Retaining clients by giving them a memorable experience

Successful advisors know that client retention is at the heart of every thriving practice. Effective client-retention strategies generate more long-term profits than any client-acquisition program because they engage clients, attract referrals and ultimately help a practice grow.

Here is what a couple of advisors told InsuranceNewsNet they are doing to enhance their client engagement and retention tactics.

Engaging and retaining clients

Julianne Hertel, an 11-year Million Dollar Round Table member, said her firm has embraced two key practices to improve client engagement and retention: implementing surge meetings and embracing the concept of unreasonable hospitality. Hertel is a financial advisor at Dream Big Wealth Strategies.

“Surge meetings allow us to be more intentional and proactive with our client relationships by concentrating our review meetings into specific times of the year,” Hertel said. “This creates a more structured, consistent experience while allowing our team to spend the rest of the year focused on implementing strategies, anticipating client needs and delivering exceptional service. It also means that we are keeping our promise and commitment to meeting with them for annual planning and midyear planning strategizing.”

Hertel added that her firm’s commitment to unreasonable hospitality is equally important, based on Will Guidera's book of the same name.

“This is the idea that it's not enough to simply provide great financial advice; we want to create an experience that makes people feel genuinely cared for,” Hertel said. “That means remembering the little things, celebrating milestones, anticipating needs before clients even recognize them, and finding unexpected ways to make people feel special.”

Hertel said her firm wants clients to know they are more than an account number or a financial plan. Some acts of unreasonable hospitality are big, while others are small and most cost less than a few dollars.

For example, she said, a client recently adopted a dog from a local shelter and named her Rosie. “We bought a dog toy and mailed it to the client - but addressed the envelope and enclosed card to Rosie, saying, 'Welcome to Dream Big Wealth Family,'" she said.

Hertel believes client retention isn't about constantly reminding people of the value provided. “It's about creating an experience so personal, thoughtful, and consistent that clients can't imagine going anywhere else,” she said.

Client engagement starts with four values

For Tim Clairmont, a 16-year MDRT member and founder/CEO of Clear Financial Partners, engagement starts with his company’s four values: education, choice, transparency and empathy. The firm teaches clients about their options, respects their decisions about how to invest their money and communicates clearly about what they can expect, he said.

“We want them to feel informed and involved throughout the relationship,” Clairmont said. “We reinforce that through consistent communication. We mail a monthly newsletter with a cover letter we write ourselves, send a weekly newsletter, and release a new episode of our podcast, Clear Money Talk, every two weeks.

"Each episode focuses on a frequently asked financial question and walks through how we’d answer it. That gives clients a chance to keep learning and hear from us regularly, even between appointments. The goal is to give them something useful each time we connect.”

How does Clairmont make his clients feel valued and supported over time?

“Our mission is to empower our clients and associates in their journey to achieve their unique vision of happiness,” he said. “Each client’s vision is different; so, understanding what happiness looks like to that person has to guide our advice.”

Clairmont added that the firm asks itself one question: “What would this client do if they knew everything we knew?” That, he said, “keeps our recommendations grounded in their priorities and preferences. We bring the financial knowledge, and they bring the understanding of what they want from their lives.”

Clairmont and his firm also make appreciation part of the ongoing relationship. The client events they host give them time together with the clients beyond financial conversations.

“We hold a separate annual appreciation event for clients who have referred someone to us, acknowledging the trust they’ve shown by introducing others to our firm,” he said.

An event to impress

Clairmont then shared a successful client-retention strategy his firm uses: client-appreciation dinners with wine pairings. Many of his clients are naturally frugal and less likely to spend money on themselves. “These events give us an opportunity to treat them to an experience they’ll remember,” he said.

“I’m especially thoughtful about the seating,” he said. “I pair clients with people I think they’ll enjoy meeting, based on shared interests or things they have in common. Friendships have grown out of those introductions and continued well beyond the event.”

That’s what makes this approach effective, he said. Clients enjoy a wonderful evening, build relationships with other clients and feel part of a community. They associate those friendships and good experiences with Clairmont’s firm. “Over time,” he said, “that gives them a more personal connection to us and to the people around them.”

© Entire contents copyright 2026 by InsuranceNewsNet.com Inc. All rights reserved. No part of this article may be reprinted without the expressed written consent from InsuranceNewsNet.com.