Like a bad car wreck, advisors can't seem to shake what they've seen in the latest market meltdown. What's worse, they don't want to talk about it with their clients.
One recent MetLife survey shows advisors are very worried about market volatility, maybe even more so than their baby boomer clients: 88 percent of advisors said that seeing volatility in retirement accounts raised clients' concerns about retirement and financial security, but only 56 percent of Boomers said the same.
Yet another survey by the Bankers Life and Casualty Co. Center for a Secure Retirement showed advisors are not reaching out to middle-income Americans, but choose to cater to the wealthy: CSR's study found 51 percent of middle-income retirees and pre-retirees (those with incomes between $25,000 and $75,000) had not been contacted by a retirement professional in the past 12 months.
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MetLife's survey also showed boomers want to explore alternative investment approaches, things that would better manage volatility - but their advisors had yet to clue them in on what these could be: "Boomers lagged behind advisors in awareness of alternatives."
Even more frightening, the CSR survey showed 47 percent of those not working with an advisor say they'd be just fine on their own.
Now might be the time to admit you're not alone on these market worries and reconnect with your clients. It's an opportunity to help each other feel safe again.
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