What clients want hasn’t changed – just how they want it delivered

Everything is changing in the Wealth Management industry.

Whether due to geopolitical instability, evolving client expectations, technological advances, or more, WM firms and private banks are forced to navigate a malleable, ever-shifting market landscape.

That being said, the old adage of ‘the more things change, the more they stay the same’ comes to mind when we actually take a step back to look at the developments.

It’s true that 2024 is another year of breakneck change. Yet, at its heart, the fundamentals of good relationship management remain unaltered – ensuring frequent, convenient, high-quality client-adviser interactions.

Client engagement in today’s context

While client engagement remains the pillar of good practice in the industry, how we approach it is evolving.

Much of this has to do with the clients themselves, whose expectations of what constitutes good service have changed. Take Deloitte’s findings for example, which claim that, although  investment performance remains a deciding factor, personalisation and timely interactions are essential for customer satisfaction.

The Unblu-Compeer report, which focuses on the UK market, adds a new layer of insight to this, claiming that even traditional clients are beginning to embrace digital channels. The report found that 51% of HNWIs want self-service tools and digital capabilities to receive advice and for portfolio management. Not offering these capabilities can have detrimental effects, as can be seen in the Canadian and US markets, where 77% of relationship managers reported losing out on business because they didn’t have the correct tools.

Roadblocks to improving client engagement

Stating that clients want easier and more varied access to their advisers is all well and good, but delivering on these expectations remains a challenge for firms and private banks.

Ensuring communications compliance

Take the issue of compliance, which should never be far from any adviser’s mind. After all, since 2021, the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) have issued fines in excess of $2.75 billion to financial services companies – specifically because of errors in communication recording.

Tools like Unblu’s Secure Messenger offer clients a comfortable messaging experience that mimics how they interact in everyday life. What’s more, Secure Messenger solves the issue of communications regulatory compliance as it is built into a single, unified, and wholly secure platform.

The rise of generative AI

Yet last year’s developments in generative AI threw another spanner into the works in terms of data privacy and compliance.

Generative AI isn’t just a fad – it is a powerful asset that can act as an adviser sidekick to speed up messenger interactions with quick, accurate, and insightful support. What’s more, 45% of WM professionals plan to adopt it in the near future, according to Forrester.

The key is to adopt it in a safe, strategically sound manner, avoiding unauthorised organisational use, otherwise known as ‘shadow AI’, which can put the firm or bank at serious risk. This technology is only going to become more widespread in the coming year, so taking steps to implement it now is essential.

Productivity and engagement

The personal service that humans can offer will always trump technology in terms of trust, reassurance and overall client satisfaction. Yet relationship managers and advisers are finding it difficult to properly engage with clients given the sheer volume of administrative tasks that are part and parcel of their work. This is even hampering their ability to provide advice and deliver a quality service.

Once again, improved technological capabilities are necessary to reduce back-office tasks and increase the time that advisers have to interact with clients. Generative AI can help here, taking care of client onboarding, processing routine transactions, document verification, KYC checks, and more.

Likewise, platforms specialised in digital interaction, such as Unblu Spark, can help advisers to increase client collaboration while minimising non-core activities. The versatile mix of AI-enhanced secure messaging, video & voice, and visual collaboration, means that relationship managers or investment professionals have more freedom to exchange ideas, information, and documents – without sacrificing client authentication, data security, or regulatory compliance.

Our customers report that this can lead to a 25% increase in front office productivity and a 5–10% boost in the time that RMs spend with clients.

Put your clients at the core

There is no doubt that an increase in quality client engagement and collaboration is a marker of success in wealth management contexts. More meetings and convenient spaces for client interactions directly leads to increased AUM growth and client loyalty.

This year is proving volatile, particularly due to increasing tensions and global conflicts. As a result, organisations should take active steps to ensure that they are available to engage with their clients and offer advice or reassurance as needed.

Danny Baggs Senior Director of Account-Based Marketing, Unblu

If you’re interested in a more in-depth overview of today’s WM context, we have put together all of our findings for 2024 on this website.