Gains in trust and satisfaction have brought the financial services industry full circle five years after the heart of the financial crisis. Meanwhile, affluent investors’ needs have evolved.

Now that the target has moved, can the industry deliver?

Affluent Investor Paradox:
the New Reality of the Advisor-Investor Relationship

The fourth edition of the Rebuilding Investor Trust study, which tracks the mindset and behaviors of affluent households, reveals advisory firms and financial professionals have gone a long way to regain trust and strengthen client satisfaction.

But despite a more positive market environment and strong advisor evaluations, there’s another side of reality. Insights from the latest Rebuilding Investor Trust study reveal:

  • Performance is up overall, but Millennials and Women lag behind. Risk aversion could be one factor: Millennials are almost twice as conservative as they were in 2012, and women are more likely to be conservative than men.
  • Concerns around covering healthcare costs are eroding investor confidence.
  • Investors want more holistic help beyond basic portfolio transactions, but fewer than half are willing to entrust all of their wealth to their advisors.
  • Net Promoter Scores have more than tripled in the last two years, but more than a quarter of investors haven’t referred their advisors in the last three years.

Five years after the heart of the financial crisis, investors need more than a return to where they started. They need advisors to address a new era of needs.

Highlights:

  1. 8 in 10 affluent investors strongly trust their financial firms

  2. 59% Millennials and 36% of female investors have flat or decreased portfolio performance

  3. 44% of investors who lack confidence cite healthcare expenses or serious illness as their top concern

  4. Investors rate their primary financial firms lowest in helping them beyond portfolio transactions

  5. Affluent investors keep an average of 30% of their investable assets hidden from their advisors

Get actionable guidance on how to strengthen the bond with investors.

  1. 1

    Understand what investors are truly seeking from their advisors and advisory firms

  2. 2

    Learn the different mindsets of key segments, and how to deliver on what they need

  3. 3

    Compare client preferences and behaviors across top advisory and investment firms

  4. 4

    Maximize referrals from friends and family

  5. 5

    See to what extent to leverage social media

About the Study

Insights from people who know your audience

Rebuilding Investor Trust is the result of a partnership between two industry experts with deep experience in financial services: Sullivan, a brand engagement firm, and Northstar Research Partners, a market research consultancy.

This year’s study includes:

  • More than 1,800 respondents with $100,000K+ in investable assets; 15% with $1MM+
  • Five-year trending data since the financial crisis
  • Comparison of client preferences behaviors across top advisory/investment firms
  • NPS for 40 advisory, investment, banking and insurance firms
  • Key driver analysis on what impacts advisor NPS
Download a Fact Sheet

Pricing and Deliverables

For a fee of $24,500 your firm will receive:

  • Ten pages of executive summary with actionable conclusions and recommendations
  • Fifty-eight pages of detailed strategic reporting, including all key findings and trending analyses
  • Presentation of findings either in person in NYC or via phone
  • Data set of survey results
  • Cross-tabs with statistical testing