Be a female-friendly investment advisor: Communicate in her language

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Global finance culture is changing quickly as financial institutions realize that wealthy women represent a lucrative business opportunity. Indeed, they are today’s largest and most under-served target market.

Today, advisors of both genders need to learn a new language and style because women tend to learn, communicate and buy differently than men.

This is the second of a five-part series in which I share my research findings for advisors who want to become more female-friendly. I spent the last 13 years conducting more than 1,200 qualitative interviews with highly accomplished women around the world in diverse industries and professions.

In this second article, I address three findings about how advisors can better communicate with women.

Finding No. 1: Listen hard

Women talk about money matters in a more grounded way, with a view to how a financial situation or an investment is likely to affect their family and their lifestyle. Listen hard and find out what matters to her.

Charlotte Beyer, founder of the Institute for Private Investors (IPI), spoke with me about the skills needed to perform as an advisor: “If the advisor has a genuine desire to help the female client reach her goals, then what follows is a journey of discovery, listening and finding out what goals and time frames are best for this client. The emotional quotient needed to perform the job of an advisor is enormous. This is about having a deeper, more meaningful dialogue.”

One of my interviewees explained:

• “My advisor needs to get personal enough to understand my needs, not the general needs. The difference between a good advisor and a bad advisor is their ability to adapt to the person in front of them. You could have a very informed client but their needs may not have been sufficiently explored. Advisors need to be able to explain complexity in understandable terms to women.” – Accountant, Stockholm

Another thing to listen for? Communication preferences.

Many advisors don’t take the time to ask their clients how they prefer to communicate, and this seemingly little thing can make or break customer satisfaction. People have so many choices when it comes to modes of communication, and our preferences are personal. As an example, studies have shown that women send text messages more frequently than men.

We need to ask each and every customer individually: Do you prefer a text, direct tweet, a message over Facebook Messenger, WhatsApp, Instagram or Skype call … or even email or phone call for the old-school crowd? Meet women where they are.

Finding No. 2: Tell stories

How do women prefer to talk about, and learn about, investing? Women tend to be more interested in learning about financial matters by reading or listening to real stories from real people. They also share those lessons with their friends or with the next generation.

According to John Hagel, formerly co-chair of the Deloitte research hub Center for the Edge, “The masculine archetype is all about dollars. The feminine archetype is all about dollars, too, but it will first ask the question, ‘Why am I doing this, anyway?’ The feminine communication style is richer and more nuanced — it focuses on metaphors, stories and images as a way to engage the information and achieve a deep understanding of the essence of events and environments. It is most effective when feelings and intuition are integrated, and connections are deepened.”

Charts and graphs feel dry and dull to most women. In my interviews, nearly all of them said they prefer stories about real people rather than death by PowerPoint. (And a fascinating secret is that many men feel the same way!)

Here’s what two female-friendly investment professionals told me:

• “In my work advising private clients on their investments, I try hard to use plain language. Many advisors talk in technical jargon because they want people to think that they are a ‘professional,’ but if the client doesn’t understand the strategy she won’t do anything! The secret to my success is that I know that women prefer to learn through stories or clear examples. I never focus on pricing or technical terms, just the concept.” – Private banker, Brussels
• “I’ve been with the same firm since 1996. We are the largest online stockbroker and Philippine-based stockbroker on the Philippine Stock Exchange with 70 per cent of the retail clients in this country. We try hard to engage our clients by teaching them about the importance of investing in stocks and sharing stories about the companies rather than only talking about financial ratios.” – Head of research, Manila

Finding No. 3: Connect women with each other

Most women haven’t traditionally spent much time talking about their stock picks. This is probably a cultural thing, and let’s be honest – corporate news releases and annual reports make for a dreary read. Women prefer to learn from others and their experiences, but the investment industry hasn’t really done a good job of facilitating this type of discussion.

“I would like to talk with other women about how they invest,” a tech executive in Oslo told me. “Especially female entrepreneurs. I don’t really look at myself as an investor, and I should. What about the stories behind all the companies and the stock price movements? Ideas come from interaction.”

Another interviewee said:

• “I want my investment firm to try to solve my problems. Help me solve my life puzzle. What are my financial and non-financial issues? Connect me with other women so we can share thoughts and experiences on real-life decisions we have made.” – PR expert, London

Women prefer to make decisions by conferring with one another, so peer-to-peer interaction is important. Be generous with your contact list!

Here’s what a couple of interviewees said about wanting advisors to help with networking:

• “Advisors need to understand the way that women are networking. When I have a positive experience I want to share it with my contacts. Female clients can be turned into ambassadors!” – Attorney, Taipei
• “A big part of an advisor’s job is to facilitate networking. Think about the role that each woman plays in society and how you can make a difference in her life. What is she trying to accomplish in her career? Who does she need to meet?” – Board member, Reykjavík

Women love to share. If we communicate in women’s language, they are much more likely to bring along assets from their parents, their siblings and everyone they know.

Check out the first article in this series from Canadian Family Offices: How to be a female-friendly advisor: Get the risk right.

Writer Barbara Stewart is a Chartered Financial Analyst (CFA) with 30 years of investment industry experience. She spent five years as a foreign currency trader, more than two decades as a portfolio manager for high-net-worth entrepreneurs, and for the past six years she has been performing interview-driven research for financial institutions around the world.  Barbara is a keynote speaker for CFA Societies, banks, stock exchanges and industry conferences globally, and she is a columnist for CFA Institute and Canadian Money Saver magazine. She is on the advisory board of Kensington Capital Partners and also is the Ambassador for the Kensington Women’s Forum. In addition, 13 years ago Barbara saw a need to challenge outdated financial industry stereotypes and share positive messages about women and money. Today, Barbara is recognized worldwide as one of the leading researchers in women and finance. Her Rich Thinking® global research papers quote smart women and men of all ages, professions and countries and are released annually on International Women’s Day, March 8. To find out more about Barbara’s research, visit www.barbarastewart.ca.

More from Canadian Family Offices:

• The beer-brewing family who lost it all
• Another way for financial advisors to engage clients: chat about charity
• Eight ways advisors can better connect with high-net-worth clients
• Cayman Islands an increasingly popular magnet for Canadian wealth

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