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Can You Teach Your Clients By Using Generative AI?

Generative AI is not an easy button for educational materials, but it is a time-saver.

Illustration of AI depicted by a robot in thought with red and green circuit wires extending from its head, representing the robot's cognitive process

Educational resources are key for helping advisors market to new clients and engage existing ones. However, developing these resources does come at the cost of advisors’ most precious resource: time.

Generative artificial intelligence can be a helpful tool for streamlining the production of these resources—and fortunately, our recent research finds that investors are comfortable with this use of gen AI and expect it to improve their relationship with their advisor. This means advisors can leverage generative AI to save time developing educational materials, allowing them to spend more time face to face with clients.

It makes sense that people think this is a good use of generative AI in financial advising. Many investors are hungry for financial education, and summarizing is an activity that generative AI excels in. In fact, about half of Americans are already turning to generative AI to get insight on their personal finances. However, this means that people must vet the AI’s responses themselves, even when they don’t have the expertise. So, educational materials developed by a trusted expert leveraging the power of generative AI are a no-brainer.

Here are a few tips for how advisors can make the most of gen-AI assistance with educational materials.

3 Tips for Using AI to Write Educational Materials for Clients

First and foremost, remember that gen AI needs guidance.

  • It needs explicit instructions. Without these, gen AI tends to expound in different directions, resulting in unwieldy outputs. It also may hallucinate—meaning, it may make things up.
  • It needs to understand you and your client base. It doesn’t inherently know what your needs look like. So, you want to ensure the content resonates with your clients with regards to the voice that it uses (it should sound like you), and to what your clients may need or want to know based on individual factors like their wealth, the niche you serve, and so on.

So, let’s talk about how to get generative AI to make good educational resources for you and your clients. For this example, let’s say you’re explaining the impact of a Federal Reserve interest-rate cut.

  • Give the AI boundaries. Generative AI tends toward the verbose, but your clients are likely looking for quick and easy-to-understand information about a topic. So, set limits. In the prompt below, I have given the AI a length limit, asking it to stick to two paragraphs. I have also given it conceptual boundaries: Instead of simply asking it to explain the Federal Reserve’s interest rate, I’ve specified it should explain a cut to the interest rate and what it means for investors. Such boundaries will help AI stick to the information and length that you want.

AI-Assisted Educational Materials for Advisors 1

The use first asks the generative AI, "In two paragraphs, explain what a Fed interest rate cut is and what it means for investors." The AI's output says, "A Fed interest rate cut refers to a decision made by the Federal Reserve, the central bank of the United States, to lower the federal funds rate, which is the interest rate at which banks lend to each other overnight. This adjustment is typically made in response to economic conditions, such as sluggish growth or rising unemployment, and aims to stimulate the economy by making borrowing cheaper. When the Fed cuts rates, it encourages consumer spending and business investment, as lower interest rates reduce the cost of loans for mortgages, credit cards, and corporate financing. "For investors, a Fed interest rate cut can have significant implications. Lower interest rates often lead to increased liquidity in the markets, driving up stock prices as investors seek higher returns in equities compared to lower-yielding fixed-income securities. Sectors such as real estate and utilities may benefit, as their dividends become more attractive in a low-rate environment. Conversely, while fixed-income investments like bonds may initially decline in yield, they can also see price appreciation in the secondary market. Overall, a rate cut can signal a more favorable environment for risk-taking and growth-oriented investments, influencing asset allocation strategies across portfolios."
  • Give the AI context. One of gen AI’s strengths is to adjust the tone of its output based on the context it is given. In the following prompt, I’ve given further direction by telling the AI to imagine it is an agent (a financial advisor) completing a particular task (write educational materials) for a given audience (clients). I’ve also asked it to provide a call to action at the end so clients will know to reach out about questions they may have on the topic. You can always get more specific with your agent, task, and audience based on your practice and needs.

AI-Assisted Educational Materials for Advisors 2

The user directs the generative AI, "You are a financial advisor writing educational materials for your clients. In two paragraphs, explain what a Fed interest rate is to your clients and what it means for them. End by giving them a few questions to ask themselves about whether they need to meet with you in light of what they've learned." The generative AI responds, "The Federal Reserve (often referred to as the Fed) is the central bank of the United States, and one of its primary functions is to manage monetary policy, which includes setting the federal funds rate. This rate is the interest rate at which banks lend money to each other overnight and serves as a benchmark for various interest rates across the economy, including those for mortgages, car loans, and credit cards. When the Fed raises the interest rate, borrowing becomes more expensive, which can slow down spending and investment, helping to control inflation. Conversely, when the Fed lowers the rate, borrowing becomes cheaper, encouraging spending and investment to stimulate economic growth. "For you as a consumer, changes in the Fed interest rate can directly impact your financial decisions. Higher rates may mean higher monthly payments for loans and credit products, while lower rates can provide an opportunity for refinancing existing debts at more favorable terms. It’s important to stay informed about these changes as they can affect your budgeting, savings, and investment strategies. Consider asking yourself: Are my current debts affected by interest rate changes? Should I reassess my savings strategy in light of potential interest rate hikes? Would now be a good time to explore refinancing options for my mortgage or other loans? If you're unsure about your financial plan in this context, it might be beneficial to schedule a meeting with me.
  • Edit the AI output. There are many reasons to not just copy what the AI gives you and send it out to your clients. For one, you should always check the output of AI because it sometimes hallucinates, and you don’t want to give your clients false information. But further, though the AI is all right at sounding like a person, it’s probably very bad at sounding like you. You should edit the AI to incorporate your own voice—that is, how would you say it in your own words? There may also be additional information you want your clients to know or explanations you prefer from experience. Given the personal nature of this last step, the rest is left as an exercise to the reader.

Creating materials with generative AI is an iterative process and not as simple as asking it a question and copying its output. Still, using it can reduce the time needed to produce valuable materials for your clients.

The author or authors do not own shares in any securities mentioned in this article. Find out about Morningstar’s editorial policies.

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