May 2008

The Client Feedback Experience at Main Street Financial Group, Inc. 

“We are ecstatic that so many of our clients took the time to offer such rich, thoughtful feedback. We certainly appreciate that kind of acknowledgement from them. We are in the business of making clients happy, not necessarily wealth management. And, this research process helped us achieve that."
 
About Main Street Financial Group, Inc.
Main Street Financial Group's roots date back to 1928 and two small Western North Carolina firms, Brady Insurance Agency in Tryon and Blanton-Flack Agency in Forest City . In 1995, I began a financial brokerage firm called Tryon Financial along with a partner. In 1998 I began shifting my business model from brokerage to fee-based asset management, and in 2000 I was invited to join The Brady and Blanton-Flack Agencies in forming Main Street Financial Group. Then, in 2002, I wrote a book called “Low Stress Investing” about the custom investing process I had designed.
 
The Challenge
Distinguishing Our Firm
Main Street Financial strives to carry on the tradition of helping neighbors through professional services and community service activities. The challenge for us, like many other firms, is to continually find ways to distinguish ourselves. There are a lot of people in the financial business. Those that stand out offer something extra to their clients. This is especially true in a small town business like ours.
 
The Research
Designing the Study
Main Street Financial Group was introduced to Client Opinions in January 2008. Our client feedback program was designed to offer a cost-effective way to obtain client evaluations. Measures of client satisfaction were taken of several aspects of our business, including but not exclusive to: overall satisfaction with the firm, understanding of one’s financial goals, speed and accuracy of reporting, and desired meeting frequency. 
  
The Findings
Implementation & Follow-Through
I was pleased that we had such a great outcome with more than 50% of our clients responding to the survey. They made in excess of 100 requests for information on various services and indicated more than 60 upcoming life events that could be opportunities for deepening our relationships with them.
 
Overall, we are happy that our concentration on client service and satisfaction is paying off. Most of our clients said they were more than willing to recommend us to a friend or colleague, and our above average rating for overall client satisfaction is a testament to the fact that we are concentrating on the right areas of the business for our clients.
 
The Impact
Strengthening the Program
We know that follow-through of the results is crucial for making the process truly worthwhile and assuring clients that their voices were heard. A few highlights of the research have already been included in quarterly letters to clients.
 
However, these baseline business metrics are just the beginning for Main Street. We plan to use the reports to follow-up on a client-by-client basis. In addition, we are also planning to discuss ways we can continue to exceed client expectations and set internal targets and goals for next year.
 
If you are interested in learning more about the research experience of the Main Street Financial Group, contact Andy Millard at andy@low-stress-investing.com.