Monday, 22 February 2016

What does 5 star service really mean?

Noel Standard Life

Defaqto recently awarded Standard Life the Gold Platform Service Rating for 2016, giving us 5 Star Platform Rating and Gold Service Rating for a second consecutive year.


This got me thinking about 5 Star service and what it really means.


For Defaqto to award the 5 Star rating, a provider must have to consistently score high satisfaction levels to adviser clients across the range of areas including the administering of new and existing business, the platforms design and management and e-business capabilities.


But what about elsewhere? Does 5 star service mean different things in different industries?


Many companies use the Net Promoter Score (NPS) to determine their clients satisfaction. This measures how loyal your clients are by asking one simple question How likely are you to recommend brand X to a colleague using a scale from 0 to 10 where zero means not at all likely and ten means very likely.


Those that score high have generally taken the time to build relationships with their clients and typically respond quickly to queries and problems.


So in the advice industry, what does five star service look like?


Research on the subject shows that referrals from others are valued when it comes to choosing a financial adviser.


According to our Generation Advice report (November 2015), people seek financial advice for a variety of reasons, the majority are interested in expertise and help with planning for the future and some are interested in making the most what they have.


Whats interesting is that, regardless of what particular financial products a client is looking for, what they value most from their adviser is that they are understood (75%).


This is particularly interesting given that since April 2015, pensions are more inheritable than ever. So, if advisers get 5 star service right, they have an opportunity to become a trusted source, and a clients assets can be kept under the management of the firm even after they have been inherited by children and grandchildren.


To find out more, and to give your view, have a look at my latest blog, what makes 5 star advice?


Noel Butwell is distribution director at Standard Life

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