Why proactively contacting your (financial) adviser makes a difference
The days leading up to the moment you step into your financial adviser’s office can be anxious ones. You hope you have everything prepared yet, it often turns out to be a time-consuming task to gather all the necessary documents, both yours and those of your loved ones. The same applies before meetings with your tax adviser, accountant, or notary. How valuable would it be if this process could be easier?
Then versus now: order versus chaos
The world was much simpler when everything was still on paper. Advisers would see their clients walk in carrying a stack of folders under their arm, neatly organised in binders. Everything was on hand, so advisory meetings often produced results quickly.
These days, things are often different. And oddly enough, the reason is digitalisation. The information needed for a proper advisory meeting can be scattered across multiple places. But where exactly? Sometimes you suddenly need login credentials that only your spouse or partner knows. It gets even trickier when there are matters you’re not even aware of. Cryptocurrencies are a perfect example. Before every advisory session, you often have to go on a bit of a treasure hunt, and even then, something may be overlooked. In the worst-case scenario, you have to redo your “homework,” because without it, proper advice isn’t possible.
Proactively contacting your adviser can be challenging…
There’s something else to mention. Of course, you want every adviser to understand you and give you proper attention and this desire is undoubtedly mutual. However, the workload for advisers has unfortunately increased in many cases, increasing regulations have made providing proactive attention more complex. Additionally, more advice is needed in areas with an aging population. Even greater challenges can arise if the number of advisers declines. So there’s a need for a smarter, more efficient way to work together.
Building dossiers together creates clarity and peace of mind
The ideal situation? All your important personal and business information is stored in one secure, central location. Organised and up-to-date. But you might be busy too. Keeping information current can become a challenge. This is precisely why we introduced the “Expert Adviser” feature in Life After Me:
The person who proactively works for you
Your financial adviser, planner, accountant, notary, or any other trusted adviser can be appointed as an Expert Adviser. You can assign folders to these trusted individuals and with your permission, they can upload documents as well. Simply click on “My Experts” in the main menu and assign the desired folders. For example, it makes sense to give your financial adviser access to the “Insurance” folder and your notary access to the “Legal” folder. You decide how you want it. Once the expert has accepted your invitation, they can start populating the designated folders.
The win-win of building dossiers together
Building dossiers together means you can: Keep your information complete and up-to-date. Enable your adviser to gain faster and better insight into your situation. Avoid searching for crucial documents at critical moments. Allow your loved ones to access this information when needed. You can also assign trusted contacts (“My Trusted Appointees”) in the same way and determine whether they can view your Life After Me data during your lifetime or when you’re no longer here. Both you and your adviser can accomplish more in less time because a solid foundation has been established together.
In short, the more accurate and high-quality information available, the better the advice and the stronger the trust relationship.
Who will be the first Expert Adviser you appoint in Life After Me?
