Senior Estate & Succession Practitioner Eugene Soo has been working with PreceptsGroup for 14 years. He explains his philosophy to achieve success in estate planning.
1. What got you started on estate planning?
I started estate planning in the early days, when I was a financial consultant. One day, I met a group of clients who are retiring and they asked me a lot of questions about wealth distribution. I was very new to this, and I saw the need, how I needed to help them. More than 10 years ago, the awareness of estate planning was not very well developed. I was constantly searching for support and knowledge to be able to help them in this area.
2. What options were you exploring when you were searching for a company to partner with?
I was searching for a platform that could really help me from end to end. I started with one of the platforms that specialises in Will writing services. But after a couple of months, I realised I needed more help, particularly in the area of Trust planning. That was when I started to explore further and came to know PreceptsGroup, which was formerly known as Rockwills.
3. How did you learn about PreceptsGroup?
I first chanced upon the firm when I wanted to help a client set up a Trust. I went around comparing Trust companies, of course discreetly, and find out more about their services. I would say PreceptsGroup was the most accessible- both in terms of products and also customer service– because they have a team of specialists who will help the client onboard in a seamless process.
4. Why did you choose to onboard with PreceptsGroup?
From the many client approaches and review, I would sometimes ask them why they decided to proceed. The common reason I found was that they heard of the company and they also found it reliable when it comes to estate succession matters. Before the Covid-19 pandemic started, PreceptsGroup had a Family Day, where I invited my Trust clients and their families to come together to interact with the management of the company. It was an annual affair that I always looked forward to because it added credibility to the relationship that Trust clients had with the company. I recall a client who was in the compliance team of a local bank and a high flyer. She wanted to see the internal governance of PreceptsGroup. I sent her a deck of materials I got from the team and in there were the processes, governance, and layers of checks and balances. The client was very pleased to see the internal structure and systems that have been put in place. She even referred one of her close friends to me.
5. How many years have you been working with PreceptsGroup and how has it supported you?
Wow, 14 years. Time really flies. It seems like just yesterday. Throughout the years, I always feel supported. You see, each case is unique and there are new things to learn every day. I will always go back to the team at PreceptsGroup for help. I recall I had the opportunity to meet with a client who owns a public listed company. He wanted to set up a PTC (private trust company) and his assets were worth around S$500 million. Mr Lee Chiwi, the PreceptsGroup chief executive officer himself, offered to accompany me for my meeting and also did the presentation. I sat there feeling assured.
6. We hear that people say PreceptsGroup is expensive. Is it true?
Sadly, it is true. PreceptsGroup is expensive. But wait a minute, I would like to draw a comparison. Is a McDonald’s soft serve ice cream priced at S$1.00 more expensive or is a Cornetto priced at S$2.20? I would think that the Cornetto is much cheaper considering the chocolate-coated peanuts, the toppings and strawberry flakes that come along with the ice cream. It is the same with PreceptsGroup. It is only expensive if we sell ourselves short. Make use of all the training provided by PreceptsGroup and extend it to your clients in the appointment. If you can show enough value to your client, your clients will find your services cheap!
7. Some people prefer to refer their clients to a 3rd party instead of hand-holding the clients themselves. What do you think?
A financial consultant (FC) approached me recently. The FC’s client wanted to write a Will and the FC referred the client to another platform, not knowing exactly what the platform provided, apart from the fact that they do Will writing. The FC learnt that the firm had sold the client a 5-pay limited endowment plan saying that holding too much cash would freeze the estate upon a demise. Unfortunately, the free-look period was over and there wasn’t any way to do damage control. The FC told me that she should have done it on her own and learnt estate planning many, many years back. I always teach this: Your client is also your competitor’s prospect. Hand-holding is not a choice. It is a basic principle that all FCs should embark upon.
8. Some people do not believe in paying to partner with a company, what do you think of that?
I am a firm believer of paying for support, help, know-how and also progression. Over the years, this formula has helped me to seek out some of the most valuable help that enabled me to close very tough cases. My ROI has exceeded just the fees that I pay for this support. At the end of the day, It’s the skills that I carry with me for life that matters.
This article was first published in our newsletter, The Custodian Issue 24. Click here to access our latest newsletter.
