While researchers and industry observers may disagree on the extent to which artificial intelligence will impact the wealth management industry, there’s little doubt that AI is slated to make waves.1
Given all the buzz around this emerging technology, TradePMR invited technologists, consultants, and entrepreneurs to our SYNERGY24 conference to discuss where they saw the most potential — and risk — for advisors considering the addition of AI to their businesses.
Led by TradePMR Chief Operating Officer R. Scott Victoria, the group of AI experts included Dani Fava, Chief Strategy Officer at Carson Group; Joel Bruckenstein, Founder of T3 Technology Tools for Today; Sindu Joseph, Founder and CEO of CogniCor Technologies; and Brian McLaughlin, President at Orion Advisor Tech. Panelists shared ideas for how AI could continue to make an impact, how advisors can leverage AI in their own growth plans, and what considerations advisors will need to potentially account for in the future.
An AI Assistant
TradePMR is helping advisors transform their businesses by tapping into the “unlimited potential” of AI, said R. Scott Victoria, in an interview published prior to the conference. It is changing the way advisors optimize their businesses, how they make sense of data, and how and when they interact with clients.
As many advisors have already witnessed in consumer applications, AI has the potential to make daily tasks easier and more efficient.
“It’s an assistive technology,” said Brian McLaughlin. At Orion, McLaughlin is exploring use cases where AI generates communications or makes workflows more efficient, with the caveat that advisors make the final call on approving and sending a message or finalizing a process.
AI’s potential also extents to areas where it’s not feasible to employ an assistant. Carson Group is testing tools and workflows designed to allow the firm to turn website visitors into clients, using a chatbot to answer questions and deploying AI-generated marketing campaigns, said Dani Fava.
“We have a lot of people come to our site, but if they don’t fill out a form, we can’t talk with them,” she said. The firm sees AI as a solution to capitalizing on these website visitors and turning leads into clients.
Embracing a New Technology
Some advisors are still struggling with how, exactly, they should be using AI, said Joel Bruckenstein. Learning how to interact with generative AI models — by using a variety of prompts — is a good place to start, he suggested. Even if advisors are reluctant to bring AI into the core of their firm, advisors could consider using tools like ChatGPT to generate gift ideas for their clients or to build interview questions for potential hires, he said.
Generative AI models, like ChatGPT, are primed to provide answers, said Sindu Joseph. Their accessibility and power lie in their out-of-the-box functionality, she said, likening them to a data model that does not need to be trained before being deployed.
In fact, advisors are already well-equipped to interact with generative AI, said Fava. Successful advisors already know how to ask the right questions to uncover important insights about their clients; now they need to use those skills to interact with their data and workflows using AI as an intermediary, she said.
“Part of doing a good job is knowing how to ask the right questions,” Fava added.
Augmented Advice That Leverages Artificial Intelligence
While open AI generators, like ChatGPT, can be dazzling, advanced computing coupled with closed data sets may be even more powerful, said Victoria. These models typically avoid the “hallucinations” famously conjured up by open AI systems and tend to produce results that are “a lot more accurate.”
The era of AI is also showing just how important it is for advisors to have genuine relationships with their clients, said Fava. Advisors who are concerned about the potential for faked phone calls or video imagery would do well to ensure that they know who their client really is by forming a deeper connection with their client. As bad actors get better at targeting the financial services industry, “your relationship with your client will save you,” she said.
Advisors should also expect regulators to step up their safeguarding efforts, said Bruckenstein. With more clarity about how technology can — and cannot — be used, regulators will provide more clarity for advisors. In fact, most advisors first “meaningful” interactions with AI will be in the form of tools provided to advisors via their custodians and vendors, he said.
Using AI To Grow Your Business
The rate at which technology is changing can be overwhelming. For more than two decades, TradePMR has been helping advisors navigate new workflows, client expectations, and the introduction of sophisticated technology. We’ve helped advisors in the past and we’re here now.
We believe solution-focused advice and assistive technology will help advisors grow their practices, hopefully launching them ahead of their competitors. By providing guidance to more clients — and across more assets — modern wealth managers should be positioned to make a positive impact in the lives of their clients today and well into the future.
To learn more about how TradePMR is helping advisors leverage the latest technology to grow their businesses, schedule a consultation with our team today.
For more than two decades, TradePMR has worked with growth-minded independent registered investment advisors (RIAs), providing innovative technology tools and support designed to transform their businesses. The privately-held brokerage and custodian services provider (Member FINRA/SIPC), based in Gainesville, Fla., works to streamline investment advisors' operations through comprehensive custodial, operational, and trading support. For more information, visit www.TradePMR.com.
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1 https://www.financial-planning.com/list/how-wealth-managers-are-responding-to-the-impact-of-ai
Disclosures:
Dani Fava, Chief Strategy Officer at Carson Group; Joel Bruckenstein, Founder of T3 Technology Tools for Today; Sindu Joseph, Founder and CEO of CogniCor Technologies; and Brian McLaughlin, President at Orion Advisor Tech are not affiliates of TradePMR. TradePMR, member FINRA/SIPC
Opinions expressed herein are as of the publication date; they are not statements of facts and may include “forward-looking statements” which may or may not be accurate over the long term. Statements, opinions or forecasts not guaranteed. Do not place undue reliance on forward-looking statements. The material has been prepared for or is distributed solely for information purposes and is not a solicitation or an offer to buy any security or instrument or to participate in any trading strategy.