With today’s news that one of the major UK High Street firms makes some heavy job losses it is interesting to consider carefully the reasons.
Clearly there have been some issues in the past and this has not helped the situation, but they are not alone in this many other high street firms have run into similar problems.
So lets stop there and consider the implications for the IFA market place; firstly what a major result this is going to prove (trust me on this)not only from the point of view that thousands more customers will now be looking for Independent and Impartial Advice, but there is also the issue of the great marketing opportunity it presents to put in front of the noses of customers that seemed happy with what they had from this institution or indeed any other high street firm.
There is some downside news for you though and that relates to the real reason this has been/and will continue to be a problem for any firm offering Financial Planning advice. It’s this, costs and I.T.
Many firms now fully understand that being “belly to belly” as we call it, is expensive and it’s now possible to use a range of media to update/amend and alter without being face to face. This has reduced cost and saves time, my thinking is that this is the real reason some of the large salesforces are being reduced. Sure the quality of the advice has been issue, as documented by the FSA. However the real reason is costs, and advice is expensive.
I am not entirely convinced many IFA firms can cope with the brave new world that is coming, but with luck a fair wind and some long term planning there is no reason why you cannot be working less, but earning more.
Consider carefully the use of the Online Platforms and letting those needy and demanding clients that are not paying enough in fee’s to go, and focusing on those that are profitable will make more sense for you in the long term and of course with IFA profits under pressure from all sides this process makes more sense now than it ever has.
Good news indeed that financial advice on the high street is being reduced, good news indeed but only for those that take advantage of it.
So get those blogs updated, get your twitter and Facebook feeds moving fast, opportunity awaits your attention.