Growth Strategies for your Financial Practice in a Pandemic By Louis Koay, CFP®
2020 is an eventful year where the global pandemic, COVID – 19, has caused the entire world to come to a standstill. Not a single industry is being spared from this disruption. Although financial advisory service is categorised under essential service, face-to-face meetings were not allowed as a social distancing precautionary measure. During this unprecedented period, my first thought was to take a break. But soon, I realised that this may be the new normalcy. I have since learned to embrace the situation, adapt to the changes, re-strategise my work and move with the flow. With the help of digital solutions, here are the five things that I have done to grow my financial advisory business: 1) Beyond face-to-face Barely a few months back, in the beginning of the year, faceto-face meetings with clients were part of my daily routine. Physical meet-ups were the norm in our industry. When I learned that face-to-face meetings were prohibited during the circuit breaker period, I made use of digital solutions to bridge the gap. I used Zoom to meet my clients. The places where I used to meet my clients is now confined to a 14 inch screen. My study room is the virtual café. When I first started, I was apprehensive and worried about catching the attention of my clients in the digital world. To enhance my presentation, I prepared PowerPoint slides with animations in an attempt to sustain my engagement with them. My worries were unfounded. My delivery was precise and I overcame the lack of physical touch with digital technology. We must learn to embrace to move forward. I used to spend a lot of time commuting. Now, I tele-commute. Time saved is translated into more virtual meetings. Hence, I increased my productivity. There were days when I was able to schedule 5 to 6 meetings with back-to-back hourly schedule. The novelty of virtual meeting is also well received by my clients. The meet-up rate is a lot better than face-to-face meeting as we are now meeting in the comfort of our own homes. 2) From Seminar to Webinar In the past, I used to conduct seminars on a monthly basis to provide market updates to my clients. Until then, when the Ministry of Health raised the DORSCON level to Orange, my seminars were changed to webinars. My concerns were similar with the lack of face-to-face meetings. How do I capture the attention of my audience in the virtual arena? How do I maintain interaction with my audience? Amid all these anxieties, I have to overcome my own fear too, including the awkwardness from talking to myself for two hours straight. As a presenter, I need to bring up my energy level so that the audience will not just click me off the screen. After a few rounds of practice, the feedback I
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