During the past year, we’ve produced over a dozen episodes of our popular “CRM Unlocked” podcast. Our renowned Skientists have spoken in-depth with industry heavyweights and experts in asset management, financial technology, advisor behavior, and more. These conversations examined the current state of WealthTech, innovative advancements, and where the industry is headed.
As 2022 draws to a close, we examine the top finance tech trends of the year. These were the trends with the most significant impact on your business, your advisors, and your customers. Most importantly, these trends will continue to loom large in 2023. Read on.
Skience Tech Trend #1: Making Your CRM Matter
Peanut butter and jelly. Batman and Robin. Yin and yang. Relationships are no small thing. And no relationship is more crucial to a financial professional than the advisor/client relationship.
A robust CRM is one of the most crucial pieces of your tech stack. A powerful digital hub eliminates the need for several disparate systems—or worse, pen and paper.
“The CRM represents the heartbeat of the technology stack,” says Michelle Feinstein, GM/Vice President, Global Wealth Management Solutions & Strategy at Salesforce. “This is not just a tool where you’re going to load your leads and contacts.”
Ubiquitous and necessary
CRM technology boasts a whopping 96% market penetration. This previously “nice to have” tool has moved firmly to the “must have” category.
“Historically, CRM has always been an area of focus in all of our roadmaps as it relates to things like helping advisors, helping the firm grow, and helping the back office create operational efficiency and scale,” notes Ernest Lacroix, Senior Manager, Wealth Technology Strategist at F2 Strategy.
Feinstein concurs: “I look at it as a foundational technology that really helps speed the business process.”
Customers, customers everywhere
The financial services industry isn’t the only one that has harnessed the power of the CRM. “As the youth and young workers of today move between industries, it’s an expectation that if they’re doing customer-facing work, they’re going to be using CRM,” observes Former SVP Alliances, Marketing & Contracts at Skience George Baumgarten.
“Whether it’s in life sciences, managing customer relationships for marketing and big data, or managing customer relationships, they’re going to be using CRM.”
The human factor
A powerful CRM lives up to its name—making customer relationship management your major competitive advantage. However, it’s the person behind the product that matters.
“The most beautiful CRM is one that allows for humans to be humans,” maintains Katie Anderson, Founder at Save Co Services. “It ultimately becomes a really great assistant.”
Next time: Take your CRM from good to great.