Recent consolidation proves that chasing AUM just isn't enough any more with too many lookalike platforms crowding the landscape and robo after robo driving fees into the ground. Tell us your story.
Every technological revolution hits a moment where smart players stop chasing raw market share and pivot to a unique value proposition instead. The last few years have pushed the outsourced portfolio solutions industry to that point.
Early adopters in the advisory community have already had years to respond to the generic sales pitch and sign with one vendor or another. Others are still waiting for something more compelling.
I know every company in this space has that compelling argument to make, but our 230,000 readers may not have heard it yet. It's why we publish an annual Wealth Advisor TAMP Guide profiling outsourced portfolio solution providers who are "friendly" to advisors and actively prospecting new relationships. If you'd like to explore a listing in the 2018 edition, just click HERE.
To be honest, wealth advisors tell us there are too many platforms on the market and the rise of lookalike robot solutions makes things worse. They don't have time to dig deep to evaluate the nuances that make each provider unique.
But with consolidation picking up speed among the companies who've captured the biggest asset share so far, the clock is ticking. Scale in itself wasn't the secret of success after all -- all the AUM in the world isn't enough when you've got those robot platforms aggressively chasing the same end investor account with fee structures nobody wants to match.
The robots offer a commodity service at a commodity price. Our advisors know that their high-net-worth relationships appreciate value and will pay a premium for it. They're looking for more than a basis-point break.
And ultimately, they're where the sweet assets are. The biggest players have already done the hard work, convincing advisors to hand them maybe $700 billion. My math says there's still $1.6 trillion left in the channel to capture.
It's time for the next generation of innovators to make their pitch. Maybe you've developed a model-only solution or are willing to incorporate advisors' proprietary strategies into your platform. Maybe you have advanced automation tools that collapse the back office, the front office or both. And maybe you offer some other killer app that my readers don't know about yet . . . but it will blow their minds when they connect the dots.
The Wealth Advisor audience loves the TAMP Guide. They download every year, print it out, keep it on their reference shelf. When they're looking for a partner, they reach for the book and make their calls. And I want to make sure they get the most current and accurate view of the competitive landscape: as it is today and what's coming over the horizon. That's why I'm inviting firms we haven't profiled to tell us their story.
I know you're out there. You know that with the giants combining in search of scale, upstarts are facing both an opportunity and an existential threat. If they couldn't make it work with $15-$20 billion on the platform, you must be working some X Factor that tips the odds in your favor.
Whatever that is, I owe it to my readers to give them the scoop. But I can't do that unless you're willing to TALK TO US.
