Advisors spend a lot of time crafting their financial advice recommendations – and how they deliver those recommendations – for their clients. These ultra-personalized suggestions are central to what makes financial advice valuable and can have a significant impact on a client’s life. So, what happens when a client doesn’t act on that advice – especially when their inaction can compromise their financial and holistic wellbeing?
In our 163rd episode of Kitces & Carl, Michael Kitces and client communication expert Carl Richards explore how to engage more meaningfully with clients who don’t implement the financial advice they receive – by asking what the advisor may have missed the first time around.
Many advisors receive training to overcome objections from prospects when learning how to sell advice and gain clients. However, they rarely have access to training that addresses the objections – or silence – from long-term clients. And these objections can often show up differently: Some clients will voice disagreement openly, while others may appear to agree with the advisor’s recommendations and reasoning in the moment, only to quietly fail to follow through.
Inaction can be a sign that the advisor misunderstood the client’s real priorities. For example, an advisor might assume a client would prioritize long-term financial stability, when in reality, their focus may be on supporting loved ones in the present – even at the expense of their own future financial security. While both perspectives stem from good intentions, the mismatch can lead to recommendations that technically make sense but don’t resonate emotionally. The key is to uncover this disconnect – not by asking, “Why didn’t you implement?”, which can feel accusatory and cause the client to react defensively, but instead using open-ended questions like, “What did I miss?”, “What’s going on?”, or “How can I be helpful here?” These kinds of questions set the stage for collaborative conversations that make space for mutual investigation and problem-solving.
Often, the issue isn’t a lack of clarity or explanation – it’s that the advice may have focused on a goal the client wasn’t truly prioritizing. When a client nods in agreement during a meeting but takes no action afterward, it may signal that the recommendation didn’t reflect what truly matters to them. Shifting the conversation to explore the client’s underlying values – rather than repeating the recommendation with greater emphasis – can open the door to a more meaningful dialogue and a more accurate diagnosis of the client’s needs.
Ultimately, the key point is that when clients don’t act on financial advice, it can be an indicator that a deeper – and different – conversation is needed. By extending curiosity and empathy, advisors can uncover clients’ deeper priorities that may not have been previously articulated. In other words, advisors can use inaction and objection as an opportunity to have deeper conversations and build trust as they learn what clients truly value most!
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