We are concluding almost three months of lockdown resulting from the Covid-19 pandemic.
In these unprecedented times, I make no apologies for returning to the important opportunities facing financial advice and financial advisers.
The changes to ways of doing business are greater and more profound than any change in my lifetimeIn an earlier article, I highlighted the fundamental behavioural changes taking place in our society, and the equally fundamental impact they will have on all our lives.
Certainly, the changes to ways of doing business are greater and more profound than any change in my lifetime.
The astonishing increase in the use of remote communications and, in particular, virtual meetings, for social and business purposes, has happened almost overnight.
Indeed, the behavioural changes we are witnessing have been so dramatic that we have seen more change in the use of remote technology in the past three months than we might otherwise have seen over the next 30 years.
Once this pandemic has passed, as it will, if you think things will return to the ‘old normal’ you are, frankly, living in cloud cuckoo land.
We have already entered a new normal, where the idea of driving dozens or even hundreds of miles for meetings with clients, or them regularly driving to see you in your office, will become the exception, rather than the rule.
Hard evidence that this is already happening comes from the many financial advisers now dealing with clients remotely, whether it is conducting reviews, doing new business or receiving referrals to potential new clients.
What is perhaps even more remarkable is the number of advisers and clients finding that advising remotely is as effective, and in some cases more effective, than the traditional advice process.
There is also clear evidence emerging that, after a dip at the beginning of April, the number of new clients being acquired, is now almost back to pre-lockdown levels.
We cannot ignore the dangers, especially for the economy at large, but it is clear to me that the opportunities for financial advisers have never been greater than they will be post Covid-19.
The signs are there for all to see: use remote technology to communicate with your clients now and you will be ready to maximise the opportunities ahead.
Ken Davy is chairman of SimplyBiz Group
