Amid Tech Push, Wealth Management Industry Loses Focus on Comprehensive Advice

After several years of increasing focus on technology investments, the full-service wealth management industry significantly improves in investor satisfaction with digital offerings and engagement with digital channels. However, according to the J.D. Power 2022 U.S. Full-Service Investor Satisfaction Study,^SM released today, the industry continues to make little or no progress on its core value proposition: delivering comprehensive advice based on a deep understanding of individual clients. Just 14% of investors evaluated in the study receive the level of comprehensive advice from their primary financial advisor as defined by J.D. Power criteria, which include making recommendations in a client’s best interest; understanding their goals and needs; and having a documented financial plan.

“Firms have rightly increased their investment in client-facing technology in recent years, and we see that beginning to pay off in terms of higher engagement and satisfaction with digital channels,” said Mike Foy, senior director of wealth intelligence at J.D. Power. “However, we don’t see similar progress being made with truly delivering on comprehensive advice. Very few investors—even those with high net worth—are getting an optimum level of value from their advisors. However, advisors who aren’t consistently providing comprehensive advice may not be experiencing high attrition, in part because many clients simply don’t know what comprehensive advice looks like. But those advisors who do deliver it receive significantly more referrals and are far better positioned to continue to grow their practices.” 

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