2nd Annual Dollars & Sense Survey results unveiled

(October 1, 2003) Feeling guilty about taking that longer vacation? Wondering how your practice compares to your peers’? Not sure if you’re working too hard — or maybe not hard enough? The answers to these questions and many more can be found in the extensive coverage based on The ADVISOR Group’s second Annual Dollars & Sense Survey, which is currently being featured in the October issues of Advisor’s Edge and Objectif Conseiller, as well as online at Advisor.ca.

Just like last year, the findings from our latest survey give you an indication of how Canadian advisors are approaching their practice and where the industry stands. It may even provide some clues as to where things are headed.

“The survey is designed to provide advisors with benchmarks on how their colleagues tackle practice management issues, investment and insurance advice, as well as advisor compensation,” says Darin Diehl, editor of The ADVISOR Group.

We set out to discover everything we could about the state of the industry, asking you for details on your staffing, what kind of clients you were serving, how you served them, even your job satisfaction. And the response was tremendous.

2nd Annual Dollars & Sense Survey: Getting results Managed money and managed expectations Advisors remain prudent through all markets 2nd Annual Dollars & Sense Survey results unveiled Wall-to-wall survey coverage in October’s Advisor’s Edge

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“The fact that 1,255 advisors from all channels took the time to fill out the survey is gratifying and helps make the results representative of the advisor universe,” says Diehl.

So, what did we discover?

Well, if you feel like your clients’ assets have lost some ground, you’re not alone. The survey shows that the average client investment with their advisor was off 10%, to $81,800 this year from just over $90,000 last year.

At the same time, there has been a similar drop in new business generated from referrals, as only 81% of advisors surveyed identified this as one of their three primary sources of generating new business, down from 90% in last year’s survey.

“The survey can also help us identify trends and provide a snapshot of advisor attitudes,” says Diehl. “Among the things worth noting this year is the 9% who said they were thinking of leaving the business.”

On the upside, advisors appear to be more willing to take some time off for their own sanity, with vacations averaging 3.2 weeks annually, up from 2.9 weeks in the previous year.

Of course, we can’t give away all the results here! For more in-depth coverage and analysis, click on any — or all — of the links in the box in this article and also be sure to check out the October issues of Advisor’s Edge and Objectif Conseiller.

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The survey is based on responses from 1,255 advisors from across Canada. The sample size is representative of the advisor universe and the results can be considered accurate within a 95% confidence level and a plus or minus 2.75% margin of error.

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Filed by Steven Lamb, Advisor.ca, steven.lamb@advisor.ca

(10/01/03)