THE GOAL

With seven advisors, a network of affiliated independent advisors and strategic partners, and a growing book of business, MRK Financial Solutions is a successful and well-established financial planning firm. For over three decades, the firm had relied heavily on analog processes, but recognized that a more modern experience was in order to keep its large, loyal client base engaged.

Today, clients are becoming more aware of technological advances and sophisticated financial modeling options. Yet they want a simple understanding of their financial situation as well as a convenient way to share and receive data.

MRK Financial’s affiliation with Avantax Wealth Management^SM* gave the firm access to modern technology that enables it to better serve clients by using the latest financial planning tools from eMoney.

“eMoney’s going to be the tool that allows me to sit down with clients and say, ‘Here’s a snapshot of your entire portfolio allocation and the roadmap to pursuing your goals for the future.’” – Alex Mayrand

THE SOLUTION

While the eMoney platform offers a powerful suite of financial tools and capabilities, the MRK team has kicked off introducing clients to the digital tool by using the Vault for simple document sharing.

“We’ve used the Vault’s capabilities of being able to share information electronically,” says Mayrand. “we’ve been able to, in some cases, link other assets so we see everything. The team also uses eMoney to help clients review their bank transactions for budgeting purposes and to run financial scenarios. Mayrand has used these scenarios to show a client how changes in behavior can quickly influence the outcome of a financial plan.

eMoney allows advisors at MRK Financial to show clients their plans’ probability of success, as well as how spending habits impact their progress toward important goals.

Mayrand is also excited about eMoney’s integration options. When a client recently ordered six months of bank statements to review spending history, Mayrand tested eMoney’s integration capabilities using his own bank records. “So, I did it with my accounts because I have the same bank as he does, and all of the information was right there!”

Beyond bank account information, eMoney integrations give Mayrand everything electronically at his fingertips. “Most of the time eMoney is used as a map. We say, ‘Here are the six variables that we deem most important when it comes to retirement, and here’s your probability of success.’ It’s a simple way to talk about goals with everything being pulled in.”

“Some of our advisors can quickly create a one-page report in eMoney that shows three different scenarios, with the probability of success for each. Our more advanced users take all the information available to them and make adjustments in real-time based on feedback in client meetings.” – Alex Mayrand

THE RESULT

The more he learns about what eMoney offers, the more possibilities Mayrand sees. “Having everything electronically linked excites me,” he says. “Accessing all that information and then being able to build out new tools, new concepts, with all of that new information, I think that’s powerful.”