VouchedFor has launched a campaign which aims to change public perceptions of financial advice.
The campaign, from adviser review website VouchedFor, will share positive client stories and articles.
It will also call out those advisers and firms who have received excellent client feedback on the VouchedFor platform
Alex Whitson, managing director at VouchedFor, said: “Our data makes clear that most advisers do great work for their clients. But consumer press coverage of financial advice often focuses on the rare exceptions, damaging public trust in the profession.
“Advisers deserve better. And so do consumers. Particularly in the current environment, where flat stock markets, attractive cash savings rates and rising costs risk people going it alone and making decisions that don’t serve their longer-term goals.
“That’s why we’re trebling the reach of the 2024 Top Rated Guide campaign - because we want to do all we can to help people understand what advice is and how it could benefit them. What better way to do that than by sharing client stories.”
Whitson expects the guide will reach more than three million consumers and will be featured in the three national newspapers across March, June and September, making it the largest consumer-facing campaign celebrating the financial advice profession.
The campaign has been welcomed by the Consumer Duty Alliance, of which VouchedFor is an affiliate.
Keith Richards, CEO of the trade body, said: “This is a fantastic consumer facing initiative to raise greater public awareness and ultimately stimulate engagement for the 8 million consumers who have a need for professional advice, the ability to pay for it, but who are not engaging, often due to lack of awareness or trust. ”
Research from the Financial Conduct Authority, Boring Money and The Lang Cat reveals that a lack of trust remains one of the key reasons why millions of Brits have not engaged with financial advice.
In an article last week (September 21), Whitson said the disconnect between clients’ experience of financial advice and public perception is "frustrating".
He added that increasing client understanding and asking for recommendations are among the factors that will get more clients regularly and passionately advocating for their adviser.
tara.o'connor@ft.com
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