Delivering the best of both worlds - why financial advice needs both digital and human interaction
In their latest Global wealth report, Ernst & Young, report that a mixture of advisor and digital interactions is preferred by the majority of the ultra-wealthy and by almost half of clients interested in moving between providers.
Appetite for digital-led engagement (robo-advice) declines from 37% of mass affluent clients to just 6% among the ultra-wealthy, and baby boomers are twice as likely as millennials to prefer advisor-led relationships.
The importance of offering “the best of both worlds” is underlined by the way that specific interactions can trigger a change in preferences. For example, 76% of clients who generally favour hybrid interactions would prefer to receive customised financial advice directly from their adviser, whether via phone, video or face-to-face — more than three times as many as those who would opt for digital engagement.
Appetite for face-to-face engagement also continues to exceed the desire for digital interactions when clients receive financial advice on key life events, such as reaching retirement or making a career change, that call for financial tailoring around personal circumstances.
However, a majority of clients not only think technology has made investing cheaper and more efficient (69%), but also that it has improved their investment decision-making (57%).
Focusing uniquely on advisor-led or digital-led models risks overlooking a lucrative middle ground. It’s the hybrid model that’s most popular.
The combination of digital technologies and the human adviser trumps robo-advice and is far more efficient than the traditional model of client visits and paper mountains.
At moneyinfo, we believe that technology should support the advice process rather than dominate it and we are helping more than 150 firms take full advantage of a digital service channel to complement their advice service.