40% Faster Onboarding with Personalized Digital Experience

40% Faster Onboarding with Personalized Digital Experience

Executive Summary

Meridian Wealth Partners, facing a growing backlog and client frustration stemming from its manual onboarding process, sought to streamline the initial client experience. By implementing a personalized digital onboarding portal with interactive elements and automated workflows, coupled with a human touch through welcome kits, Meridian reduced onboarding time by 40%. This efficiency gain directly translated to a 20% increase in client satisfaction scores within the first 90 days, leading to faster deployment of assets and stronger client relationships.

The Challenge

Meridian Wealth Partners, a boutique RIA managing over $500 million in assets for high-net-worth individuals and families, recognized a critical bottleneck in their client onboarding process. The traditional, paper-based system was plagued with inefficiencies, leading to frustration for both clients and internal staff.

New clients often faced a deluge of paperwork, including account applications, risk tolerance questionnaires, investment policy statements, and beneficiary designations. Completing these documents manually was time-consuming and confusing, often requiring multiple phone calls and emails to clarify instructions. The average onboarding time, from initial client agreement to fully invested assets, was a staggering 25 days.

This lengthy onboarding period created several significant problems:

• Delayed Investment Deployment: A 25-day delay meant that new clients' assets were sitting idle, missing out on potential market gains. For a client allocating $1 million to their investment portfolio, even a modest 1% market gain during that onboarding period translated to a $10,000 opportunity cost.
• Client Frustration and Attrition Risk: The cumbersome process often left new clients feeling overwhelmed and uncertain. This negativity could erode trust and increase the risk of early attrition. In a survey conducted prior to the change, 30% of new clients reported feeling "stressed" or "anxious" about the onboarding process.
• Inefficient Use of Advisor Time: Advisors and support staff were spending a significant portion of their time chasing down paperwork and answering repetitive questions. This diverted their attention from more valuable activities, such as financial planning and client relationship management. Meridian estimated that advisors spent an average of 10 hours per new client solely on onboarding-related tasks.
• Compliance Risks: Manual document handling increased the risk of errors and omissions, potentially leading to compliance issues. Maintaining accurate and up-to-date client records was also a challenge with the paper-based system.

Sarah Chen, the Operations Manager at Meridian, recognized that a more efficient and client-centric onboarding process was crucial for the firm's continued growth and success. She aimed to create a seamless and personalized experience that would not only reduce onboarding time but also strengthen client relationships from the very beginning. The old system also meant less time for advisors to grow AUM, with each advisor onboarding 1-2 fewer clients per month than they felt capable of.

The Approach

Sarah Chen spearheaded the development of a personalized digital onboarding portal, aiming to address the core pain points of the existing manual system. Her approach was multi-faceted, combining technology with a personalized human touch.

The strategy revolved around three key pillars:

1. Digital Transformation: Creating a user-friendly online portal that guided clients through the onboarding process step-by-step.
2. Personalization and Engagement: Tailoring the onboarding experience to each client's individual needs and preferences.
3. Automation and Efficiency: Automating repetitive tasks and streamlining document collection.

Specifically, Sarah implemented the following:

• Custom Onboarding Portal: Developed a secure online portal accessible via a personalized link for each new client. The portal featured an interactive checklist that tracked progress, provided clear instructions for each step, and offered educational videos explaining key financial concepts.
• Automated Document Collection: Integrated the portal with Docusign API to enable electronic signature and secure document upload. This eliminated the need for printing, scanning, and mailing documents. Pre-filled forms based on the initial information gathered from the client were generated, reducing manual entry.
• Personalized Welcome Kit: Sent a physical welcome kit to each new client, containing a branded welcome letter, a summary of their investment plan, and a handwritten note from their advisor. This "high-touch" element demonstrated Meridian's commitment to providing personalized service.
• CRM Integration: Integrated the portal with Meridian's existing CRM system (Salesforce) to ensure that all client data was synchronized and up-to-date. This eliminated the need for manual data entry and improved communication across the firm.
• Educational Video Series: Created a series of short, engaging videos that explained complex financial concepts in a clear and concise manner. These videos covered topics such as risk tolerance, asset allocation, and investment strategies. These videos were available on the portal.
• Proactive Communication: Implemented a system of automated email reminders to prompt clients to complete outstanding tasks. Advisors also proactively reached out to new clients to offer assistance and answer any questions.

