just a tremendous amount of clients and prospective clients getting
commoditization of wealth manage- money ready to change hands. their information? Where do they spend
ment, increased pressure to lower fees Add to that the commoditization of time online? What do they want that
and be more fee-transparent, the rise of investment management, as well as the you just aren’t offering? Pay attention to
robo-advisors/DIY investing, the shift increasing comfort that each genera- what information they are consuming,
in how investors find an advisor in the tion has with technology, and all of a so that you can speak/write to address
first place — all these concerns really sudden there is much more pressing it. Be where they spend time online
come back to one thing: shifting demo- need for financial advisory firms to (YouTube, social media, blogs, etc.) so
graphics and increased technology. demonstrate value. that your firm stays top of mind and part
Younger investors are more savvy of the conversation. And constantly be
and likely to shop around (and better What’s your top piece of advice about reevaluating and reinventing your offer-
able to inform themselves via online those concerns? ings to keep up.
information), and the number of HNW The quickest way to become the next For instance, many of the firms we
millennials and women is growing at a Blockbuster is to build for the future by work with have started implementing
fast clip. According to a 2020 report by focusing on what’s worked in the past. new fee models (such as subscription

24 INVESTMENT ADVISOR JUNE 2021 | ThinkAdvisor.com