By Max Lillard.
Fintech has become increasingly popular with consumers, so much so that it’s starting to have a noticeable impact on their relationship with financial professionals.
A recent Capterra survey found that more than half of fintech users seek advice from fintech apps before consulting their accountant, and 64% say these tools have significantly reduced their need to interact with their financial advisor. Alarmingly, the data also reveals that 45% of fintech users think that these tools could make working with financial professionals obsolete in the future.
It’s hard not to feel like fintech is slowly poaching your firm’s clients and that ongoing adoption of these solutions will sound the death knell for accounting as we know it. However, fintech isn’t the enemy. Embracing the technology and working with it—rather than against it—can help you become a stronger advisor while also enhancing the services you already provide.
Fintech users covet the convenience and comprehensive services
To understand how to best use fintech for your firm’s and your clients’ best interest, it’s important to realize that the customer of today eschews time-consuming and traditional methods of financial management, such as paper-based transactions. They prefer speedy services that are convenient and that make activities like opening a bank account or paying the bills a breeze.
Overall, 48% of consumers surveyed are fintech users. Millennials and younger generations who are more tech-savvy are particularly drawn to fintech due to user-friendly interfaces, data visualization tools, and other features centered around convenience, and many appreciate that the technology can open up a wide range of financial services.
Most fintech solutions focus on one specific service supported by a third-party provider. Some of the leading applications of the technology are devoted to things like digital payments, investing, or personal finance management.
Banking tools are the most popular: 82% of fintech users harness these solutions, which let them transfer funds, pay their bills, check deposits, and much more. And because they’re offered by financial intuitions, these tools come with readily available support and the strongest safety features around.
Fintech’s follies shed light on where accountants can shine
While fintech solutions have become increasingly popular and convenient, this doesn’t mean users find the technology to be without fault. In all, 89% of users say that they’ve encountered challenges while using fintech, citing security concerns, hidden costs, and limited functionality as some of the biggest obstacles.
The limits of the technology are most apparent when it comes to dealing with complex needs. Although 57% of users say that they prefer fintech to handle routine financial tasks, they still rely on their accountant to handle nuanced services like tax preparation or estate planning.
Your firm can make up for the shortcomings of fintech by playing to your strengths as accounting professionals. By tactfully adjusting to the needs of today’s users, you can help empower them with a more convenient and accessible way to foster healthy financial habits:
- Offer convenient, digital services: Given fintech users’ preference for virtual assistance, offer virtual advisory services and generate resources that fit into digital formats. You could create a newsletter centered around a client’s interests or trending topics and layer in analysis to demonstrate that you’re invested in their financial education. It makes them much more likely to turn to you for advice in the future.
- Emphasize the role your expertise has in financial security: Market the fact that your specialized knowledge is the safest bet for your customers when it comes to handling complex financial tasks, and, with tact in mind, communicate how fintech solutions are neutral parties that, unlike fiduciaries like yourself, aren’t legally and ethically bound to serve users’ best interests.
- Integrate and recommend reputable solutions: Don’t shy away from encouraging your clients to adopt fintech. The convenience these tools offer comes with a wide range of benefits for everyone involved, such as streamlining tedious processes like document sharing, or giving users real-time insights into their finances. Only recommend apps that meet data protection requirements and point your clients toward technology that is backed by a reputable financial institution.
Embracing and evolving with fintech lets you face the future with confidence
As fintech’s capabilities continue to evolve, consumers’ methods of managing their finances will develop in lockstep. Working with these solutions, while leveraging your firm’s expertise, can enable you to adapt to their need for convenience and ensure that they’re getting assistance with complex tasks that fintech isn’t quite ready to handle.
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Max Lillard is a senior analyst at Capterra, covering accounting and finance. Capterra is the world’s largest software and services marketplace that helps businesses make the right technology decisions to empower growth.
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Tags: Accounting, Advisory, Benefits, Firm Management
