Half of Advisors Now Use Tablet Devices: Schwab’s Hathi

"We spend a great deal of our time helping advisors to realize a 'know me' experience for their clients," Hathi added. "What I mean is that the user experience should be all about the client, and not the advisor. With all they must deal with on a day-to-day basis, advisors rightly ask, 'How do I do this?'"

She then cited a number of eye-opening statistics to illustrate how advisors are using technology, and how technology is changing the way they do business.

• More smartphones than personal computers were shipped last year.
• 50% of advisors in the United States use a tablet device, and 86% of them use an iPad.
• 93% of online adults who have a financial advisor have a social networking account.
• 25% of online adults have an interest in using their mobile device "as the main channel for their personal financial life."
• The number of small businesses that use cloud computing will triple over the next three years.

"Technology affects advisors in more than just the obvious ways," she said. "For instance, how will firms attract younger talent? Most young people will just expect firms to utilize tablets. So the effects are all-encompassing."

The continued movement toward a paperless industry was another trend Hathi cited.

"Just a few years ago, advisors would throw up roadblocks to going paperless by saying their clients still wanted paper statements. Today, they tell their clients they are going paperless, and to let them know if they still want hard copies. That opt-out versus opt-in has been huge for the movement to paperless."