Advisor meets with young couple in coffee shop

5 Financial Advisor Challenges - and How to Overcome Them

As a Wealth Management Advisor at Farm Bureau, you’re equipped with ongoing support and resources to help you succeed. But even with such a strong support network in place, there’s still the uncertainty of navigating an ever-changing industry. Clients have more options than ever before, and that means financial professionals need to stay ahead of the curve to succeed.

The best defense for your wealth management business is a strong offense. These five tips can help you overcome common financial advisor challenges and thrive in the face of a changing industry.

The Challenge: Your Future Feels Unfocused

The Solution: Determine Your Brand

It can be hard to be excited about the future if you’re just going through the motions day after day. Refocus your drive by brainstorming where you excel. Dedicate an hour, grab a notepad and think through these questions:

  • How do you want your clients to see you?
  • What do you want people to say about your business?
  • What makes you stand out?
  • What value do you add for your clients?

This is valuable information you can use to develop a plan to market yourself, but it won’t mean anything unless you use it accordingly. Sometimes it’s as simple as articulating your brand in a winning elevator pitch. Build your professional network and client reputation around these tenants and you’ll be one step ahead of future financial advisor problems.

The Challenge: Keeping Up with the AI Joneses

The Solution: Offer the Human Touch

As a current issue in the financial planning industry, the rise of robo-advisors may worry you. Why not see this as an opportunity instead? For some clients, a robo-advisor might be a worthwhile consideration. For most, however, an automated solution simply isn’t a good fit for their needs. Instead of convincing your clients of that, focus on what you can offer that artificial intelligence can’t.

Don’t undervalue how deeply personal money management is. Many high-wealth clients will always prefer a face — and the personal attention that comes with it — over a screen. 

The Challenge: Feeling Left Behind

The Solution: Embrace New Technology

Budgeting? Planning? Portfolio management? There’s an app for that. Technology, and its impact on the financial world, is changing every day. In just a few years a slew of financial apps, services and startups have changed the way people think about money, presenting a challenge for wealth management advisors.

As a financial advisor, you should not only stay informed about these offerings, but also know what your clients can and can’t get out of them. Ditch the idea that tech is competition. Encourage your clients to look to you as an authority on tech that can add to their financial success.

And, of course, don’t forget about the technology Farm Bureau Financial Services offers its Wealth Management Advisors. This suite of tools is designed to help you grow your business and help your clients reach their goals.

The Challenge: Being a Generalist, Like Everyone Else

The Solution: Find Your Niche

You can’t be the answer for every client, but you can be the perfect answer for a select group or demographic. Decide what you’re most passionate about, what financial planning challenges you love and where you see a need in the market — then aggressively market yourself to that niche.

By choosing a focus, you’ll be able to differentiate yourself, eliminate the competition and foster loyalty more easily. Establish yourself as the knowledgeable professional among farmers or ranchers, for instance, and it won’t be long before you start building referrals.

One caveat: Advanced knowledge in a certain topic area is key. If your niche is high-wealth retirement planning, you’ll need to put in the time and energy it takes to become a trusted leader for those clients. You need to put your money where your mouth is and have the education and experience to prove it.

The Challenge: Getting Too Comfortable

The Solution: Keep Learning

Your best defense in a competitive, fluid industry? Seek out knowledge. Being well-informed on the latest trends, technology and strategies shows your clients you care not just about the industry but also their financial well-being. And at the end of the day, that’s what clients are looking for: a savvy, knowledgeable resource they can trust with life-changing decisions.

As a Farm Bureau Wealth Management Advisor, you have access to an entire support team — a regional manager, onboarding specialist, marketing coach, compliance specialist, internal wholesalers, IT help desk and members of the middle office operations team — on day one. Plus, you can take advantage of a comprehensive suite of videos, webinars and training content to continue building your wealth management knowledge and skills.

Stay Ahead of the Curve

As a Farm Bureau Wealth Management Advisor, you’ll have the resources to help you and your wealth management business stay ahead of the curve. Contact the Regional Manager in your area to learn more.