Setting Expectations for Annual Financial Discussions With Your Clients
That's a real problem, because the annual client meeting is exactly where a long-term care conversation belongs — and if clients don't know what to expect from the meeting itself, they're even less likely to expect a conversation about long-term care within it.
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88% of Americans want to age at home (Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research) |
56% of Americans ages 65+ will require long-term care (U.S. Dept. of Health and Human Services) |
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$0 what Medicare and most health insurance pay toward long-term care expenses, at home or in a facility |
90,000+ financial professionals trained on how clients actually want to be approached in a meeting |
Borrow a Page From Your Annual Physical
A typical financial check-up begins with a question like, “How is life treating you?” It avoids one-word answers and gives the client room to bring up events or stresses without you having to probe: a job loss, a family member's illness, an unexpected move — all of which can affect a client's finances the same way they affect their health.
It's the perfect opening to segue into a long-term care conversation, because life evolves, and it's the financial professional's job to keep up with those changes and make sure the right resources and protections are in place.
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“The relationship between financial professionals and clients is personal. Life's goals, worries about the future, and anxieties about money are topics clients may not have discussed with other family members and friends.” |
The CARE Conversation Framework
A CARE conversation starter might involve a question about life expectancy and the client's perceived consequences of living longer. The next question might be, “In the event that you experienced an illness or injury that required long-term care, how would this impact your spouse, partner, children or friends?” From there, questions can draw out more detail about where care was delivered, by whom, and how families were financially and emotionally impacted.
For clients who don't have personal experience with a family member or friend needing long-term care, it helps to have a couple of data points ready. The HHS estimate that 56% of Americans ages 65 and older will require long-term care makes the risk concrete. And it's worth reminding clients directly that Medicare and most health insurance do not cover long-term care expenses — whether in a nursing home or at home.
That gap matters because 88% of Americans say they want to age at home. That means family members, with the help of in-home care professionals, would likely be the ones providing that care — on top of the cost of an in-home care professional, and possibly major renovations like an accessible bathroom, an elevator or chair lift, ramps, and other accommodations.
How to Bring This to Your Next Annual Meeting
• Open with a broad, open-ended question — “How is life treating you?” instead of “How did your portfolio do?” — so clients raise real changes without you having to probe.
• Ask directly which resources a client would tap first if they or a family member needed care for an extended period; the answer often reveals whether they have a real plan at all.
• Bring data to clients who don't have personal LTC experience in the family — a stat like “56% of Americans 65+ will need long-term care” makes an abstract risk concrete.
• Use a recent market downturn as the natural opening to introduce Hybrid Life/LTC solutions that protect a client's financial assets from an unexpected long-term care event.