Future SOAs to be interactive
Video, audio, imagery, infographics, graphs, and quizzes are more effective ways to deliver advice than traditional statements of advice (SOAs), according to the Financial Planning Association (FPA).
The FPA’s Future of Statement of Advice Working Group found that digital SOAs were key to improving the advice experience.
FPA chief executive, Dante De Gori, said best client outcomes could be reached by adopting technology to deliver advice in a smarter, safe, and more efficient way.
“The future of financial advice delivery will be one where every client is given their own individual, tailored experience based on their unique communication and behavioural preferences,” he said.
“It will harness the power of appropriate digital technology solutions to make the experience a meaningful and more engaging one for the client. It’s about prioritising what’s best for the client, rather simply ticking compliance and legal requirements.”
FPA head of policy and standards, Ben Marshan, pointed to research that said 65% of people were visual learners.
“Therefore, this presents a huge challenge for consumers who are expected to comprehend long written and often complex documents. For example, consumers are far more likely to remember a call to action after watching a video, compared to reading it in text format,” he said.
The FPA also found that consumers preferred a digital SOA and the ability to engage with and learn from their advice rather than read paper-based SOAs such as video, audio, imagery, infographics, graphs and quizzes.
“Our vision for the near future is to enable clients to engage with their own personal, interactive, real-time financial plan, in a secure portal or on a smartphone app,” Marshan said.
“It’s about ‘breaking paper’ – we must utilise the full breadth of digital, tech and communication modes available to allow advice delivery to be more accessible, personalised and meaningful for clients.”
The working group – including members, regulators, compliance experts, lawyers, licensees, content and digital media specialists, and advice technology specialists – agreed there were no legal or regulatory barriers to members creating and delivering advice digitally.
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