I think that from a client’s perspective, being in an advice relationship is rather like being a passenger on a ship captained by their financial adviser.
When seas are calm and the sun is shining, it’s nice to enjoy a rapport with the ship’s captain, to share stories and a beer or two on the freshly painted deck.
When a storm hits, however, the passengers’ true priorities come into focus. They care less about the ship’s paint job than its ability to ride out the storm, and they also care considerably less about the captain’s charisma than her competence in dealing with the tricky situation at hand.
In tough times, advice clients want to trust their adviser to lead them well, not just be their friend.
Of course advisers don’t wish to work with clients they cannot respect or relate to, and trust and rapport aren’t mutually exclusive.
Regardless, an adviser should always aim to base their client relationships on trust rather than rapport.
Trust is a stronger, deeper connection than rapport.
Trust is critical to the success of an advice relationship; rapport isn’t.
Clients need to be able to trust that their advice firm’s advice is consistently given in the best interests of helping them to best achieve their outcomes, even when the advice the firm gives them is hard to accept. Only when they trust their adviser will they be willing to follow the adviser’s lead through the more difficult legs of their financial journey.
What do you think?
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About Jim Stackpool
For nearly 30 years Jim has influenced, coached, and consulted to advisory firms across Australia. As founder of Certainty Advice Group, he leads a like-minded team of professional advisory firms seeking to create greater certainty for their clients. As an author, blogger, columnist, and keynote speaker, Jim is regularly called upon for his professional insights into the advice industry. His latest book Seeking Certainty is available now.