The element of an advice relationship most valued by Australian clients is the creation of a formal financial plan, new research has found.
Asset manager, Legg Mason, surveyed more than 4,200 investors in 20 countries, to identify the main benefits of an advice relationship. 59% of Australians said that creating a formal financial plan to achieve their goals was the best thing about working with an adviser.
This finding was in contrast to the top benefit nominated by international investors, which was better investment performance.
Other key benefits of working with an adviser identified by Australian clients were:
- Avoiding costly mistakes (46%)
- Having someone to manage their entire portfolio (43%)
Legg Mason’s Global Head of Distribution Marketing, Matt Schiffman, said the results demonstrated that Australians valued a structured approach to financial advice, with clear goals that made it easy to measure their success.
“Australians are less focused on tracking the annual performance of the investments their adviser recommends as a measure of success,” said Mr Schiffman. “For Australian investors, the experience of using an adviser is more about developing a long-term plan for financial independence.”
The survey also revealed that Australian usage of advisers was slightly lower than among global investors as a whole, with 27% of Australian investors saying they work with an adviser compared to 36% globally. Mr Schiffman said this presented an opportunity for more advisers to add value to the Australian investor experience, particularly when it came to setting investors on a stable path to financial independence.
