3 practical ways you can find a manageable adviser/client balance

We recently had a discussion in our office about how many clients (well, households) advisers could comfortably provide advice to. So, we took the debate online!

Brian and Vicky decided to ask other professionals in the IFA Facebook group how many annual household reviews they thought advisers could successfully manage. The results were fascinating…

The most popular answer in the poll was between 50 and 100 households. However, surprisingly 6% of advisers selected more than 200, with 1% choosing less than 50.

What answer would you select? Click on the link above, join the group, and place your vote!

Since most clients require more than one meeting with you each year, it’s important to manage your client base and workload effectively.

So, read more about why it’s crucial for advice firms to find the right balance between taking on too few and too many clients.

Take on too many clients and you’ll spread yourself too thin

If you’re looking to bring more money into the firm, you may be keen to take on more clients. However, the risk of taking on too many clients is that you’ll potentially spread yourself too thin.

Subsequently, you’ll be unlikely to develop strong and close relationships with your clients. Plus, the service you provide may not be able to reach the standards you would like. We’ve seen this happen so often when we’ve looked under the bonnet of advice firms.

With the introduction of Consumer Duty, the quality of service you’re providing is more important than ever.

Having too few clients may mean a lack of revenue or growth

As the owner of a financial advice firm, identifying the right number of clients can help ensure a decent revenue stream and chance for growth.

While maintaining a smaller number of clients can help you sustain strong relationships with each one, having too few clients may restrict your chances of bringing in enough income and make it difficult to stay profitable.

3 quick tips to help you find the right balance

1. Assess your team and the needs of your clients

Matching the number of advisers and their level of expertise with the number of clients you have, and their needs will help you identify a manageable balance.

For instance, some clients may be more active and require more regular advice than others. Additionally, some clients may have more complex needs than others.

With that in mind, it’s important that you understand how the unique needs of each client affect how many advisers you need to employ and the quality of service you’re able to provide.

2. Understand how much income you need

The amount of income you need to remain profitable should guide you in understanding the optimum number of clients for your firm.

Knowing how much income you need isn’t just important when it comes to ensuring the company remains profitable – it also plays a vital role in your exit strategy.

So, identifying your ideal amount of monthly income can help you keep the firm afloat and enable you to plan for your potential exit in the future, too.

3. Take an overview of the service you’re providing

The introduction of Consumer Duty has made a massive impact on the financial advice sector, and understanding the quality of service you are providing is more important than ever.

As such, it may be worth sitting down and reassessing frequently to see if the number of clients you have is limiting the quality of service you’re able to provide.

Conversely, if you think you can continue to provide a superb service while taking on more clients, you could consider expanding your client base.

Get in touch

Finding the sweet spot and having the right number of clients could help put your financial advice firm in a superb position when you are ready to sell it.

When you are ready to exit your business, speak with experienced exit specialists. We will help you through the entire process, including determining the true valuation of your business.

Email hello@melo.co.uk or call 0113 4656 111.