Ashish Chadha, one of northern India's most successful advisors, and one who effortlessly straddles all customer segments from retail to super HNIs, has a very simple answer to the big question of how to effectively pitch retail debt funds to investors. His response - never focus on pitching the product, because clients don't buy products, they buy us! If you are doing the right things for your clients and have won their trust, clients will go with your recommendations - period. Ashish shares his practical and very wise insights on four key product segments within retail debt funds which he actively recommends to his clients.

Liquid funds : use access as a potent weapon, but don't overcommit the facility!

I am a firm believer that liquid funds are for EVERYONE - not just for HNIs. The SMS and ATM facilities are good primarily for giving comfort to the client about ready access to the money. A word of caution though - don't overcommit the facility, as all the in and out transactions become your babies! Its best to pitch SMS redemption and ATM withdrawal as emergency solutions rather than actual everyday use. Its best to use this as a potent weapon, for larger amounts with a longer redemption. Liquid funds are a must - we must aggressively go out and pitch them - they add value all around.

Simple answer to the FMP vs FD debate

My take on this whole debate on whether FMPs are better than FDs and how do you pitch one against the other is simple : clients buy us, not our products. FMPs are anyday better than FDs - for all investors who are in the 20% and 30% tax bracket. Below that, it becomes product specific - you need to evaluate and decide.

Clients have liquidity concerns, time concerns. Respect their maturity time period and advice accordingly. Over time, the trust shifts into the advisor completely. Don't misuse the trust - we all rock then !

The key to pitching short term funds : 2 satisfactory redemptions !

We and our clients are very comfortable with accrual based products like short term debt funds. We think they are relevant to all categories of clients. As far as dealing with client concerns on these products is concerned, well, our old clients trust us completely, so we rarely have to get into detailed product specific Q&A. They don't ask questions outside of ease of redemption and indicating time lines to redemption. New clients who come through referrals are also fairly easy to work with - after the first two redemptions are satisfactory, they switch off too !

MIP are good for first time investors or for rebalancing

We suggest MIPs to first time investors who want only marginal equity exposure. We also find MIPs useful for periodic rebalancing of portfolios. Having said that, I am of the view that this is a great time to buy equity rather than hybrids !

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