Women need an advisor who’s also a coach

Women present the biggest opportunity to the U.S. wealth management industry today, and BlackRock’s national sales manager gave some advice on how to engage female investors during a recent webinar.

Sarah Garrity discussed why serving women can help advisors grow their practice and what female investors need from advisors during a webinar held by the National Association for Fixed Annuities.

“When I ask financial professionals what they need to grow their business, they say, ‘We’re looking for new clients,’ or ‘We’re looking to grow capacity to serve the clients that we have,’” she said. “This is perhaps the biggest opportunity. The future of finance is female.”

73% of female investors dissatisfied with advisor

Garrity said BlackRock’s data shows that as many as 73% of female investors said they are dissatisfied with their current financial professional.

“This helps us take note of our current clients but also highlights a massive opportunity as many women are at risk of switching to another professional,” she said.

Women continue to gain financial power, she said, and they need education so they can make the right choices.

But even though women are controlling more wealth than ever before, they face a number of challenges and they need a financial professional’s help, Garrity said.

More than 2.3 million American women left the workforce during the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020, she said. In addition, 46% of women said money negatively affects their mental health. On a more positive note, 50% of women are more interested in investing now than they were at the start of the pandemic and 67% of women are investing outside their retirement plans.

Women want education about solutions – not a sales pitch about products, Garrity said. Women want to be financially secure and debt free, as well as to feel confident about money and be knowledgeable about investing. Investing to fulfill specific goals is also important to women.

An advisor who wants to serve female investors must develop a strategy and plan aligned with their values and goals.

“Make sure she sees you as part of her team,” Garrity said.

Best practices for advisors serving women

Garrity offered some best practices for advisors who want to serve female investors.

• Instead of assuming they know what a woman thinks, wants or feels, advisors should ask her.
• Instead of using financial jargon, use storytelling and reference life situations.
• Instead of trying to “save” a female client, make her life easier.
• Instead of making a female client accommodate the advisor’s schedule, offer childcare at your office or provide flexibility to meet her scheduling needs.

Women are not a single market demographic, but there are certain niche markets of female investors that advisors can target and serve, Garrity said.

Some common client and prospect profiles include:

• Women in similar financial positions: Breadwinners, financial contributors, nonfinancial spouses and single-run households.
• Women in similar professions: Attorneys, military, medical professionals, corporate executives or entrepreneurs.
• Women on similar life journeys: Widows, divorced women, entrepreneurs.

When it comes to women’s satisfaction with their financial professionals, reputation and trust carry more weight than market performance does, Garrity said.

Money is tied to emotions and advisors must keep that in mind when working with female clients, she said.

“We wear a lot of hats but the most important thing that we are is a coach,” she said. “Be a coach to your female clients.”

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