Millennials learned to become savvy spenders. In Australia, people born between 1981 to 1996 opted to delay buying houses, decreased their alcohol and tobacco consumption, and spend their money on private health insurance and public transport. They also chose not to own a credit card and saved regularly compared to their parents.
Since most Australian millennials choose to be wise about their spending, they usually look for ways to help them manage their finances properly. But because of their busy schedules, finding time to sit down with a financial advisor can get challenging. This situation should prompt financial experts to look for more efficient ways to reach out to this generation and offer financial services like retirement planning and wealth management. They can also provide a credit score comparison to establish a person’s finances. Here are several tips to allow financial advisors to help millennials manage their money wisely.
Teach Them To Manage Substantial Student Debt
As of 2017, the average student debt in Australia reached $19,100. Those who availed the HELP loan take almost nine years to pay off all their debts. For millennials getting the average weekly earnings for full-time employees, paying off this amount can be tough. Financial experts should help them address this problem by thinking of viable ways to pay without compromising the other financial obligations. They can also help millennials look into possible repayment plans that will make it easier for them to pay all their debts gradually.
Conform With Millennial Lifestyle Decisions
Unlike the Gen Xers and the Baby Boomers, millennials do not like the idea of always hearing that they should only spend their money on investments. This generation loves to travel, get the latest gadgets, spend time with their loved ones, and enjoy life. It may seem like the fact that millennial’s constantly face financial issues should have taught them to spend their money in a conscious way making sure that they have some savings on a rainy day yet representatives of this generation keep making unconscious, spontaneous, and sometimes useless purchases. But as a financial advisor, you still need to remind them to keep a feasible balance between spending and saving. Let them use a portion of their salary for breaks and occasional partying. Yet tell them to keep a hefty part of their money to save for their retirement and emergency expenses.
Learn To Communicate Digitally
As earlier mentioned, millennials usually have less time for sit-down appointments because of their very hectic schedule. Because of this, visiting them at work or asking them to meet you after office hours to talk about their credit score comparison could be a terrible idea.
If you want to speak to your millennial client about managing their money, you need to do it digitally. Send emails once in a while or touch base with them through messaging apps. Young people prefer to communicate online, so take advantage of this technology to drive your message across. It will prevent wasting both your time and resources if you do it this way.
Offer Comprehensive Financial Services
Most millennials have limited financial education. It can get addressed by providing them thorough guidance about managing their money aside from giving them investment tips. Usually, this generation can manage to live from payday to payday. It can be a problem when something big comes up like getting married or having a new addition in the family. Millennials need to learn to combine finances and save up to pay for a property for their future. Sharing your financial knowledge with a millennial may be different compared to their older contemporaries. But like any other thing, you need to adjust with the times. Try to keep up with the millennial lifestyle so they can relate to your advice about their finances and apply those in their lives.
