Our purpose is to be that trusted adviser to all clients, regardless of their specific circumstances and we believe we go some way to achieving this by retaining a very personalised, relationship-driven service. Now, possibly more than ever in recent generations, a need for a trusted adviser might well be heightened for many and we would very much like those clients who may need us, to feel we are there for them.
The lockdown situation risks many of our individual vulnerabilities being exacerbated due to the changing circumstances. It is normally in our face-to-face meetings that we learn of clients’ unease at certain issues or a recent bereavement or diagnosis, but with the current restrictions those meetings are not taking place.
As a firm, we understand the importance of knowing our clients and our whole business model reflects this. We recognise that any number of new reasons might lead our clients to increased angst, including, but not limited to, the following:
- Dealing with a sudden change in circumstances such as a being furloughed or made redundant
- being stricken by Covid-19 or having family and friends affected
- suffering from the effects of not seeing loved ones and/or loneliness
- at risk of the rise in fraud and scams
- being overwhelmed by all the advice and news out there
We take our responsibilities extremely seriously and we would like to remind all our clients that although our doors are not physically open, we are very much available for all clients to call and share any concerns you may have. Indeed, if you know of others that might need any form of support from you, it is worth bearing in mind that now might well be the appropriate moment to contact them.
Until we are permitted to resume face-to-face meetings, we are more than happy to arrange confidential calls and when some semblance of normality does resume, we will continue to be there for those that may need it.
Our purpose is to be that trusted adviser to all clients, regardless of their specific circumstances
In the meantime, as part of our aims to go above and beyond the services we offer, we have developed a guide to staying safe online to help our clients counter the increase in cyber crime and would encourage any clients to visit www.jmfinn.com/cyber-crime-awareness for some tips and hints about staying safe online.
Finally, we would encourage clients to use our client portal when sending documents and viewing portfolio information, as this can enhance the security and privacy of your personal data. For those who would like help setting this up, please contact your investment manager – we can even arrange for one of our specialist IT consultants to view your screen and show you around the portal, if looking at it for the first time appears a little daunting.
Looking out for each other and sharing our concerns can significantly reduce the risk of anxiety and we hope that by retaining that open, personal relationship, we can be the trusted adviser many of clients might need.
