AssetMark is a giant in the market landscape, with 145,000 accounts managed by 6,700 advisor affiliates. That data gives it rare insight into what investors want: and as it turns out, the answer is someone who can teach them more about how money works.
Results from the firm's first American Financial Experience Survey are in. The pandemic has made 46% of the American public more interested in educating themselves or seeking out expert teachers.
That probably means advisors. While 20% of non-investors don't want to meet with a professional, they think it's because they don't have enough cash.
Maybe, maybe not. That's up to you. Meanwhile, 42% of self-directed investors are willing to talk to an advisor. That's your initial prospecting pool.
It's a big pool. Doing the math, I see that at least 36% of the AssetMark survey group reports annual household income above $75,000, which should be enough to support at least a basic advisory relationship.
Platforms like AssetMark help advisors manage smaller accounts without sacrificing profitability, of course. That's the whole point of automation and outsourced back office systems. If you haven't seen what they provide lately, now's a great time to reach out via their VIP Messenger.
After all, advisors are doing good work on the whole but now is a great time to capture accounts where the pandemic strained existing client relationships.
AssetMark discovered that while 66% of investors with advisors are content (or even more positive than ever) with their current advisor, 26% are questioning their loyalty and a full 8% are actively unhappy.
“It’s a testament to American resilience to find such a large percentage of people wanting to learn more about investing, so they can make the informed decisions that can improve their financial picture,” said AssetMark CEO Charles Goldman.
“It behooves the wealth management industry to do everything it can to educate the American public about investing and the great value financial advisors provide. Even people who don’t think they have much investing power can learn how to improve their financial outlook through sound money management and goal setting.”
