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Investors Want Tech, but Still Crave Human Advice: Schwab

Four in 10 investors report that they said it gives them peace of mind concern-
used technology and digital tools to ing their finances.
manage their finances more during the Many participants said they will con-
pandemic than ever before, and a third tinue to conduct a range of financial
say they will continue to adopt tech- activities digitally after the pandemic
nology at a faster rate going forward, subsides, including using payment
Charles Schwab reported in September. apps, online tools and apps to
A fifth of investors believe that tech- manage personal finances and
nology will fully manage their invest- virtual meetings to connect with
ment portfolio within a year, yet both a financial advisor.
new and seasoned investors say they In contrast, more than half of
will first turn to a financial advisor in respondents said it is very impor-
times of uncertainty. tant to have access to a profes-
Logica Research conducted the sional when they have questions,
online survey in June among a national or need periodic or ongoing guid-
sample of 1,000 U.S. investors 18 to 75 ance or when the stock market has
and a sample augment of 200 investors large gains or drops. In fact, 40% of
who began investing in 2020 or 2021, investors said they would seek guid-
as well as a sample augment of 200 ance from a financial advisor over any The new study affirms that Gen I is a
affluent investors. other resource — e.g,, financial websites, rapid adopter of technology compared
Investors fall into three evenly divided influencers, family/friends — if the with more seasoned investors — i.e.,
groups when it comes to interacting with stock market should drop significantly. those who began investing before 2020.
a financial institution, according to the Moreover, investors’ trust in a financial Seventy-four percent of these new
survey. Thirty-seven percent prefer most- firm is also influenced by whether they investors think they can have a personal
ly using technology, 32% prefer mostly have access to service in person, such as relationship with a financial company by
talking to a person and 31% prefer a at a branch. interacting only through a mobile app or
combination of technology and in-person A majority of investors in the survey online, and they rely on technology to
interactions on an ongoing basis. also feel that human financial profession- manage their finances in many ways.
And although 54% of investors said it als deal best with complex tasks such as At the same time, Gen I prefers access
is possible to have a personal relationship giving financial advice, providing customer to human financial professionals when
with a financial company by interact- support on account questions, under- it comes to other aspects of money
ing only through technology, most also standing an investor’s entire financial situ- management, feeling that professionals
agreed that there is a time for technology ation, and creating a personalized invest- manage the following activities better
and a time for personal interaction. ment portfolio or a financial plan. than technology, such as giving financial
Seventy-one percent of investors sur- advice (64%), understanding their entire
veyed said technology is better for simple, Generation Investor financial situation (63%) and providing
more transactional financial tasks, such During the uncertainty of the global pan- support on account questions (61%).
as tracking expenses, but not for complex demic and waves of market volatility in And 83% of Gen I said that when
ones. A similar percentage said technol- 2020, an influx of first-time investors got finances become complex, such as
when the stock market experiences a
into the market. Schwab dubbed this cohort
ogy helps them reach their financial goals.
Adobe Stock Seventy percent maintained that tech- Generation Investor. The group accounts significant gain or downturn, they want
nology reduces the amount of time they
for 15% of U.S. stock market investors,
access to a person to discuss their situ-
spend managing their finances, and 65%
according to previous Schwab data.
ation. — Michael S. Fischer
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NOVEMBER 2021 INVESTMENT ADVISOR 1