Blog | Personal Finance

Why Women Are the Next Big Financial Advisor Target

Learn to take control of your own financial future, not hand it over to a broker

For years advertisers have known that women hold the purse strings on how the household money is spent. The advertising industry, dominated by men, spent countless hours and untold dollars trying to woo this coveted purchasing power.

Until recently, however, when it came to the household finances, women were ignored. The financial advising industry, also dominated by men, didn’t see the need to reach out to women who were often financially dependent on their husbands.

But that’s all changing.

Today, women are the hot topic among financial advisors. Women have roared, and the financial industry has heard.

Enter a recent report entitled “ Harnessing the Power of Women Investors in Wealth Management ” from financial firm Earnest & Young, or EY as they now like to call themselves. The report is a kind of how-to for financial advisors looking to cash in on the rise of financially independent women.

According to the report, “Women are creating and accumulating wealth at an accelerated pace, and wealth management (WM) firms are starting to notice. Women are more than a niche market—they are influencers and controllers of substantial wealth.”

Whenever a large financial firm issues a report like this, an astute observer should ask, “Why? What is the end game?”

EY would want you to think it’s to serve an “underserved segment,” citing statistics like “only 43% of women have an emergency fund versus 63% of men, and only 25% of women rebalance their portfolios to keep their asset allocation on track versus 49% of men.” However, their own language in the same introduction betrays their intentions:

To better understand how wealth managers are capitalizing on this opportunity, we conducted primary research with senior executives at more than 10 wealth management firms. (emphasis added).

Not only that, the history of the financial advisor industry betrays their intentions. If the financial health and well-being of women were the true motivator, why would you wait to make concerted efforts to serve them until they were power players in global financial markets? Why not target them no matter what their socio-economic status?

The answer is not surprising: women, just like men, are a means for the financial advisor industry to sell, sell, sell! They make money by managing vast amounts of wealth, skimming huge fees whether the market goes up or down.

Around Rich Woman, we have a saying about brokers. They’re called that because they’re often broker than you!

In reality, the financial industry profits off financial ignorance. They don’t want to teach you how to fend for yourself financially. They want to give you just enough information to make you feel like you’re empowered, but not enough for you to smell through the bull.

And what better market to target than a consumer class of women who are increasingly affluent but not financially educated?

If you want to know more about how the financial industry preys upon the financially ignorant, I encourage you to read Rich Dad Advisor Andy Tanner’s book, 401(k)aos.

If you’re reading this and you’re a woman on the rise, this is your fair warning. The financial industry is coming for you. They want your money! Will you give it to them?