Client interviews help you to stay on top of changes in your clients’ personal circumstances, goals and expectations. These interviews should be a continuous discovery process, and not just a review of clients’ portfolios, says Nadia David, communications consultant with Premier Consulting Partners in Mississauga, Ont.

“Each client is different,” says Jonathan Sceeles, financial advisor with Edward Jones in Toronto. Your interview style must be flexible, to accommodate these differences, he says, but you must remain focused on the goals of the interview.

Here are five tips to ensure you conduct effective client interviews:

1. Be prepared
“Review your client’s portfolio prior to the interview,” Sceeles says. In doing so, you might consider issues such as whether client has money to invest or whether his or her asset mix needs to be adjusted.

“Prepare multiple ideas to discuss with client,” he says.

Review the performance of your client’s portfolio, David says. Anticipate questions that may arise, she says, so that you are in a position to answer them.

Also, go over your client’s family situation and life stage, to determine if issues such as education saving, retirement planning or estate planning should be discussed.

2. Have an agenda
Prepare a schedule of topics to cover — even if it is unwritten — to help ensure you achieve what you set out to in the allotted time for the interview.

“After a while, you know which clients can get sidetracked,” Sceeles says, adding that an agenda can help you stay on track.

In preparing your agenda, allow time for any news the client might want to share, Sceeles says.

Says David: “You never want the client to feel rushed during the interview. So, be sure to have some leeway just in case the interview lasts a little longer than scheduled.”

3. Ease in gradually
Engage in small talk to make your client comfortable and to show your “human side.” “You may wish to talk about the markets,” David says, “to set the stage for the discussion about their investments.”

You can also gauge the client’s mindset during this initial stage. And the client will get a chance to tell you what might have changed in his or her life since you last met, David adds.

4. Review the portfolio
Go over your client’s portfolio to make sure it is still aligned with his or her goals and objectives. Discuss any portfolio changes that might be necessary based on changes in market conditions.

Also, revisit changes in the client’s investment objectives and risk tolerance resulting from any changes in personal circumstances, David says. “Sometimes, you have to get certain clients to open up,” in order for them to tell you about life changes that can affect their investment goals.

5. Manage expectations
Simply ask your clients if they are satisfied with the way you are managing their investments and the service they are getting, and what you could do better, David says.

“If clients are unhappy with you for any reason,” she says, “don’t make excuses. Acknowledge their concerns and discuss steps you plan to take to address them.”

Recognize that unfulfilled expectations are one of the main reasons why clients leave their advisors.