Are Headlines Disrupting Your Business?

A poll by SEI asked about 200 advisers what they felt to be the biggest threat to efforts to restore firm revenue (other than market performance). The ability to attract new clients was the number one response (33.3%), and the threat of legislation and industry scandals came in a close second (29.8%), according to a release of the results.

The survey also explored the effect of the media on the client relationship process. More than half (54.3%) of advisers said many of their clients had raised issues about their investments, specifically citing something they’d seen in the news, according to SEI. Almost 40% of advisers agreed that the media effect led clients to “being more panicked than ever.’ About a quarter of advisers said their clients are beginning to doubt the media or question its credibility.

While some advisers (11.7%) thought the media helped make conversations more constructive, even more (19.3%) felt time spent explaining what stories mean is making their conversations with clients less productive, according to the results.

“The flood of information from so many different places is incredibly confusing for clients,” said Chuck Carrick of DMJ Advisors in Greensboro, North Carolina, in the release. “As trusted advisers, the best thing we can do is proactively communicate, educate clients about the facts, and advise them on any implications to their own portfolios.”