U.S. Full Service Investor Satisfaction Study

Publish Date: March 27, 2018   |  Press Release Date: March 29, 2018  |  Sample Size: 4,608

The wealth management industry today is experiencing unprecedented disruption, with new technology, competitors, service models, and evolving investor preferences and expectations creating significant opportunities and risks for established players. With digital advice platforms offering low-cost asset allocation and rebalancing services, and asset flows continuing to shift from active to low-cost passive vehicles, it’s more critical than ever for full-service wealth managers to justify premium pricing by clearly defining and delivering on a value proposition that is holistic and grounded in helping investors set and achieve their own unique financial goals.

To that end, the J.D. Power 2018 Full Service Investor Satisfaction Study^SM can help firms answer key questions like: 

• What are the most critical experiences financial advisors (FAs) must be delivering their clients in order to ensure their value is recognized in an environment where investors increasingly have more, lower-cost options available to them?
• How well are your firm’s FAs delivering on key areas of customer satisfaction relative to your competitors?
• Are there gaps in any part of your customer journey that result in attrition, lower wallet share, or reduced advocacy? If so, what are they and how can you close them?
• How can you build greater firm loyalty directly with your clients in order to mitigate the risk of their leaving when their current FA retires, goes independent, or joins a competitor firm?
• How should firms and FAs be using digital and mobile technologies to enhance client communications to optimize the customer experience (CX), and how well are your FAs performing relative to competitors?
• What are top-providing providers from your industry and other industries doing that can inform your CX strategy?
• How do key market segments (e.g., high net worth, Millennials, and women) differ from each other in terms of key expectations and needs?
• How effectively is your firm positioning itself for the great wealth transfer, and what actions should your FAs be taking now to maximize retention of intergenerational wealth?
• Which segment(s) of the market represent the greatest financial opportunity for your firm; which segments have needs and preferences best aligned with your capabilities and differentiators?

The study provides a broad understanding of how full-service investment firms can improve investor satisfaction, loyalty, retention, and advocacy across nine key factors, including two new factors in 2018 that recognize the increasing role that the digital experience plays for investors. 

• Financial Advisor
• Investment Performance
• Account Information
• Product Offerings
• Commissions and Fees
• Website
• Problem Resolution
• Information Resources (New)
• Interaction (excluding financial advisor) (New)

Study deliverables include:

• Customized executive presentation and in-person discussion that includes data-driven, actionable recommendations for achieving strategic goals
• Performance scorecards benchmarking firm performance the industry in across key drivers of satisfaction, as well as loyalty and advocacy metrics
• Analyst Briefing highlighting key trends and insights across the industry
• Net Promoter Score®—This study includes Bain Certified NPS by J.D. Power; several NPS questions will be added to the respondent files and available on VoX and via a word cloud and rank chart
• Competitive survey data and industry reports including information on customer segments
• Data and analytical tools for performance insights and competitive peer comparisons
• Access to VoX 3.0—This study is available on the interactive interface, VoX 3.0

Other 2018 Wealth and Lending Product Suite offerings* include:

• New report on Self-Directed Investors “Seeking Guidance”: Among the fastest-growing segments of investors are those who are neither DIY nor working with a traditional dedicated financial advisor, but rather access advice and guidance from a combination of a call center based rep as well as self-service tools from their provider. J.D Power now has a study to identify key drivers of satisfaction for this segment and to benchmark leading providers.
• NPS Analytics Package Add-On: J.D. Power’s NPS Analytics Package helps brands more fully understand the drivers of the Net Promoter Score and how those results fit within the framework of the overall customer experience.
• Deep Dive: Partner with J.D. Power to capture additional sample enabling deeper analysis and segmentation around the client experience
• Benchmarking and Certification Programs:

• Contact Center
• New: Mobile App

Net Promoter System®, Net Promoter Score®, NPS® and the NPS-related emoticons are registered trademarks of Bain & Company, Inc., Fred Reichheld and Satmetrix Systems, Inc.