Feedback - An Element To Consider

“We all need people who will give us feedback. That's how we improve.” - Bill Gates

Ashima & Apoorv Sahni, are married since three months. Both of them are too fond of each other and they go out of their way to keep each other happy. Ashima gets up early in the morning to prepare and pack lunch for Apoorv. However, Apoorv finds the food cooked by Ashima overly spicy and at times, he gives it away to the office boy and calls for a pizza. But he has never told his wife about his distaste because he feels she puts in immense efforts and she won't appreciate any criticism. So, what is happening here is Ashima is trying hard to please her husband's palette but her efforts are going in vain day after day, as she is unaware that she's going offtrack. The solution to the couple's problem is simple, A Feedback, Apoorv has to tell Ashima that the food is spicy, and with a minor alteration in her cooking, she just has to take a smaller spoon for the masalas, things will be sorted.

This tale reveals the importance of feedback, how it helps us decode our everyday riddles, and imparts peace and harmony into our lives. Like this couple, we all need feedbacks, it helps us identify flaws in our ways, it extends an opportunity to improve. In Financial Advisory business, there is a substantial human element involved, therefore the role of feedback becomes paramount for an unfaltering growth of the advisor. There is often a huge disparity between the advisors' judgment of clients' preferences and actual client choices. Despite the fact, many advisors are reluctant and keep on deferring the feedback solicitation activity for years, may be because they are apprehensive about negative comments. But in reality a negative feedback is an opportunity to correct our practices, to improve, and to evolve into a better business.

Client's feedback is the Report Card of your performance. This report card will show you where you stand, what are your strengths and what are the weak areas that you need to improve. Like Ashima in the above story, all advisors go the extra mile to keep our clients happy, but many times there are gaps between what we impart and what they expect. Feedback tells you:

What you don't need to do: Feedback helps you identify gaps in your service and offerings. Say for instance, an advisor is committed to provide optimum service to his clients at all times, and in the course of his mission, he at times goes overboard in trying to please his clients. This risk the investors, but they don't really express their displeasure. This gap in service can be filled only when enlightenment dawns upon the advisor, and that will happen only when he gets a feedback.

What you need to do: There are also times when, although we are trying our best to protect the investor's interests, we are not able to stand upto their expectations, there can be a shortfall in service quality, product, knowledge or the advice itself. We'll be able to fill in the blank only when we are able to see the blank. We'll see the blank when someone shows us the blank by giving us a feedback.

The process builds client's confidence: Feedback not only gives you an opportunity to improve but also creates customer satisfaction. When you ask a client for his feedback, he feels important, he feels being heard, and it leads to greater client engagement, which lies at the core of any client driven practice. Asking for feedback from investors also gives a positive impression, investors can sense your genuineness and that you care for them. You can further strengthen their confidence by sending a progress report on their feedback. Our service practices are aimed at gaining customer confidence, and asking for feedback works as a super tool in this respect.

The above paragraphs explain why is client feedback so important for the success of a financial advisor. However, when a client is dissatisfied, you would know only when he switches to a different advisor. Clients are disgruntled but you would seldom face a client who specifically shows up just to give you an assessment report. So it is the advisors' responsibility to step out of their comfort zone to gauge their clients' dissatisfaction by asking for a Feedback. You can club the feedback solicitation activity in your regular investor meets, or you can ask for a feedback or suggestions in your one on one meetings, but make sure you do it at regular intervals. All the best for surprises!

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