While technology is both ubiquitous and vital to running your advisory practice, your clients’ views on that technology—what they want and don’t want from it—could be very surprising to you.

That’s the conclusion of CEG Insights’ latest research into high-net-worth investors’ opinions about fin tech and related issues. The study of more than 1200 affluent investors found that advisors may be using and positioning their technology in ways that could actually hurt their growth instead of helping it.

E-communication

Tech is often seen as a great tool for reaching out to clients. But CEG Insights found that nearly nine out of 10 clients (88.4%) don't want social media posts from their advisors. What’s more, 85.2% say the same about blogs and 51.5% don't want advisors to check in via text message.

That doesn’t mean clients don’t want tech-enabled access to you. But they mainly want tech that allows them to access you on their terms and timetables. For example, 95.9% of your clients expect to be able to reach their advisor digitally through some kind of portal or website.

The upshot: Before you send out another social media post, audit your accessibility. Can clients reach you whenever they want via technology? If so, how quickly? If the answers are “no” and “not that quick,” that's a gap to close first.

Tech and asset consolidation

On average, 55.7% of client assets are held away from their primary advisor. Among clients with 10 million to $25 million in investable assets, 43.5% say they would consolidate more assets with their primary advisor if that advisor’s digital capabilities meet their expectations.

So what do these clients want?

The number one driver is personalized portfolio simulations. 23.2% of clients cite that as a reason that they'd move more assets to their advisor.
The second is access to alternatives, at 19.5%.
The third is transparent performance bench marking versus peers, at 17.4%.

In short, clients will likely consolidate when they can see their own situation clearly and compare their own results accurately. And almost none of these items require a budget conversation within your firm around technology. They require a decision about how you run your practice.

The use of AI

AI is, of course, the hot topic of our time. We’re seeing a real disconnect between advisors and clients on the use of AI. For example: 74% of advisors report genuine enthusiasm about AI, but only 15% of their clients share that enthusiasm. More critically, 20% of the clients say a generic AI output will reduce their trust in their advisor.

But you ask clients specifically what type of AI usage would most enhance their perception of their advisor, 28.2% cite identifying hidden risks or blind spots in their portfolio using AI. Among clients with $10 to $25 million of assets, 28.6% specifically value AI that benchmarks their fees and performance against their peers.

The upshot: Advisors need to focus on AI that shows them to be more attentive, useful and thorough.

Being proactive about cyber security

More than 20% of all affluent investors cite cyber security as the most important technology factor when they're selecting a new advisor. And more than 34% of clients with $10 to $25 million say they are extremely concerned about cybersecurity.

So silence on cyber security reads as indifference, not confidence. Be proactive and upfront with clients about your cyber security initiatives and what you’re doing to keep your system safe. This is not an issue you want to avoid until a client brings it up.

Given these findings, here are a few action steps to consider taking:

Stop before you add. Identify outbound communication activity that your clients are telling you that they don't want and stop them.
Run one simulation this week. Look at your top 10 clients and identify any decisions they might face in the next 12 months that you could actually model out the impact of that decision on their finances.