Last Friday morning, I talked to some retired investors about their reaction to recent market events.

As a result, a model letter has been developed which advisors can download and modify for their own use - the letter posted to this site under "Model Letter."

Three consistent themes emerged from my conversations on Friday morning:

1. All the investors I talked had seen the media coverage of the market turmoil.

2. No one had heard from their advisor in the past week.

3. As a result, they were concerned about what was happening to their portfolio and the prospects for the period ahead.

These concerns are not limited to retirees. In markets like these, most clients want to hear from their advisor to understand and be reassured about the impact of recent market events on their finances, to get some sense of the outlook for the period ahead and in some cases to discuss ways to capitalize on the opportunities which have arisen.

The model letter was designed and tested over the weekend to do three things:

1. Remind clients of the core principles which guide the advice they've received.

2. Provide clients with an outlook for the mid term.

3. Do so in a reasonably positive manner, without pretending there aren't issues ahead of us.

By giving advisors a place to begin, I hope this letter makes it easier to reach out at a time when most clients truly do want to hear from them - and when getting in front of clients should be their number one priority.