Advisers need to “bust myths” about philanthropic giving so they are able to benefit from offering the service to clients.
This week, advisers gathered to hear a panel of experts discuss the benefits of philanthropy.
Roy Coulson, who heads up the responsible proposition at Attivo, said as well as charitable giving being “the right thing to do” it made sense commercially for advisers to offer this to their clients.
He said myths associated with the practice include giving away fees on assets held and not being a specialist on the subject.
But Coulson said advisers can actually hold onto clients for longer if they offer them everything they need and pointed out advisers can outsource areas of the process.
He added: “Once you banish these myths you are at the point you can bring philanthropy into your work.
“Charitable giving can be disarming, it is not a pension transfer, but it is something people care about and are passionate about. Not only is it the right thing to do, it is commercial.”
While George King from Maseco Private Wealth said the thing clients most appreciate about their financial advisers is having conversations that are important to them.
He said: “The competition for time in an adviser’s business is horrendous, we sometimes don’t have time to talk to clients
“At the end of the day, all clients care about is that you’re having these important conversations that are relevant to them.”
More people seeing philanthropy as an investment will have a good impact overall, according to Charlotte Prothero from Pro Bono Economics, who said charitable giving on the whole is going down.
"If you ask, people are 40 per cent more likely to give," said Prothero. "By just asking that question, there is so much potential and good that can come from it.
"A lot of charities are at crisis point at the moment. Philanthropy has a massive part to play in keeping the charity sector going and keeping civil society going. We would also like to see the government respect and support philanthropy more."
The panel was hosted by the Global Returns Project as part of Good Money Week and took place on Tuesday (October 1) in central London.
tara.o'connor@ft.com
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