Model Portfolio & SMA Strategists Showcase - Flipbook - Page 67
SMAs & MODEL PORTFOLIOS
What are the expense ratios of any
underlying proprietary funds used in
the strategy?
What additional platform, custodial,
or overlay management fees apply
when this strategy is implemented
through the [advisor’s specific TAMP/
custodian], if any?
Provide a fully stacked, all-in estimated
cost to a client at [representative
account size].
OPERATIONAL
What is the onboarding and transition
process for a new client account with
an existing, appreciated portfolio?
What reporting is provided to the
advisor and to the end client, and at
what frequency?
Appendix B: Client & Prospect
Conversation Scripts
Eight ready-to-use scripts for the specific
conversations discussed in general
terms earlier in this guide (p. 42). Each
includes the situation, a working script,
and a short note on framing. Adapt
the language to your own voice. The
sequencing and framing matter most.
1. Introducing the shift to
outsourced management
Situation: An existing client whose
portfolio has been individually
managed is moving to a model
portfolio, SMA, or UMA.
“I want to walk you through a change
I’m making to how your portfolio gets
managed day to day. I’m moving it to a
structure where a specialist team handles
the individual security selection and
rebalancing, using the same institutionalcaliber research and tax management
that large family offices use.
“Here’s what doesn’t change: I chose
this manager, I’m the one monitoring
whether it’s performing the way we
expect, and I’m still who you call with
any question about your money. What
does change is that you’ll likely see
better tax management and more
consistent rebalancing than what one
person, managing many clients, can
realistically deliver account by account.”
Note: Names the change plainly first,
explains the mechanism second, and
states what doesn’t change last, the
sequence recommended earlier in this
guide, in that order.
2. Handling “why aren’t you
managing my money yourself?”
Situation: A client asks directly and
somewhat pointedly why their advisor
isn’t personally picking stocks.
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“Honestly, that was never really the job.
The job was always judgment about
risk, goals, and your specific needs.
Portfolio construction used to be the
most visible part of that, but it’s also a
full-time specialist discipline now.
“Doing it well for every client I serve
would compete directly with the time
I need to actually know each of your
situations well enough to give good
advice in the first place. So, I’ve
chosen to delegate the mechanical
part to people who do only that, all
day, so I can spend my time on the
parts only I can do for you.”
Note: A direct answer, not a deflection.
Names the trade-off honestly rather
than implying nothing was given up.
3. Explaining a new fee layer
transparently
Situation: A structural change
introduces a platform fee, manager fee,
or overlay fee that wasn’t part of the
client’s prior cost structure.
“I want to be up front about the fee
picture because I’d rather you hear it
from me than notice it on a statement.
This new structure has [X] layers: the
manager’s fee, a platform fee for the
technology that handles rebalancing
and tax management, and [any overlay
fee]. Together, that comes to [X]%
annually. Here’s how that compares
to what you were paying before, and
here’s what you’re getting in exchange:
[specific benefit, for example, better
tax-loss harvesting, more responsive
rebalancing].”
Note: Full stacked disclosure,
proactively, before the client’s next
statement arrives. Silence on fees is the
single most trust-eroding mistake in this
