A new survey finds disconnects, but much alignment as well.
In contrast to other industry surveys, the 250 advisor respondents in the survey conducted during Q1 2015 were largely inclined to describe women as spenders (68%) than as savers (18%), and a mere quarter (24%) said that men and women are similar in their spend/save mindset.
Advisors were more likely to see female investors as conservative (41%) than did the female investors (26%), while women were primarily (64%) inclined to describe their risk tolerance as moderate, with an average tolerance for risk, only about half that many advisors (35%) saw women’s risk tolerance at that level. Nearly three-quarters (71%) of advisors surveyed said women were more conservative investors than men, according to a new survey by State Street Global Advisors.
Indeed, the women investors surveyed were confident about their investing skills: Not only were 49% somewhat confident, more than a quarter (27%) were very confident. Roughly two-thirds (62%) said that their spouse/partner influenced their investment decisions, and 27% considered the perspectives of their friends/family. Only 22% said “no one.”
Advisor Satisfaction
So, when they don’t use advisors, why not? Well, advisor respondents were inclined to apportion that between one of two motivations: Either the female investor hadn’t (yet) found anyone they trusted (30%), or they had no need for an advisor because they felt they could manage their own investments (30%). Those were, in fact, the primary rationales offered by female investors, although the perceived lack of need was, by far, the dominant consideration by a margin of 59% to 35%.
Investing Goals
In terms of personal goals, advisor respondents’ sense of female investors financial goals seemed largely aligned with the aspirations of female investors. The top goals cited were:
- Being financially independent (58% of investors, 50% of advisors)
- Saving for retirement (54% of investors, 48% of advisors)
- Being in a position to afford/help my children financially (32% of investors, 33% of advisors)
- Building an emergency fund (27% investors, 30% advisors)
- Managing day-to-day expenses (22% investors, 32% advisors)
- Reducing/eliminating debt (21% investors, 33% advisors)
While “saving for retirement” was the most cited goal that female investors were worried about not achieving, it was only mentioned by about one in five (19%). What topped the list? “None of these,” cited by 46%.
Female investors have a number of concerns about retirement, including:
- Affording health care and medical costs (55%)
- Outliving my savings (49%)
- Outliving friends and family (25%)
- Being bored (24%)
- Lacking a sense of purpose (22%)
For 9%, retirement was not (yet) on their radar.
‘Contact’ Lens
Advisors (38%) thought that female investors wanted more frequent contact from their advisors, while only 24% of female investors expressed that opinion. Most of the female investors (74%) were comfortable maintaining the current level/frequency. A plurality of female investors (34%) expressed a preference for telephone contact (versus 24% of advisors), while a slim plurality of advisors (27%) opted for face-to-face meetings, a preference of 29% of female investors. Investors were more interested in email communications (23%) than advisors (17%). Apparently female investors are not ready for communications by social media (2%) or text (4%) — although 11% (each) of advisors thought they would prefer those media.
Indeed, three-quarters (74%) of female investors were completely satisfied with their advisor (with 71% saying they had recommended their financial advisor to others), and another quarter (25%) were somewhat satisfied. Sure enough, while 60% of advisors thought that female investors were completely satisfied with their financial advisor, just 52% held that opinion regarding male investors and their financial advisors.
