Trusted Financial Advisor: Kick It Up a Notch
Q: What technology challenges must be addressed to make the concept viable?
A: Bender: Delivery of education and advice in a manner which inspires consumer confidence and provides ease of use requires not only a sophisticated engine but also higher-speed communications than the modems widely used today. We also need to develop innovative and interactive presentation formats that will engage the client in the process.
A: Cyphert: The advisor, whether real or virtual, will require real-time access to the customer's information, such as portfolio, account, work in process, etc. Compiling a comprehensive customer view will require spanning disparate systems and companies.
A: McCarthy: The concept has to drive top-line revenue at an affordable cost. That means the service has to be designed to balance channel delivery methods to provide service appropriate to the profitability level of each client. This requires behavioral segmentation, not just demographic information. One needs to understand under what circumstances a client will happily turn to the Web, and for what transactions a client will always pick up the phone. Providing great, personal service to the self-sufficient, profitable client on the rare occasion that it is required could secure that client for life.
A: Surplus: To establish high-value relationships with individuals, insurers must embrace an enterprise technology platform that supports the personalized delivery of strategic advice and the ability to transact. This platform must feature multi-channel delivery, including Web, wireless and call center channels; the ability to leverage real-time client data; and a flexible maintenance environment for the strategic business logic.
Peggy Bresnick Kendler has been a writer for 30 years. She has worked as an editor, publicist and school district technology coordinator. During the past decade, Bresnick Kendler has worked for UBM TechWeb on special financialservices technology-centered ... View Full Bio
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