Donna Bristow from Broadridge Financial Solutions tells WP how advisors should be upping their tech game
Every advisor can see how technology is shaking up the industry. Clients of all ages are using tech to handle various aspects of their business and daily lives, and more and more firms are either investing in technology or launching new digital platforms to cater to the shifting demand. But what technology solutions should advisors be using in an attempt to up their game?
“The key technologies that are important for an advisor to embrace are those with the digital capability to enable better, more intuitive communications between them and their clients,” says Donna Bristow, Managing Director, North American Wealth, Broadridge Financial Solutions. “The use of technology in everyone’s world is far more prominent, so the ability for an advisor to be able to provide their information, advice and knowledge through digital channels is very important.”
Collaboration-type tools are also becoming increasingly popular among advisors. They allow clients to access the same information or data as the advisor, whether it’s analytics, market trends or product information.
“We’re also seeing advisors begin to leverage tools with cognitive capabilities,” Bristow says. “The tools use robotics or artificial intelligence to create information the advisor can use to have those intuitive conversations with their clients based on market information, trends or even a client’s past trading history.”
Bristow has also seen robo-advisor type solutions help advisors provide a higher level of service, particularly to lower valued accounts. “Advisors are using tech to manage more accounts more effectively; there are tasks that advisors no longer need to do themselves,” Bristow says. “Embracing these tools can help advisors grow their book and achieve a higher level of client engagement and satisfaction.”
While forward-thinking advisors are already benefitting from incorporating tech solutions into their practices, the exact opposite could be true for those reluctant to embrace new technology.
“It is such a competitive marketplace, and clients of those advisors may turn to other firms who are using technology to improve the customer experience,” Bristow says. “Not offering digital capabilities could result in an advisor not being able to keep up with their client’s needs and it will also restrict their ability to attract the next generation of clients.”
“If you want to continue to grow and support your client base, you are going to need to leverage the technology that every client has embedded into their daily lives. If not, you risk losing clients.”
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