A recent study by Russell Investments, Financial Professional Outlook, revealed that financial advisors remain optimistic about their ability to acquire new clients and grow their businesses in 2013.
It’s no surprise really that financial advisors are in this positive mindset, as 86 percent of advisors surveyed reported acquiring more clients in 2012 than they lost. Further, an impressive 48 percent reported they acquired more than 10 clients or households during the same period. The same proportion of advisors indicated in the report that they are looking to acquire more than 10 clients or households in 2013, while another 30 percent are aiming to acquire between 7 to 10 clients in the upcoming year.
Other highlights of the Financial Professional Outlook survey included:
- 32 percent of advisors reported feeling “optimistic” about the state of capital markets in the next 3 years. This proportion of advisors is the highest it has been since the March 2011 survey.
- 87 percent of advisors reported feeling “optimistic” about acquiring new clients or households in 2013.
- Advisors reported their top 3 strategies for acquiring clients were:
- Receiving client referrals: 76 percent
- Prospecting through current clients: 54 percent
- Professional networking: 43 percent
- 66 percent of advisors reported that they believed most new clients were interested in meeting with them because of referrals, while 65 percent of advisors cited dissatisfaction with other services as a reason for new client meetings, and 42 percent cited investors no longer wanting to manage their own money as a reason.
- 55 percent of all advisors surveyed reported a high level of client retention, with just 1 to 3 clients lost in 2012 (26 percent of advisors lost 4 or more clients)
The Financial Professional Outlook 2012 included responses from 251 financial advisors, who worked for more than 100 advisory firms across the country.