Vanguard: Focus on building relationships not picking funds

Trust most important factor in referrals

Victoria McKeever
clock • 2 min read

Building and maintaining trust is most likely to lead to a high rate of client retention, so advisers' focus should be on building relationships not picking funds, argued Vanguard senior investment strategist Don Bennyhoff.

Speaking at a webinar entitled ‘What are clients looking for in a financial adviser?', Bennyhoff said Vanguard research had found trust in an adviser was most likely to guarantee client referrals and retention. Of those with a ‘high level' of trust in their adviser, a mere 2% would be likely to switch advisers, it found. This compared with 70% of those with a low level of trust in their adviser. "Trust is the gatekeeper for client retention," said Bennyhoff. "In the future, it will become increasingly important for advisers to act principally as a relationship manager and less like a ...

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