Almost 9 in 10 Financial Planners expect to continue to provide some form of remote advice option as video conferencing has not prevented Financial Planners from gaining new clients, according to a new report.

The report from wealth manager and Financial Planner Quilter found 88% of the 300 Financial Planners surveyed planned to continue video conferencing with clients.

Of those surveyed, 77% had gained new clients during lockdown.

The Financial Planners surveyed said around half (48%) of new clients react differently to video advice.

The introduction of new technology led to 56% of Financial Planners to structure their meetings differently.

Sarah Waring, client and proposition director for Quilter’s national advice business, said:  “At the beginning of 2020 no one would have anticipated that just a few months later we’d be giving the majority of our advice through video due to a global pandemic. However, the industry has shown, yet again, that it can adapt.

“What’s more as we move into our ‘new normal’ we need to think about what practices from lockdown we want to keep. Encouragingly, advisers and clients have been receptive to video conferencing. This can go a long way to increasing adviser’s capacity to take on more clients as there will be less time spent travelling to and from meetings.

“However, we need to recognise that a relationship created through video advice may be intrinsically different to those created through a face to face meeting. It can be harder to engender trust and it also becomes vitally important to have structured meetings. We have found advisers who create a clear framework for the meeting and communicate it at the beginning help to increase their client’s understanding and trust.”