Inspiring Clients with Gratitude

As a professional advisor, you might find it challenging at times to keep your clients’ attention let alone keep them focused on their financial and estate planning goals. In today’s age of mass marketing, political polarization, economic uncertainties, international turmoil, prevalent phishing (no, not the freshwater kind), etc., is it any wonder that clients become distracted or even paralyzed by feelings of fear and uncertainty? How can you, as a trusted advisor, help to calm and inspire clients to take a step back and experience a sense of gratitude and joy? For many clients, that involves finding their “why” such as, for example – grandkids, the family business, church, socializing with friends, travel, volunteering, philanthropy, pickleball, or a combination thereof.

My recent meeting with Chris, a seasoned estate planning attorney and longtime member of the American Heart Association’s Professional Advisor Network, inspired me to write about this topic. Our conversation was timely for me as I’ve found it more challenging lately to motivate donors to help our mission. Chris and I discussed the similarities of our roles as educators and facilitators of individual and family legacies, but more specifically we exchanged ideas about how to inspire clients and donors to take action in our respective roles. Decisions about financial, estate, and gift planning can be difficult and complex at times. So, naturally it’s understandable that humans procrastinate and take time to make thoughtful planning decisions that impact one’s own future and even the future of others. And let’s face it; it’s not necessarily fun to contemplate one’s own demise or life expectancy.

Chris and I agreed that, in general, client behavior and decision making are often motivated by two common feelings: fear or gratitude. For example, a client may experience a health scare which motivates her to get her affairs in order and finally sign her last will and testament. In another scenario, a parent’s child receives lifesaving heart surgery and now feels so thankful for the medical intervention that he decides to designate the American Heart Association as a beneficiary of his IRA to create a future cardiovascular research fund as “repayment” for his child’s new healthy heart. In both cases, these individuals are motivated by fear, gratitude, or maybe both. These feelings are not always mutually exclusive – experiencing fear and overcoming it can lead to feelings of gratitude.

Chris shared that he has an existing client, single, long retired, and who will be subject to hefty federal estate taxes exceeding 40% due to a net worth over $15M. We agreed that this individual would make a great legacy donor, especially due to their civic background. Despite all the time and work Chris has put forth to build trust and confidence, his client fears the uncertainty of not having enough to be sustained or enough to pass on to heirs. Unfortunately, his client is not motivated by the compelling estate tax savings afforded by a simple charitable bequest in his trust. This real-world example was a stark reminder that not all people with wealth and means are charitable or interested in basic tax planning. How do we reach and inspire these client personality types? Can we?

Chris and I discussed strategies for helping clients experience gratitude, first, by building trust and openness with our clients and donors. His strategy is to create a medium or space for clients to “be heard.” He shared with me a sample document from his client intake form: one page includes a blank timeline in 7-year increments which asks the client to list their personal heroes at points throughout their lifetime. Another page asks several open-ended questions about how the client perceives money and finances. A couple questions resonated with me:

• “What do you want the material gifts you pass on to accomplish?”
• “What concerns do you have about the distribution of your material wealth as part of your heritage?”

Questions like these help clients contemplate their ultimate goals for leaving a legacy and making an impact for the next generation. Chris’s approach to helping his clients understand their “why” is a great example of how to inspire clients to experience joy through gratitude.

On behalf of the American Heart Association, I am grateful for our network of advisors, and those like Chris, who help our mission by sharing their valuable time and insights. Thank you for your important work in inspiring your clients with gratitude and helping them experience the joy of giving back by supporting our cause and others.

About the Author

Gunnar M. Crowell, JD
Senior Advisor, Charitable Estate Planning

Gunnar is based in Madison, Wisconsin and serves IA, IL, IN, KY, KS, MI, MN, MO, ND, NE, OH, SD, and WI.

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