The majority of financial advisers are satisfied with the service of their main investment platform, however, secondary platforms do not achieve the same result, according to the latest CoreData study.
The Platform Research August 2012 report found that when it came to their main platform, 82.8 per cent of advisers were satisfied with new business placed and 82.6 per cent were happy with existing business.
Fewer advisers recorded the same satisfaction when it came to their secondary platform, with 66 per cent satisfied with new business and 68.6 per cent satisfied with existing business.
Over three in four advisers, 78.5 per cent, were likely to recommend their main platform, the report said.
In contrast, only 49 per cent of advisers are likely to recommend their secondary platform.
Furthermore, the service a platform provided was a significant driver of adviser satisfaction, the report found.
The top three platform attributes in 2012 were all service-related. The number one factor driving adviser satisfaction was accuracy of opening accounts, followed by the speed of switching between investments and the speed of opening accounts.
When it came to allocating client funds from one platform to another, 59.5 per cent of advisers were more inclined to switch if the platform could provide better value for their client and 47.2 per cent of advisers would move if the product offer was better suited to client needs.
"One of the main themes that came through this year was around value for the end client," CoreData head of advice, wealth and super Kristen Turnbull told InvestorDaily.
"When we asked the advisers the top things they're looking for their platform providers to improve in the next 12 months, lower costs to the client was the overriding factor. Also, product offer has become more important in 2012."
In addition, the report found over two in three advisers placed more than 71 per cent of their business through their main platform.
Conversely, three in four advisers placed between zero and 30 per cent of the business they wrote through their secondary platform.
