There is often debate in the financial industry about whether advisors should share their fees on their website. In this first of our two-part series, we put forward the case for disclosure on your website. In the coming weeks, we will publish a counterargument for sharing this information in the public domain.
Please note that his content is for information and inspiration purposes only. The decision of whether or not to disclose fees on a financial website is the responsibility of the financial firm in question, and might be affected by relevant legislation or regulations (which are subject to change).
1. Give Off The Right Impression
By not including pricing information on your website, visitors will naturally assume that you are too expensive. Just consider your first thoughts when you’re met with a product or service that doesn’t mention the price. It’s likely that you dismiss it because you assume it will come at a much higher cost. The vast majority of your customers are likely to look elsewhere, without even talking to you first.
Withholding information about your fees also has another potential downside. It could give customers the impression that you’re hiding something, causing them to turn away from your business.
2. Keep Yourself In The Running
The main argument against showing fees is that potential customers will simply compare prices to other advisors and go with the cheapest. Essentially turning it into a numbers game.
While this is likely to happen, surely it’s better to be compared and considered than not at all? Not displaying your fees is likely to take you out of the running straight away.
Furthermore, being more expensive than your competition shouldn’t be a problem if your value proposition is deemed to be worth the money. Quite often, people are prepared to pay a bit more if you are sufficiently differentiated. For instance, perhaps you specialise in financial advice for their particular industry or niche (e.g. GPs or solicitors).
3. Make Sure You’re In Line With The Law
All financial planning fees are required by law to be open to the public. If they’re not easily accessible to the public, it may appear like you are trying to hide pertinent information. By disclosing your costs immediately on your financial adviser website, you help to give an impression of your brand being “above reproach” in the industry.
4. Stop Wasting Your (And Your Customers) Time
Displaying your fees upfront will save you time in the long run. It makes it easy for potential clients to find the information they’re after. This, in turn, makes it simple for them to decide if your services are the right fit for them. In other words, disclosing your fees helps clients to qualify themselves for your sales pipeline, which saves you some of the efforts of doing it yourself!
From a business development perspective, meeting with clients who can’t actually afford to do business with you is one of the biggest wastes of time. By displaying your fees you can be sure that you’re only attracting the best clients for your firm.
