What kinds of online content do participants and plan sponsors find most useful? Lisa Greenwald Schneider has some advice for advisors who want to be more active online and in social media.
“Consumers have the most favorable reaction to advisors sharing helpful hints for financial management. They want to be educated,” says Schneider, an AVP at Greenwald & Associates, an independent research firm specializing in the retirement and financial services industries. She cites a study by The Granum Center which found that most respondents find links to financial news and commentary and links to educational videos valuable. They welcome generic PSA-style reminders about finance-related events, like tax season, or a reminder for an annual financial check-up.
“Translated to the retirement plan space,” Greenwald writes in her latest column in NAPA Net the Magazine, “a plan advisor may be able to effectively engage plan sponsors by sharing news on plan design trends, education on automatic programs or QDIAs, a plain language explanation of sponsors’ fiduciary obligations, or a reminder to check the health of their plan at least once a year.” These could be through social media posts, blogs or newsletter articles shared with clients, she notes.
In addition to Schneider’s regular “Inside the Generations” column, the Winter issue of NAPA Net the Magazine includes the cover story on making the ROI connection between the bottom line and employee well being, as well as feature articles on robo-advisors’ entry into the 401(k) market and preparing for the SEC’s coming money market reforms. The issue also features insights from regular contributors Jerry Bramlett, Steff Chalk, Nevin Adams, David Levine, Brian Graff, Don Trone, Joseph DeNoyior, Jania Stout, Fred Barstein and Warren Cormier.
To view Schneider’s column, click here and select “An Uphill Battle for Advisor Social Media Use.” And to view a pdf of the full 52-page issue, click here.
