"This can go a long way to increasing adviser’s capacity to take on more clients as there will be less time spent travelling to and from meetings."
Advisers said video conferencing has not hindered their ability to gain new clients, with 77% of advisers saying they have gained some during the lockdown period.
However, there is an understanding that the way advice is delivered needs to be different. Advisers said around half (48%) of new clients react differently to video advice. The introduction of the technology has led 56% of advisers to structure their meetings differently as a result.
Sarah Waring, client and proposition director for Quilter’s national advice business, said: “At the beginning of 2020 no one would have anticipated that just a few months later we’d be giving the majority of our advice through video due to a global pandemic. However, the industry has shown, yet again, that it can adapt.
“What’s more as we move into our ‘new normal’ we need to think about what practices from lockdown we want to keep. Encouragingly, advisers and clients have been receptive to video conferencing. This can go a long way to increasing adviser’s capacity to take on more clients as there will be less time spent travelling to and from meetings.
“However, we need to recognise that a relationship created through video advice may be intrinsically different to those created through a face to face meeting. It can be harder to engender trust and it also becomes vitally important to have structured meetings. We have found advisers who create a clear framework for the meeting and communicate it at the beginning help to increase their client’s understanding and trust.
“We are excited to develop our proposition, appreciating that the current situation has been forced on clients and advisers. We would like people to have choice, and flexibility over the way that they engage, whilst creating an efficient process for all parties.”
