Opening an account should be an exciting sign of growth for wealth management firms and a step toward clients’ financial goals. However, with slow, tedious workflows dominated by outdated manual forms and compliance issues, account opening can be a headache for everyone involved.
The solution to this frustration? Streamlining digital account opening creates a better experience for clients and advisors.
Here are three reasons wealth management firms are moving to digital account opening.
Faster, Efficient Processes
Nothing bogs down the account opening process like cumbersome paperwork. Paper-based processes cause delays and errors, often requiring forms to be printed, complete it manually, provide a physical signature, and then fax or scan and email it back to the firm for processing. Once the firm has the paperwork, employees likely have to manually move the information into multiple systems, which is when errors often occur.
Paper systems aren’t just frustrating — they’re inefficient. Sending paper forms back and forth to gather physical signatures takes lots of time, and any mistake or missed signature often requires starting the process over. Plus, navigating all that paperwork limits how many clients a firm can serve. If each new account opening takes days to gather and enter data, it’s much more challenging to scale.
Digital account opening, on the other hand, creates operational efficiency and drives seamless, faster processes. Digital account opening is incredibly fast and allows many clients to work through the process at the same time. Docupace replaces outdated paper processes with a secure and scalable, wizard-driven platform. That means clients only complete the necessary forms and can do it quickly and digitally.
Giving Clients What They Want
Account opening is an advisor’s chance to make a positive first impression with clients. A smooth digital process shows clients that the firm has their interests in mind and aims to create a convenient experience. It builds confidence in the firm and establishes trust, which clients say is one of the most important things they look for in an advisor. An outdated, paper-driven account opening can be off-putting for clients and start the relationship on the wrong foot. Instead of getting an innovative experience, their first impression is clunky and cumbersome. That likely doesn’t make clients excited to continue engaging with the firm.
Clients increasingly want improved digital experiences with their advisors. Digital account opening helps clients progress toward their financial goals faster and shows that firms value their clients’ time. Digital experiences reduce friction for advisors and clients and free up advisors’ time to build relationships and provide personalized service rather than chasing paperwork.
Only Applicable Forms
Wealth management clients are unique, so the processes firms create should reflect that. Instead of wasting time on forms that don’t matter or aren’t necessary for a client, digital account openings allow for total customization. Within Docupace, features like automated Forms Bundling, Forms Search Wizard, editable templates, and custom form uploads enable firms to tailor workflows to their needs..
By streamlining and customizing the digital experience for advisors and back office employees, firms can improve productivity and reduce frustration with repetitive tasks. Advisors spend nearly 20% of their time on administrative tasks and reporting, which takes away from time with clients. A customized, digital onboarding process gives them back time for other growth-focused tasks.
Account openings also don’t happen in a bubble. Digital processes enable collaboration and a more cohesive firm environment. Through Docupace, teams can share forms across their document ecosystem, providing all colleagues with real-time status and data. That keeps everyone engaged and on the same page, which lowers redundancies and boosts productivity.
In our digital age, digital account opening starts the client-advisor relationship off on the right foot and creates a customizable and scalable process for wealth management firms. Docupace makes it easy to deliver high-quality digital services without skipping a beat, and our New Account Opening solution provides a simple, modern approach. Click here to schedule a discovery call.
