This news service and Finantix have teamed up to issue new research on the wealth management sector's use of technology to find new clients.

New research from this news service and Finantix reveals that nine-in-ten wealth management firms will devote much of their time generating new client leads digitally in the next few years – and more than half of them are making it their primary mission.

The report (click here to obtain a copy) asks what firms do to appeal to people across a range of communication channels to make their sales more effective. It turns out that wealth managers are not getting as much benefit as they could.

Between March and May this year, some 28 senior executives in marketing and business development were asked to provide insights into how the industry handles leads generation. Respondents came from the major wealth management hubs of Europe, the US and Asia-Pacific.

Among the findings were that 87 per cent of managers want to boost digital leads generation over the next two years and 54 per cent want to make the digital route a “top priority”. One takeaway from the report is that firms in traditional markets, such as Switzerland, need to embrace new technologies in order to improve sales performance.

The report looks, for example, at spending in areas such as content marketing, social media at the corporate and relationship manager level, website optimisation, the use of digital introducers, and online advertising. One area examined in detail was how firms can build a “premium pitch” to enable RMs and others to make the most persuasive overture to a prospective client, drawing on digital technology to equip themselves with relevant information.

The 19-page report is the latest in a series of research reports produced by ClearView Financial Media, publisher of this news service. To see a full back catalogue of our research, click here. Readers will note that a considerable amount of past research looks at the impact of technology on this industry.