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DirectAdvice Survey Summary
DirectAdvice commissioned a national survey of the nation's top banks, insurance
companies and brokerage firms. The purpose of the survey was to identify the current dominant
trends with which these institutions were dealing in marketing financial services and products
to their retail customers.
Senior financial executives responding to our survey cited the erosion of their traditional
customer base as their major challenge. In addition, they reported a marked increase in
competition from both traditional and non-traditional sources such as Internet portals, and
from the emergence of a growing array of attractive Web-based financial services.
To stem the growing tide of assets lost to these powerful new factors, the financial executives
interviewed plan to turn to online planning and advice as well as other Internet based efinance
solutions as the core element in their strategy to attract and retain more clients, including
those with more modest levels of income and assets.
For the survey, national research firm McBain Associates conducted interviews with 91 senior
executives from among the top 100 of each category: banks, brokerage firms, insurance companies
and other financial institutions nationwide. The survey results were released in May 2001.
Some of the survey's key findings:
The institutions are turning to a variety of efinance services like financial planning and advice
to become the foundation of their new marketing and products strategies.
- Fully 90% of the respondents see Internet-based financial services as important to their
organizations' current and future marketing strategies
- Of the specific Internet-based financial services the firms are planning to offer in the
future, financial planning and advice topped the list (31%)
Customers in the emerging wealth category ($50,000 - $500,000) both need and value financial
planning and advice services.
- 98% agree that emerging wealth customers have a greater need for planning and advice than
ever before.
- 93% agree that compared to five years ago, these customers are more likely to ask for
financial planning and advice as part of the services they want from retail financial services
organizations.
Emerging wealth customers are not strongly wed to any particular provider of financial planning
and advice services. Non-traditional providers are regaining market share.
- Four fifths (80%) view emerging wealth customers as much less loyal to
traditional retail financial advice organizations than they were five years
ago.
- 82% agree that these customers are confused about where to turn for
financial planning and advice.
- 69% of the executives agree that it is becoming more difficult to add
perceivable value and to differentiate the services they provide to their
retail customers.
- A substantial majority (71%) says that the accounts customers have today with various
financial services organizations tend to be transaction-based rather than relationship-based.
- A strong majority (77%) agrees that competition is increasing from Internet portals and
other organizations outside the realm of traditional financial services.
Financial executives believe that planning and advice services enable them to build broader and
deeper customer relationships, strengthen customer loyalty, compete more effectively and
collect detailed customer profile data to strengthen their product marketing and development.
- 94% agree that financial planning and advice will be an important part of
their product offerings in the future.
- 100% agree that financial planning and advice creates opportunities for
communication, and strengthens customer loyalty and relationships.
- 98% agree that financial planning and advice allows financial service firms
to compete more effectively.
- 97% consider financial planning and advice services an important marketing
and relationship-building tool that can help retail financial service
organizations attract new customers and their assets.
If you would like to view the entire survey, please click here.
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