The phone rings. You don't recognize the number. Next move? Block. Obviously.

Turn to your computer. Oh, boy. An email from a stranger about inflation and your retirement strategy. Delete.

This is the world financial advisors live in now. The old ways of finding new business isn't working - even as demand for wealth advisory services is rising. Nearly two-thirds of millennials who are hitting middle age say they plan on tapping a financial advisor in the next two years. How do advisors reach these clients? The barriers to connecting with new clients seem only to be multiplying. Face-to-face meetings? That's so 2019.

Identify and assess client relationships with intelligence

Understand the sphere of influence surrounding key decision-makers and leverage existing connections for warm lead introductions. Learn how Einstein Relationship Insights fosters connection.

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So everyone says go digital. For advisors, that usually means setting up several screens with dozens of open tabs. They peck and search on Google, LinkedIn, or one of the many databases their firms may subscribe to. It's actually manual work on a keyboard. And let's not talk about the cross-referencing on Excel spreadsheets.

Now imagine a world where warm leads are served right to a dashboard with plenty of context. You don't have to imagine, just like you don't have to imagine new music you love automatically streaming on your laptop.

AI is allowing financial advisors to discover hidden connections to prospects through digital automation.

We live in a digital-first world, where artificial intelligence (AI) is embedded in so much of what we do. It has not only changed how wealth management services are delivered but also how relationships are formed and information is consumed. AI is allowing financial advisors to discover hidden connections to prospects through digital automation. It's also helping them stay in touch with existing clients by delivering messages that are relevant and personalized. And it's extremely efficient. AI in sales has been shown to increase leads and appointments by more than 50% while reducing costs between 40% and 60%.

Here are the ways AI and automation can help financial advisors connect more naturally to new prospects and deepen existing relationships. We assure you: no one will miss cold calling or driving miles and miles to keep a relationship warm.

Say good-bye to cold calling and discover a network of relationship connections

Perhaps advisors should thank the robo callers of the world. They've made cold calling a nonstarter, so much so that Merrill Lynch banned the practice for its trainees. Once, it was a rite of passage. Now, it's not even remotely efficient. Merrill Lynch estimates cold lead conversions are less than 2% versus 40% for personal referrals.

AI is a discovery genius, working essentially as a personal assistant on digital steroids to offer warm leads and associated network connections.

With change comes a fresh challenge: advisors need to figure out who in their circle can make personal referrals that are also worthwhile. AI is a discovery genius, working essentially as a personal assistant on digital steroids to offer warm leads and associated network connections. For example, technology like Einstein Relationship Insights (ERI) can connect the dots using a dizzying array of sources - news stories, social posts, and more on the web; proprietary tech databases as well as internal and external documents. The AI delivers the information in context, leading to higher quality introductions based on real-life connections. For users of ERI, they'll even be able to know if prospects are already in the Salesforce CRM (customer relationship management platform).

All this digital legwork sets up advisors for conversations that are far more substantive than cold calls. And it saves advisors time. They no longer need to pore over the Internet, open dozens of tabs, and read through stories that may or may not be relevant.

Scale top-notch engagement and service and make interactions both more frequent and more informed

AI is becoming a vital tool for nourishing existing clients - especially since advisors are getting pulled every which way. They need scale. They need to operate efficiently AND engage more often with clients who crave personalized advice and often prefer digital-first experiences. But as practices grow, servicing and staying in touch with clients can be a challenge. Monthly newsletters, educational resources, and webinars are effective ways to communicate with clients. They can't foster deep and meaningful relationships.

Advisors and support teams can also automate schedules in digital marketing tools to create personalized content based on client interests.

That's where AI can help. With AI, advisors can count on regular automated insights and reminders. Advisors and support teams can also automate schedules in digital marketing tools to create personalized content based on client interests. With the ERI browser extension, advisors can get key entities highlighted and then create and open Salesforce records from any web page. With personalized details like these in hand, financial advisors can find more meaningful reasons to engage with clients more often. Advisors can convey: I see you. I hear you. I'm aware of your needs.

In the end, AI is helping advisors adapt and stay closer to customers in the ways they prefer - part human, part digital. The goal? To forge closer connections with regular, relevant touchpoints. It's like blowing on the embers of a campfire. The warmth never dies.

With AI, advisors will discover a new way of building their practices

To be most successful when leveraging AI, firms need to focus on connecting their disparate data sources. Bringing systems and data together will give advisors the muscles they are missing to work with more clients, more closely, and to stay in touch in meaningful ways more often. Currently, advisors juggle so many disconnected sources: email, internal documents, texts, and chats. A CRM plus external data sources. And then there are those tenuous leads from social connections. Think about your own LinkedIn network. How many people do you really know?

Financial advisors can leverage embedded AI and machine learning to supplement business development at scale while increasing personalization.

Financial advisors can leverage embedded AI and machine learning to supplement business development at scale while increasing personalization. Einstein Relationship Insights (ERI) has key features that can support improved networking, all integrated into the Salesforce CRM. To learn more about how ERI can help wealth management companies grow, watch the webinar at your convenience.

Accelerate client relationships with intelligence

As wealth advisors and asset owners adjust to the new reality, building new relationships will be challenging for quite some time. Join us to learn how Einstein Relationship Insights fosters connection.

watch the webinar