You're Going to What? Well Then How About Some Free Advice.
For this assignment, I again interviewed five individuals to determine more specifics on the who, what, and why of the service provided. Here is a summation of what I learned.
Joel - 30 something self employed. This individual has never worked for a company that provided employee benefits, so they do not have any employer sponsored retirement accounts. Through discussion, I learned the individual does take an active role in their financial decision, but their ultimate financial future is based on the ability to capture the next "big thing." That being said, my services are not needed by this person.
Gordon - 40 something corporate employee. This individual works for a prominent fortune 500 company. Which means they have several options available to them for investing in their future retirement. This person is very active in planning for retirement and spending money wisely. They have recently consulted assistance from other financial advisers in regards to purchases and investments, and they were pleased with the advice they received. They would be interested in my services in regards to personal investments and long-term purchases.
Randy - 30 something self employed. This person has no access to employer sponsored retirement and investment accounts. They have learned to plan for their future by investing and making sound financial decisions. They have used an adviser in the past; however, they were not satisfied with the advice received or amount of service provided. Due to their employment status, this person has to rely 100% on their where with all to invest wisely. According to our conversation, this person would be interested in financial services for a limited basis. However, if the service provided help to measure their ROI and provided better ROI through different perspective the membership would be extended long-term.
Kendra - 40 something corporate employee. This person has access to numerous investment and retirement account options. According to our conversation, this person is very active planning for their future. They have never worked with a financial adviser, but they have sought out family members opinions on long-term purchases and investments. They would be interested in my services on a limited time frame.
Mike - 30 something self employed. This person does not have access to employer sponsored investment and retirement accounts. They hold an active role in financial decisions for their future. They tend to seek advice for long-term purchases and are very versed in conducting their own research. They have never used a financial adviser, and would likely not be interested in my services.
Inside:
Joel - 30 something self employed. This individual has never worked for a company that provided employee benefits, so they do not have any employer sponsored retirement accounts. Through discussion, I learned the individual does take an active role in their financial decision, but their ultimate financial future is based on the ability to capture the next "big thing." That being said, my services are not needed by this person.
Gordon - 40 something corporate employee. This individual works for a prominent fortune 500 company. Which means they have several options available to them for investing in their future retirement. This person is very active in planning for retirement and spending money wisely. They have recently consulted assistance from other financial advisers in regards to purchases and investments, and they were pleased with the advice they received. They would be interested in my services in regards to personal investments and long-term purchases.
Randy - 30 something self employed. This person has no access to employer sponsored retirement and investment accounts. They have learned to plan for their future by investing and making sound financial decisions. They have used an adviser in the past; however, they were not satisfied with the advice received or amount of service provided. Due to their employment status, this person has to rely 100% on their where with all to invest wisely. According to our conversation, this person would be interested in financial services for a limited basis. However, if the service provided help to measure their ROI and provided better ROI through different perspective the membership would be extended long-term.
Kendra - 40 something corporate employee. This person has access to numerous investment and retirement account options. According to our conversation, this person is very active planning for their future. They have never worked with a financial adviser, but they have sought out family members opinions on long-term purchases and investments. They would be interested in my services on a limited time frame.
Mike - 30 something self employed. This person does not have access to employer sponsored investment and retirement accounts. They hold an active role in financial decisions for their future. They tend to seek advice for long-term purchases and are very versed in conducting their own research. They have never used a financial adviser, and would likely not be interested in my services.
Inside:
- Who is in -individuals who are very active in investing or further investment in long-term purchases.
- What the need is - counsel for long-term purchases that deal with risk or uncertainty and have the potential for exponential growth or compounding interest.
- Why the need exists - in today's society America expects a get rich quick scheme in order to complete their financial future. Most people don't understand how to build wealth through investing and prudent money use.
- Who is not - individuals who are less active or interested in the planning aspect. Or individuals who have an adviser through an employer sponsored plan. Individuals who are already close to retirement.
- What the need is not - an easy step process on how to become wealthy. It takes hard work a steady income stream and being wise with your cash flow.
- Alternative Explanations - according to research, many individuals either fail to enroll in retirement or investment accounts, or if they are automatically enrolled they do not make any elections. I learned through speaking with a number of persons that individuals rely on their spouse or partner very heavily for wealth planning, or they just are averse to discussing or taking an active interest.
This was a good article to read. You did a good job having an overall, fundamental understanding of the needs of these people and finding solutions to their needs. The one that was most interesting to me was Mike. Having a interest in long term investments and research based methods is something that intrigues me as well. Overall good job on this.
ReplyDeleteYour interviews are great, seems like you have gathered a lot of information about your target market as a result. I appreciate the fact that you emphasized that this is not a great rich fast service but a manage money wisely service. I find that I will need to look into a financial adviser myself when it comes to better managing my money. Great post!
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