Transcript:
Overview of Voyant Financial Planning Modeling Software
In this video, we will run through how to make a non-concessional contribution to superannuation.
Introduction to Voyant
Voyant is a financial planning modeling software that allows you to model all aspects of a client’s life, including key events, retirement, goals, and intentions. Voyant produces charts and graphs to provide clients clarity about their financial futures, answering the crucial question of whether they have enough money and guiding them in the right direction with possible outcomes based on the advice you are considering.
Key Advantages of Voyant
Some key advantages of Voyant include:
- Quick and Easy Preparation: It only takes about 10 minutes on average to prepare client scenarios.
- Visual Appeal: The charts and graphs are designed to be visually appealing and easy for clients to understand after a simple explanation from the advisor.
- Fast Updates: Voyant quickly updates when changes are made to client scenarios, making it a client-facing tool that enhances the client experience.
Illustrating a Client Scenario
Let's walk through a simple client scenario with John and Mary, age 57, who want to retire at age 65 and understand how to ensure they have enough money.
Entering Client Data
There are two ways to enter client data into Voyant:
- Via integration with partners like XPLAN and Fin 365, or
- Manually entering the data yourself.
To manually enter data, go to the main screen and click on the Green Plus button. Start by entering Income and move across to capture all relevant information, including trusts and corporate entities.
Once data is entered, you can expand the tabs to verify everything is correct. For this client, their retirement goal is to spend $100,000 per year.
Using the Timeline
Now let’s look at the Timeline. Here, you can visualize the client’s goals and intentions. We have icons representing their ideal retirement date and we can run the model until age 90 or any date you prefer.
Adding Goals to the Timeline
Let's assume this client has two more goals: upgrading their car in two years and funding their daughter's university expenses for the next four years.
To represent these goals:
- New Car: Double-click two years from now (age 59), change the name to New Car, choose the car icon, and click Done.
- University Expenses: Double-click where you’d like to place the event (age 60) to add the University Expenses goal. Change the owner to Sarah, select a graduation icon, and click Done.
Adding Costs to Goals
Next, add costs to these goals:
- For the New Car, click on the Green Plus button and select Goals. Choose a milestone goal, name it New Car, and enter $50,000. Click on Timing to set when this expense will occur, dragging the new car icon to represent that timing.
- For University Expenses, select a Pre-Assessment Goal, name it University Expenses, and enter the amount. This should reflect the total needed each year.
Using Charts and Graphs
Voyant's charts and graphs help visualize everything for you and your client. When you click on Let’s See and select the cash flow chart, you can examine how long the client’s money will last. The thick black line shows all this year’s outgoings, while blue columns indicate that the client can afford their expected expenses. Red columns signal potential shortfalls starting at age 84.
In the assets chart, you can see projected asset value over time. You can hover over specific years to check the figures, and you can also remove the home’s value to focus solely on liquid assets.
Comparing Scenarios
You can easily compare scenarios. After creating a second scenario named With Advice, you can compare it to the Current Position. Clicking to see paired plans reveals whether the advice helps eliminate cash flow shortfalls.
Client Engagement
Voyant is designed to enhance client engagement by clearly illustrating potential outcomes of the advice being provided. When clients see their financial futures represented visually, their engagement with the plan significantly increases.
Making Quick Changes
One of the benefits of Voyant is its speed of updates. For instance, if clients wish to explore the implications of retiring a bit earlier, you can adjust the retirement age to 60, and the changes will reflect instantly without loading delays.
Insights and Future Planning
Additionally, Voyant offers insights that allow you to quickly demonstrate the financial realities of your clients. For example, the Retirement Spending Insight calculates how much they can afford to spend each year without running out of funds.
Clients might discover they can spend more than anticipated or that they need to adjust their expectations based on their current financial reality.