Members of the millennial generation — those born between the early 1980s and the early 2000s — have savings goals that are different from those of older generations. While most middle-aged clients are saving for retirement, younger people are often trying to save money for the purchase of a home, says Crystal Wong, senior regional manager with TD Wealth Financial Planning in Victoria.

“We find that a lot of individuals within that age range are also still paying off student loans,” Wong adds. “And in many cases, they have even started a family.”

Approaching this generation sooner rather than later to help them prioritize their life goals and develop a financial plan is crucial.

Here are three tips for working with millennial clients:

1. Promote budgeting
The biggest challenge facing millennials, Wong says, is to learn the difference between wants and needs. They are bombarded, through TV and social-media channels, with advertisements urging them to spend their money. As a result, they face difficult spending decisions on a daily basis.

“We encourage them to manage their spending,” Wong says, “to hit their savings targets for both short-term and long-term goals.”

Encourage your millennial clients to write down all of their expenses, so they can understand how they’re spending money on a monthly basis. Budgeting is like dieting, Wong says: clients can still reward themselves, but in moderation.

2. Emphasize the long game
Millennials feel less confident about the economy’s health than do older investors, according to TD Bank Group’s 2014 Investor Insights Index. And only 40% of millennials say they expect to see their investments grow over the next 12 months.

You can create an opportunity to build confidence among your clients by speaking with them about fluctuations in the market in the context of long-term performance. For example, advisors with TD Wealth use an andex chart — a long-term overview of financial history — to show changes in the economy over the past 70-80 years.

“It’s more about time in the market,” Wong says. “It’s not about timing the market.”

3. Teach your clients about investment products
Millennial clients often struggle to understand the various types of investments that are available. But the good news is that almost two-thirds of millennials are looking for saving and investment advice from a financial advisor, according to TD’s Investor Insights Index.

“When [clients] are new to investing,” Wong says, “that’s the prime opportunity for us to give them a solid understanding of what investing really is.”

Create an investor profile for each client to determine risk, while also educating clients on products and investment solutions that will create a balanced, diversified portfolio.