Five Ways to Help Grieving ClientsFive Ways to Help Grieving Clients

Almost every advisor can say they have good products and services; those are the basics. But what clients are really looking for is a relationship—someone who understands their life, said Amy Florian, CEO of Corgenius. Florian told advisors that what you do during times of transition—death, in particular—is key to building that relationship.

“If you can walk people through the hardest time of their lives, you’ve got a client for life,” she told attendees at yesterday's Raymond James Women’s Symposium in St. Petersburg, Fla.

Amy Florian

In fact, 70 percent of new investment and referrals come in times of transition, Florian said.

Florian’s own husband died in a car accident when he was 25 years old, just months after their first child was born. So she knows a thing or two about grief.

But the principles of grief apply to other transitions, such as divorce, retirement, empty-nesting, and, of course, suicide. Suicide is the third leading cause of death among people age 15 to 29, she said.

Here are five ways to help clients who are grieving.