What does a Financial Coach do?
A Financial Coach is an expert trained to look objectively at your financial situation and help you make a plan to reach your goals. It’s like having a personal trainer for your money.
At Claro, a typical coaching session lasts 45 minutes. During your session, your coach will help you clarify your financial goals, explain the options you have for achieving them, and help you create a plan to get there. They can also answer any questions you might have about finance. The format is intentionally flexible so that you can guide the session based on your needs and get the most out of it.
After your call, your coach will provide a summary of the actions and outcomes from the session. These will be available in the app so you can start making progress towards your goals, whether that’s starting a budget, setting up a savings account or starting to invest.
Remember that a Financial Coach is different to a Financial Advisor, as they can’t recommend specific products or services. Instead, they aim to inform and empower you by explaining your options clearly. Hopefully after speaking to a coach, you’ll feel confident in making your own financial decisions.
Are all Financial Coaches certified?
Whereas independent Financial Advisors are regulated by the FCA, Financial Coaches aren’t required to pass any type of certification.
Having said that, Claro is regulated by the FCA, so all of our coaches are held to high professional standards. If our coaches don’t have financial advice or planning certifications, we ask them to complete professional qualifications where appropriate. For example, the CII or LIBF.
This is to make sure they have a thorough understanding of:
- Customer needs by looking at the personal financial lifecycle
- How financial services professionals and organisations identify and provide for these needs
- Key retail financial products (including savings, protection, investments, mortgages and tax wrappers)
All of our coaches have previous experience working in this area. Plus, they must successfully complete a number of coaching sessions before they start running external sessions. Our Head of Financial Planning will review these practice sessions. Coaches also undergo continuing professional development (35 hours per year) and are monitored regularly to make sure their sessions are useful and engaging.
How much does a Financial Coach cost?
Coaching prices vary depending on the Coach and their experience. But when you sign up to Claro’s waiting list (we haven’t launched yet), you could win one of 1,000 free one-to-one coaching sessions.
Lacking knowledge when it comes to your money? Not sure how to approach your goals? Booking a coaching session will help you take a step in the right direction by giving you the support you need.
What to look for when choosing a coach
If you’re new to coaching, here are some things to consider when booking a one-to-one session with a Financial Coach:
- Are they insured?
- Have they ever worked in financial services?
- Are they qualified by a recognised body?
Once you know this, you’re ready to take the first step towards your goals and book a call with one of Claro’s in-house experts.
Tags: Coaching
