Is there a sweet spot for the cadence of client meetings?
From a numbers perspective, it may be necessary for an advisor to meet with a client only once a year to revise their plan based on any recent updates. But how about from a client’s perspective?
In past research, we have found a positive relationship between advisor-client interactions—whether that be a quick text message, email newsletter, or an in-person meeting—and advisor-client relationships. But does this finding hold for advisor-client meetings? And is there such a thing as too much?
How Often Do Most Clients Meet With Their Financial Advisors?
We asked 399 current advisor clients how often they met with their financial advisors and how long their meetings usually take. We also asked these clients how satisfied they were with their advisors. Before we dive into the relationship between these variables, let’s take a look at the participants’ answers.
Most clients in our sample met with their advisors on a quarterly basis, but those who didn’t were fairly split between meeting more or less often. In other words, there is a wide range regarding meeting cadence, again signaling that advice on how often to meet with clients is mixed.
How Often Do Clients Meet With Their Advisors?
When we asked participants how long their meetings usually were, we again got a wide range of responses. Some clients seemed to meet with their advisors for quick 10-minute conversations, while others met for longer than an hour. The average meeting duration overall was 39 minutes.
Distribution of Meeting Duration
Is Meeting Cadence and Duration Connected to Client Satisfaction?
When we looked at the relationship between satisfaction and cadence and satisfaction and duration, we found mixed results.
When it came to the relationship between satisfaction and duration, there really wasn’t much to write about. We found a correlation of just 0.19 between the two variables. These results suggest that how long an advisor meets with a client may not have too much of an impact on that client’s overall satisfaction regarding the relationship.
It also seems like meeting with clients every quarter may be enough for client satisfaction. Although we only found a modest correlation between cadence and satisfaction (r = 0.31), further regression analyses suggest that cadence may affect a person’s satisfaction nonlinearly. The following graph shows that satisfaction does increase the more often clients meet with their advisors, but average satisfaction plateaus after increasing to quarterly visits.
Average Satisfaction by Meeting Cadence
3 Key Takeaways for Advisors
Our results from this simple analysis suggest a few key takeaways for advisors:
In the absence of other preferences, consider trying out a quarterly meeting cadence. According to our data, in general, many clients may benefit from meeting with their advisors quarterly. This cadence may be especially useful for advisors who are just starting out or are struggling to engage with their clients. However, it’s important to note that every client is different, and advisors should consider their unique preferences when deciding on a meeting cadence.
Focus on the content of each meeting, not the length. Meetings don’t have to be two hours long to be effective in promoting client satisfaction. Our results suggest that it’s the quality of time with your client that matters not the amount of time. Having a set schedule of what will be covered during the meeting can help keep things on track.
Make sure to interact with your clients regularly outside of meetings. Regardless of how often you meet with clients, offer regular interactions with them through emails, newsletters, social media, or other forms. When it comes to maintaining a strong advisor-client relationship, staying top of mind is key.
The author or authors do not own shares in any securities mentioned in this article.Find out about Morningstar’s editorial policies.
Meeting Frequency Recommendation: Quarterly meetings plus monthly status updates. The client might even decline meeting quarterly; you'll have to decide if that's OK.
Quarterly in-person catch ups are a good place to start, increasing as needed. It would not be advisable to dip below that unless it is agreed by both parties to be the best choice, and other means of communication are put in place in lieu. If you can manage it, meeting in person (for real) is always worth your time.
Every client is different, with unique communication needs and preferences. Some clients may prefer frequent updates, while others may only want to hear from you quarterly. Understanding the unique needs and expectations of each client is critical when determining the right communication frequency.
You're afraid you might mess up the deal. But you want this company on board. If the above sounds like you, you're not alone. Studies indicate that almost 80% of sales leads require at least 5 follow-ups after the initial sales meeting.
Consistency is key to building trust and rapport with your customers. You should contact them regularly, but not too frequently. A good rule of thumb is to contact them at least once a month, but no more than once a week.
Determining the right number of clients to see each day and week is essential for maintaining a healthy work-life balance and providing high-quality care. On average, therapists see between 15-30 clients per week, with daily numbers ranging from 3-8 clients. “Typically seeing 6 to 8 clients a day is most comfortable.
There's no rule on how often you should see each other when dating. We all have different schedules and different expectations of people we date. If someone is working two jobs and taking care of their children, even once a week can be a pretty big commitment.
Whether it's emails, direct mail, phone calls or contacts through social media, you need to be keeping in regular contact with your customers. A question I get asked frequently is “how often?” The short, simple answer to this is “at least once a week”.
It is generally considered good practice to wait at least two to three days between your follow-ups. Clients, like anyone else, are often busy which may mean it takes a few follow-up touchpoints to prompt a response.
Don't irritate by sending more than six follow-up emails
Yes, you must not give up after two follow up on leads, but you shouldn't even exasperate the prospect by sending 8 to 10 follow-up emails. Anything more than six is too much.
According to research, 44 percent of salespeople give up after one follow-up call—so understanding why it's important for teams to persevere is key for any business that wants to increase their sales.
How Often Should You Visit Your Customers? There is no magic number, but every salesperson or customer service representative should “touch base” with their most valuable clients at least quarterly. You should touch your VIP clients monthly as they are more vulnerable to competition poaching.
We'd recommend starting with monthly rather than weekly check-ins so nobody gets too overwhelmed, and then if you want to do them more frequently, you can figure that out as you go. Make sure you both have time blocked off so you can have the whole conversation without interruptions.
Most teams work best when they establish an effective meeting cadence. A cadence that's too fast or too slow proves counterproductive. Channel your inner Goldilocks and work to get this just right. Teams actively working to produce something should meet frequently; daily or weekly meetings often work best.
“There is no right or wrong answer, it's really up to you,” says Natasha Briefel at dating app Badoo. “Locking in a date a week is a good benchmark to aim for to be sure you're giving enough time to the relationship, without meeting up so little that the connection fizzles out.”
Address: Suite 153 582 Lubowitz Walks, Port Alfredoborough, IN 72879-2838
Phone: +128413562823324
Job: IT Strategist
Hobby: Video gaming, Basketball, Web surfing, Book restoration, Jogging, Shooting, Fishing
Introduction: My name is Rev. Porsche Oberbrunner, I am a zany, graceful, talented, witty, determined, shiny, enchanting person who loves writing and wants to share my knowledge and understanding with you.
We notice you're using an ad blocker
Without advertising income, we can't keep making this site awesome for you.
/s3.amazonaws.com/arc-authors/morningstar/e03cab4a-e7c3-42c6-b111-b1fc0cafc84d.jpg "How Often Do You Really Need To Meet With Your Clients? (1)")
