The job of a financial advisor is always evolving. Now, more than ever, relationships are vital to your success.

Financial advisors address a critical investor need—they provide guidance.  Outstanding customer service is what sets great advisors apart.

Here are some key areas you can focus on to stay better engaged with your clients and provide unforgettable service.

Education

Clients want to know where their wealth is going. Try to spend time helping them better understand the avenues you are pursuing to help them build their wealth. Wherever possible, provide concrete examples of your efforts and explain why you’ve undertaken them.

Goals

Make a point of meeting with clients to evaluate their goals. Tell them how their money is helping them to achieve their dreams and establish a lasting legacy.

Part of understanding your clients’ goals is understanding how they might shift. A birth in the family, for example, can change everything when it comes to investing objectives.

If you are the kind of advisor who takes an active role when it comes to helping your clients pivot, they are going to remember your efforts.

Products

As an advisor, you should always stay up to date on the newest products that are being offered throughout the industry. Some clients will be content to “set and forget.” Others are going to be paying attention to trends and will show interest in the latest, greatest way to make more money. Make sure you are in a position to have conversations about the pros and cons of certain solutions.

Communication Preferences

Always stay aware of what items of value you are sending when it comes to automated communication. Emails can be a great way to stay in touch, but, to some clients, they might be a nuisance.

Make sure that you always take preference into account. Some clients are going to want to be informed throughout every step of the process. Others will have the exact opposite expectation—they trust you to handle their money and don’t want to be bothered.

Be sure to use your CRM to record your clients’ communication preferences. That way, you’ll be better prepared to offer them the level of service they really want.

Know Your Audience

Most advisors can look across their client pool and see a lot of similarities.

Make determinations about common ground and play to those similarities in your outreach. A clearly defined target audience will make your outreach more impactful and garner more exposure from the right kinds of prospects.

Service is more important than ever for financial advisors. When clients fire their FAs, often times it is because they felt ignored. By going out of your way to maintain relationships, not only will you drive retention, but you will also earn referrals from all your satisfied customers.