The difference between eastern and western provinces in the share of clients actively looking to change advisors is staggering
Are your clients loyal to you or are they among the sizeable cohort who say they are actively seeking to make some changes to their wealth management providers?
That might just depend on where in Canada you are according to new stats from EY, which shows a clear divide between respondents in the eastern provinces and those in the west.
The big four services firm’s 2023 EY Global Wealth Research Report found that 45% of Canadians are actively looking to add, switch or move providers in the next three years, notable as it is almost double the 24% that said this in a previous report two years ago.
But when the data is broken down it reveals that this intention varies widely from 30% in western provinces to 60% on the east coast. Canadians overall are twice as likely to be thinking of switching than their global counterparts.
The willingness to switch wealth managers and advisors and current economic uncertainty means the Canadian investment landscape is shifting according to EY Canada wealth and asset management leader David Hurd, but he says it’s not necessarily a bad thing.
“Wealth managers have a unique opportunity to embrace this shift by demonstrating to clients the value they can deliver while navigating this complexity,” he explained.
How to attract and retain clients
For advisors and other wealth professionals to ensure that they are where clients are switching to, not from, there are some key takeaways from the EY report.
Firstly, investment performance (48%) and fees (40%) are the leading deciding factors for choosing a wealth and asset manager, but brand reputation (31%), range of product (30%), and personal referrals (19%) carry significant weight – more so than for global peers.
Secondly, digital offerings matter, despite only 16% of respondents citing it as a top driver of wealth manager selection.
However, four in ten respondents said that they are willing to increase or maintain their use of digital service providers — specifically FinTechs and digital asset offerings. Working with multiple providers is now an expectation among a large section of Canadian investors.
Finally, ensuring that virtual advisor interactions such as video chat or email are optimized. That’s because 40% of poll participants said this is their preferred advice channel, up from just 12% in 2021.
"Canadian investors want personalized experiences that provide unwavering support throughout their wealth management journey," said Hermine Ferron-Brandin, associate partner, business transformation. "Given the demand for digital services, wealth managers should aim to foster a broad client experience that blends virtual and in-person touchpoints through innovative collaboration tools and self-service capabilities."
