Financial expertise can establish credibility, but it does not always earn a prospect’s trust. Advisors must also build meaningful connections with the people they serve. In today’s FA Alpha Daily, we explore practical ways advisors can strengthen those connections and improve client conversations.
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“The S&P 500 has historically returned about 10% annually over the long run…”
“A well-diversified portfolio can reduce volatility…”
“Required minimum distributions begin at age 73…”
Okay, so what? Who cares? Why does any of this matter to the people reading it?
You see, regardless of how interesting a topic may be to you as a financial advisor, your prospects and clients ALWAYS need to know what’s at stake in what you’re telling them and why they should care.
Unfortunately, according to Cathy Birkenstein and Gerald Graff in their book, “They Say/I Say: The Moves That Matter in Academic Writing,” these questions often go unanswered because writers assume readers will figure out the significance on their own.
The result?
Readers come away from a social media post, blog, or email newsletter feeling like the content wasn’t written with them in mind.
According to Birkenstein and Graff, the problem usually isn’t that a piece lacks a clear point or supporting evidence.
Instead, the problem is that the writer never addresses the crucial question of why any of it matters to the reader in the first place.
Explaining Why “It” Matters
Birkenstein and Graff say that in one sense, these two questions get the same thing: The relevance or importance of what you are saying in your written works. However, they arrive at this significance in different ways.
“Who cares?” literally requires you to identify a person or group who cares about your claims, while “So what?” asks about the real-world applications or consequences of such claims.
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So today, let’s look at how you can make clear you’re answering both questions whenever you’re communicating with prospects and clients.
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“Who cares?”
- This perspective challenges the common assumption among investors that _____.
- These findings challenge the work of earlier researchers, who tended to assume that _____.
- But a new body of research shows that _____ is far more complex than most people realize.
- If sports enthusiasts stopped to think about it, many of them might simply assume that the most successful athletes _____. However, new research shows _____.
- These findings challenge the common assumption among business owners that _____.
- At first glance, clients might say _____. But on closer inspection, _____.
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“So what?”
Answering "Who cares?" is important, but often not enough, especially if you're writing for clients or prospects who don't have deep financial expertise and may not immediately see why a topic applies to them.
So what if a handful of specialists care about a technical dispute? What actually hinges on it for your reader?
The best way to answer this is to connect your point to something your audience already cares about.
Let’s see how Grady invokes such broad, general concerns in her article on fat cells. Her first move is to link researchers’ interest in fat cells to a general concern with obesity and health.
“Researchers trying to decipher the biology of fat cells hope to find new ways to help people get rid of excess fat or, at least, prevent obesity from destroying their health. In an increasingly obese world, their efforts have taken on added importance.
Internationally, more than a billion people are overweight. Obesity and two illnesses linked to it, heart disease and high blood pressure, are on the World Health Organization’s list of the top 10 global health risks. In the United States, 65% of adults weigh too much, compared with about 56% a decade ago, and government researchers blame obesity for at least 300,000 deaths a year.”
It’s as if Grady is implicitly saying here: “Look, dear reader, you may think the nature of fat cells I’ve been pursuing have little to do with everyday life. However, these questions are extremely important—particularly ‘in an increasingly obese world’ where we need to minimize obesity’s ill effects.”
This same move applies directly to financial writing. No matter how technical or niche your topic, from tax-loss harvesting to sequence of returns risk, you need to justify why it matters to the person reading it.
Here are a few templates to address “So what?” questions:
- X matters/is important because _____.
- Although X may seem trivial, it is in fact crucial in terms of today’s concern over _____.
- Ultimately, what is at stake here is _____.
- This has real consequences for anyone thinking about _____.
- This discussion is really about the larger question of _____.
- This will have a direct impact on _____ as well as _____.
- Although this may seem relevant only to _____, it should concern anyone who cares about _____.
Take a look at how science writer Denise Grady answered this question in her New York Times article, “The Secret Life of a Potent Cell”:
“Scientists used to think body fat and the cells it was made of were pretty much inert, just an oily storage compartment. But within the past decade research has shown that fat cells act like chemical factories and that body fat is potent stuff: a highly active tissue that secretes hormones and other substances with profound and sometimes harmful effects…
In recent years, biologists have begun calling fat an ‘endocrine organ,’ comparing it to glands like the thyroid and pituitary, which also release hormones straight into the bloodstream.”
Observe how Grady’s writing identified at least one group with a stake in the new research that sees fat as “active,” “potent stuff”: The scientific community, which formerly believed that body fat is inert.
Notice how Grady identified a specific group with a stake in this shift in understanding: the scientific community, which had previously assumed fat was inert.
By referencing this community, Grady signaled that her writing was part of a larger, ongoing conversation and made clear who else, besides herself, had a reason to care about what she was saying.
So how can you address “Who cares?” in your own client communications and content?
Here are a few templates that you can use:
These templates help generate interest in your subject by identifying who's likely to have a stake in it, whether that's your clients, prospects, or a broader group like retirees or business owners.
These templates help hook your readers. By suggesting the real world applications of your claims, you not only demonstrate that others care about your claims but also tell your readers why they should care.
What About Readers Who Already Know Why It Matters?
As a rule, you should still go as far as possible in answering such questions regardless of the awareness your audience has.
This is because if you ignore them or give them short shrift, you risk having readers, even financially savvy ones, dismiss your message as irrelevant or generic.
… and though some expert readers might already know why your claims matter, even they may need to be reminded that they know it.
Thus, the safest move is to be as explicit as possible in answering the “So what?” question, even for those already in the know.
Besides, when you are careful to explain who cares and why, it’s a bit like bringing your reader’s own reasoning along with you. Stepping back to explain why something matters signals to your audience that it’s worth their continued attention.
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We hope you found today’s insights valuable.
Apply these techniques the next time you draft a client email, blog post, or newsletter, and watch how much more your content resonates.
Best regards,
Joel Litman & Rob Spivey
Chief Investment Officer &
Director of Research
at Valens Research
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