AstuteWheel has exported its flagship client engagement platform to South Africa following its success with Australian advisers. The group, which established the platform in June 2012, received positive feedback to a pilot program from October to February with 20 South African financial advice practices, according to co-founder Hans Egger.
“The system was launched to the South African market earlier this month during a roadshow that visited Cape Town, Durban, Johannesburg and Pretoria,” Egger said. “Initial signs are very encouraging, with a number of advisers subscribing to the software following the demonstration.” The South African financial advice market was facing regulatory change similar to recent shifts in the Australian market, he said, and this made it an ideal choice for the group’s expansion.
“It is a sophisticated advice market looking to grow, and our solution fills a gap for many of these practices, which are already providing good advice but need a more efficient and better client engagement process to demonstrate the value of their advice,” Egger said.
The professional financial planning software helps financial planning practitioners have better conversations with their clients and to demonstrate the clear value they delivered. “It directly impacts the profitability of a planner and their practice, keeping clients satisfied and engaged, and making a more robust and sustainable business model,” he said.
South African advice practice owner Donavan Maree said AstuteWheel had provided him with a ‘business within a box’. “By far the best aspect of using their software to date is the ‘5 Minute Financial Health Check’ as well as the ‘About You’ questionnaire,” Maree said. “I have been getting my existing clients to complete these and the results have been amazing.
“The dynamic between myself and my clients has changed because I can immediately see where they need help, and my job is to show them what strategies are available and then implement the ones that they are comfortable with. “The Financial Health Report quantifies the value I add to my clients, which they see for themselves.”
More than 500 Australian financial advisers had signed up to the AstuteWheel platform and the business was in good shape to expand, which led to the recent decision to join fintech hub Stone & Chalk. The group was aiming for 1,000 advisers on its platform within five years, co-founder Michael Topper said.
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