Finance advice via Zoom: Stay calm and read a fun book
“Overcommunication is the key during these times. When the markets take a dip, it’s natural for investors to react emotionally when analyzing their money.”
Stocks had plunged into the fastest bear market in history by mid-April when Pittsburgh financial adviser Seth Dresbold reached out to clients of his firm — who typically have at least $1 million in assets — with an email that offered them an upbeat long-term forecast, along with some unconventional advice.
Take a walk in nature, he recommended. Read a fiction book. Write notes in a journal, or take a free online course and establish a new hobby or a new set of skills.
That seemed healthier than focusing on a 36% decline in the Dow since reaching its all-time high just one month earlier on Feb. 19, or that Apple stock had plummeted from $323 a share to $284 during the same time frame.
Embracing the lighter side of life seems to be a winning theme in stressful times for many financial advisers. Sometimes that simply means choosing an unusual background display — like PNC Park — while videoconferencing with clients, or setting aside time to socialize with clients while enjoying drinks and conversations on video.
“As a financial adviser, one of my most important roles is to ensure that anxiety and stress don’t lead to poor decision-making — and that fear doesn’t cause shortsighted decisions which can adversely affect long-term plans,” said Mr. Dresbold, principal and chief counsel at Signature Financial Planning in Mount Washington.
“Take a minute and not focus
— Matthew Helfrich, Waldron Private Wealth president
on numbers,” he said in his message, “but instead focus on activities and techniques that may aid in alleviating some of our anxiety. One thing to keep in mind is that stressing out over world events we cannot control can have a direct impact on our mental well-being.”
What makes the stock market meltdown prompted by COVID-19 unlike other financial disasters in recent memory — Black Monday in 1987, the dot-com bust and the Great Recession of 2008 — is that panic-stricken investors don’t have the ability to meet with their money managers face to face due to social distancing rules.
Although wealth management firms have shut down their offices and allowed employees to work from home during the coronavirus pandemic, financial markets have remained open and many clients who have watched their investments lose value remain stressed.
“Overcommunication is the key during these times,” said Matthew Helfrich, president of Waldron Private Wealth in Bridgeville. “When the markets take a dip, it’s natural for investors to react emotionally when analyzing their money.
“That’s why we’ve taken a detailed look at each of our clients’ specific situations and are hosting regular calls with them to ensure we’re keeping them on track,” he said.
Founded in 1995, Waldron Private Wealth manages $2.3 billion for 220 individual and family clients that include business owners and corporate executives.
He said the 50 team members at Waldron are conducting hundreds of video conferences and telephone calls a week. On the calls they are discussing and sharing ideas with clients that range from intrafamily lending and rebalancing portfolios to taking advantage of market conditions, charitable planning in light of their desire to give back and considering Roth IRA conversions.
Newsletter emails have become the pre-eminent form of communication financial advisers are using to reach out to their clients.
Ashby Daniels, a financial adviser at Shorebridge Wealth Management on Washington’s Landing, has been sending a regular weekly newsletter to his clients for years. He believes it’s never been a more important resource to his clients than it is now.
Ironically, on Feb. 19 — the day the S&P 500 hit its all-time high — Mr. Daniels sent a note to his clients on the topic of risk. He told them to stop thinking in terms of a 60/40 or 70/30 stock versus bonds portfolio and start thinking in terms of how many years they could live without having to sell equities.
“Quite simply, the shorter the time frame, the higher the risk,” he said in that February newsletter. “Having a number you feel comfortable with should provide some comfort for when the market goes south.”
One month later, the market had fallen more than 30%. And Mr. Daniels was sharing his thoughts on what actions clients should take when investing during a bear market, such as tax-loss harvesting, rebalancing portfolios and converting traditional individual retirement accounts to Roth IRAs.
“It’s really difficult to be a successful investor by either being a pessimist or by being too short-term focused,” he said.
Pine-based Yanni & Associates Investment Advisors recently pointed out in its newsletter to clients that March brought about two of the five single largest daily percentage drops in stock market history.
“Our belief is the markets will remain exceptionally volatile until we see signs of a flattening of the new infection curve,” the newsletter said. “We also believe the markets will eventually recover, but that is dependent on many factors and possibly could take some time.”
Blogs, texting, homepages, LinkedIn and the use of social media platforms are all a part of the arsenal financial advisers are using to help develop and sustain client relationships.
But communicating by video could be the best option when face-to-face meetings aren’t possible.
Pine financial adviser J. Victor Conrad uses the Zoom online conferencing program to have his conversations with clients face to face. He took the concept a step further by using virtual backgrounds like PNC Park, the church pew bunkers at Oakmont Country Club and the living room from “The Simpsons.”
“I decided to have some fun during these trying times,” said Mr. Conrad, the owner of Pinnacle Financial Strategies. “So, instead of just the boring background of the wall in my dining room, I use virtual backgrounds. I get all kinds of great comments. People just think it’s fun and different.”
Paul Brahim, managing director of Wealth Enhancement Group, Downtown, said his firm stopped all corporate travel in midMarch and by the end of March had stopped all faceto-face client meetings. While there is no one in the office, a virtual voice assistant routes all calls directly to financial advisers wherever they are.
“You can’t even really tell,” Mr. Brahim said. “I answer like I’m sitting there. The technology amazes me. I’m 100% completely on the cloud. I don’t need an office. We have virtual desktops. and as long as we have an internet connection, we can do everything our job requires.”
That includes being able to do e-signatures for all documents and video conferencing, which also allows Mr. Brahim to continuing doing speaking engagements as well as biweekly webinars with clients to discuss the impact of COVID-19 on the stock market and what changes the firm is making to client portfolios.
On a recent Saturday evening, Mr. Brahim and other advisers from the firm held a virtual cocktail party. The conversation was part business and part personal with clients in Philadelphia while everyone sipped wine and other beverages at their own homes.
“We spent an hour together this way,” he said. “I’m used to planes, trains and automobiles. I’m thrilled to have this technology.”