Sarah recognized that technology alone was not enough. The human element was crucial to building trust and fostering strong client relationships. By combining the efficiency of automation with the warmth of personalized service, she created an onboarding experience that was both seamless and engaging. This included weekly check-in calls from the assigned client service team, which provided an avenue to discuss the client's progress and answer any questions.

Technical Implementation

The implementation of the digital onboarding portal involved several key technical components and integrations:

• Platform Selection: Sarah chose a low-code development platform for building the portal, allowing for rapid development and easy customization. The platform offered robust security features and compliance certifications.
• Docusign API Integration: The Docusign API was integrated to enable electronic signature and secure document upload. This integration streamlined the document collection process and eliminated the need for manual signature verification. Specific code was used to dynamically generate document fields based on client profile data stored in the CRM.
• CRM Integration (Salesforce): The portal was seamlessly integrated with Meridian's Salesforce CRM using the Salesforce API. This integration ensured that all client data was synchronized between the two systems. Data mappings were created to automatically update client records in Salesforce whenever information was changed in the portal.
• Security Measures: The portal was secured using industry-standard security protocols, including SSL encryption and two-factor authentication. Regular security audits were conducted to identify and address potential vulnerabilities. Data was stored in a secure, SOC 2-compliant data center.
• Workflow Automation: Workflow automation tools were used to automate repetitive tasks, such as sending email reminders and generating reports. These automations freed up advisor time and reduced the risk of human error. A key workflow rule automatically flagged accounts for review if certain data points were missing or inconsistent.
• Educational Video Hosting: The educational video series was hosted on a secure video platform that allowed for tracking viewership and engagement. This data was used to optimize the video content and improve its effectiveness. The platform also offered features such as closed captions and transcripts to enhance accessibility.

Sarah also implemented a robust reporting system to track key metrics such as onboarding time, client satisfaction, and document completion rates. This data provided valuable insights into the effectiveness of the new onboarding process and allowed for continuous improvement. Calculations included tracking the average time spent on each task within the portal, allowing her team to identify areas for further streamlining.

Results & ROI

The implementation of the personalized digital onboarding portal yielded significant improvements in efficiency, client satisfaction, and advisor productivity.

• Onboarding Time Reduction: The average onboarding time decreased from 25 days to 15 days, a 40% reduction. This faster onboarding process allowed new clients' assets to be deployed more quickly, generating returns sooner.
• Client Satisfaction Improvement: Client satisfaction scores, as measured by a post-onboarding survey, increased by 20% within the first 90 days. The streamlined process and personalized attention left new clients feeling more confident and engaged.
• Advisor Time Savings: Advisors reported a significant reduction in the amount of time spent on onboarding-related tasks, freeing up an average of 5 hours per new client. This time savings allowed them to focus on more strategic activities, such as financial planning and client relationship management.
• Increased AUM Growth: With more time available, advisors were able to onboard an average of 1.5 additional clients per month. This contributed to a 10% increase in the firm's overall assets under management (AUM) within the first year.
• Reduced Errors and Compliance Risks: The automated document collection and CRM integration significantly reduced the risk of errors and omissions, improving compliance and data accuracy.
• Cost Savings: The elimination of paper-based processes resulted in significant cost savings in terms of printing, postage, and storage. Meridian estimated annual cost savings of $5,000 - $7,000 as a result.

In addition to these quantifiable results, the new onboarding process also improved the overall client experience, fostering stronger client relationships and increasing client retention.

Key Takeaways

1. Personalization is Key: Tailor the onboarding experience to each client's individual needs and preferences. A one-size-fits-all approach is no longer sufficient.
2. Embrace Automation: Automate repetitive tasks to improve efficiency and reduce the risk of errors. Focus on workflows that free up advisor time.
3. Integrate Technology: Integrate your onboarding portal with your CRM and other key systems to ensure data consistency and streamline communication.
4. Combine High-Tech with High-Touch: Don't neglect the human element. Supplement the digital experience with personalized communication and a warm welcome.
5. Measure and Optimize: Track key metrics to identify areas for improvement and continuously optimize the onboarding process. Analyze client feedback regularly.

About Golden Door Asset

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