We are currently in a global megatrend, and as financial advisors, we have no choice to evolve and embrace this change. The future is now.
If we do not embrace these waves of changes, we will become FADs (Financial Advisor Dinosaurs). As an industry, we are quite averse to change, but as a silver lining, the COVID-19 pandemic is somewhat forcing us to change.
The brick and mortar advisor is dead. But the virtual financial advisor will be able to make exponentially more money while drastically reducing their overhead. Furthermore, they will be able to form stronger connections with their clientele then what was previously thought possible.
I spoke about this at Riskalyze Fearless Week – more on that below.
Riskalyze Fearless Week
I will most definitely look back at presenting at the Riskalyze Fearless Week Virtual Conference as a professional highlight of 2020.
It was an epic experience for me, packed with value and loaded with opportunities to meet so many distinguished, influential people.
This year has thrown us all for a loop, and there’s no denying that, but the whole Riskalyze team did a fantastic job of putting together a massive conference for the benefit of over 2,500 advisors all over the world. Riskalyze is undoubtedly paving the way for how virtual conferences should be done. A job well done, my Riskalyze friends!
I was humbled to have been included as one of the featured speakers for the event, and although the event was entirely virtual, it was still a blast and perhaps even more effective in some ways!
I was able to communicate with fellow advisors in real-time during my session, and I was also able to instantly schedule meetings right within the conference platform.
It was incredibly refreshing and encouraging to see how many advisors around the world are forward-thinking and looking to build an amazing practice while doing what is right for their clients. As I mentioned earlier, we have no choice to adapt, and in doing so, I can see how my peers are benefitting tremendously from the virtual financial planning model.
The 4-day event was packed with useful and practical information that was well diversified from a content standpoint.
And although so much was learned, my biggest takeaway was that our industry is becoming open to evolving, opening up to change, and is led by so many brilliant people trying to improve the work we do from so many angles.
Mindset is a hard thing to change, and the Riskalyze event illustrated just how open to change people are and highlighted the wondrous things that lay ahead for us all.
Takeaways from My Riskalyze Session
Our brain gets in the way of our evolution, when, in fact, the opportunity to transition to what the modern-day consumer wants from us is more straightforward and faster than what you realize.
The financial advisor who embraces this change and effectively transforms their business into a virtual financial planning practice will benefit from the following:
– Location independence
– A robust digital footprint
– A focus on process and relationships, rather than your product
– Cutting out costs like staff, travel and rent for office space entirely, reducing your overhead significantly (meaning more money in your pocket.)
– Using your knowledge and experience to position yourself as a thought leader in your industry, and in turn, creating more awareness around your service offering
– Heaps more time on your hands to focus on what truly matters to you
What Can You Do Right Now?
I understand that it may come across like we are just throwing around a bunch of new concepts and expecting you to accept them. However, we are merely introducing you to a very apparent reality. The world has changed forever. Before the pandemic struck, we were on the brink of an inflection point, and all COVID-19 did was accelerate that change that was already underway. I want you to know that the solutions and survival of your profession are within virtual reach.
Adopting a Semi Virtual Financial Planning Model
If you are interested in finding out more about what it means to adopt a (semi) virtual financial model, then download our free e-book.
Our system, Conneqtor, will equip you with everything you need to move forward in the new normal as a financial advisor, from lead generation to creating a robust digital footprint.
If you’d like to chat more about what our virtual advisor system can do for you, please do not hesitate to get in touch.
I hope you enjoyed reading about the future of our industry!
Kind regards,
Derek Notman
