Northern Trust has thought very carefully about how to communicate with its wealthy clients. In the U.S., it says it has people within a 45 minute drive of 50 percent of all of the millionaire households.
It advertises on NPR, CNBC, the Wall Street Journal, and local newspapers.
Now it might start “friending” people on Facebook.
“We had a client earlier this year who asked if we could be a friend to their child on (her) Facebook page because the child is a beneficiary of a trust that we manage and they said what better way to get to know my child when they’re awfully remote than to do this through the Facebook page?” said Lee Woolley, President of Northern Trust Bank’s Personal Financial Services division in Boston.
The family said Facebook would be a great way to communicate with the next generation of heirs before they inherit the family fortune.
Of course the 20 year-old daughter would have to accept the invitation for it all to work out.
Woolley told the Reuters Global Wealth Management Summit his firm had said “no” in the near term, but was interested.
“We have clients spread out all over the United States of America, including Hawaii . . . and then a couple around the world as well, so yeah, the idea of using social networking sites beyond just e-mail communication is a really intriguing idea,” he said.
Of course it took the 120 year-old company more than 100 years to change its stationery.
“That was scandalous at the time,” Woolley said.
Trackback
2 comments so far
Dear Writer,
- Posted by krishnamurthi ramachandranExcellent as well as a latest informative article from you.
Because of joint family dis integration in many Asian countries, and prevailing nuclear families in America and Western countries wants to adopt new ,vibrant and most reliable safety of their hereditary savings ,as well as current investments to their legal heirs through a most upcoming, fast growing social website,that is Face Book for their kids and for future younger generations.
This is a welcome move and expect to reach more safer results in future years.
This is a innovative and most likely practicable one.
I’m 20 and a student so I don’t really fall under the “young pro’s” definition. However, I think I’ll be driving instead of flying for thanks giving! It just costs too much to fly anymore!
- Posted by mike