In brief

• Digital tools are becoming more used and more valued, but clients expect them to lead to less personal wealth relationships.
• Clients’ willingness to share more personal data will allow firms with the right capabilities to enhance digital engagement.
• Wealth firms should prioritize improvements to hybrid models and the development of flexible, seamless interactions.

The COVID-19 pandemic has overturned the wealth industry’s previous certainties about client engagement. The pandemic has made digital contact indispensable — and increasingly popular. But long-term questions about what this means for client-provider relationships remain unanswered.

Practical questions over client preferences and the use of technology need to be balanced against less tangible topics such as branding, reputation and trust. The need to ensure that technology goes hand in hand with tailoring means that richer and deeper insights into client goals and beliefs will be essential to enhanced engagement.