Unbiased launches product suite to help advisers face the latest challenges

Unbiased launches product suite to help advisers face the latest challenges 

Unbiased, the UK’s leading gateway to trusted advice, has launched a new product suite for professionals 

looking to grow their business in today’s challenging market. Available from 13th July the suite offers a choice of four distinct plans to support the needs of firms of all sizes. 

A key benefit of all the plans is a range of features designed to facilitate online promotion and remote advice, which has become paramount following the COVID-19 lockdown. Firms with proactive growth strategies have a choice of plans with additional powerful marketing tools. 

How COVID has reshaped the advice market 

The advice industry, like the wider economy, has been forced to adapt at unprecedented speed due to the pandemic. The latest research1  by Unbiased shows advisers adapting to a nation in lockdown, replacing face-to-face meetings with remote advice – often for the first time. 

Nearly a third of advisers have never offered remote advice before, and over half (56%) have had to invest more in this area. Most significantly, 86% of respondents said that even after the lockdown they would continue to make remote advice available for those who wanted it. Interestingly, nearly a third (31%) believed that offering remote advice had actively improved their service. Some commented: 

‘We’ve been able to take on new clients … who are hundreds of miles away!’ 

‘Clients seem to be happy to use remote advice and this will change how we offer our service in the future.’ 

‘Clients are now aware of how easy it is to communicate.’ 

‘My clients are more able and willing to receive advice remotely, which is saving me travel time and is generally more efficient.’ 

Even so, the vast majority (over 90%) had observed a negative impact on their business from COVID-19. 

A suite of products to meet changing needs 

The new Unbiased product suite offers greater choice for firms both large and small, along with the flexibility needed in rapidly changing circumstances. Using one flexible subscription, professionals can easily switch between the different plans to take advantage of special features as necessary. An advice firm can therefore address specific needs at key stages of its development, switching products at other times when growth is less of a priority. 

The four plans are: 

All plans offer as standard the key features that have proved invaluable to advisers and their clients during the lockdown. These include in-account client messaging and chat history, automated welcome messages (which can inform clients that remote advice is available), the ability to access enquiries anywhere via a mobile app, and a prominent web presence with strong SEO.  

‘[Unbiased] has allowed us to reassure prospects that we can deal with their enquiries remotely.’ – Survey response 

Current Unbiased subscribers have the option to switch 

Professionals who currently list with Unbiased under one of the old plans have the option to switch to the new suite, or stay on their existing plan. New or returning sign-ups to Unbiased will only be offered the four new plans, but the suite is designed to be more flexible to changing needs. 

Karen Barrett, CEO and founder of Unbiased, said, 

 ‘Over the years we’ve seen huge changes in how people find the advice they need and the matching technology on the Unbiased site has been instrumental in connecting more and more consumers with the right advice and information. Consumers have always faced the difficulty of narrowing down the vast choice in advisers to one that is right for them but no-one imagined that things would change as dramatically as they have this year! Advisers who only ever worked face-to-face, or found clients offline, have had to rethink their whole approach. But although we couldn’t predict the present crisis, our work up to this point has prepared our advisers better than we could have hoped. 

‘The Unbiased platform has enabled business continuity for advisers through this most difficult time, along with continuity of advice for consumers who may be at their most vulnerable. Only our frequent innovation has made this possible. That’s why I’m now thrilled to announce our new product suite, offering plans that are more flexible and powerful than ever before. It demonstrates our commitment to helping advisers grow their businesses, while bringing advice to even more people.’ 

ENDS 

Notes to Editors  

1 Based on a 2020 survey of 1500 financial advisers and mortgage brokers listed on the unbiased.co.uk. platform  

More information on our new pricing plans can be found on our pricing page https://www.unbiased.co.uk/pro/pricing 

For more information contact [email protected]  

About Unbiased 

Every year, more than 2 million people use Unbiased to find trusted experience and advice to help them make life’s biggest decisions.  Our simple-to-use platform quickly and accurately matches them with financial advisers, mortgage brokers or accountants. Experienced professionals who can offer quality advice, tailored to people’s particular needs and circumstances.  

At Unbiased we’re committed to helping people make difficult financial decisions with confidence – guided by our helpful content, practical guides and handy tools.  All 27,000+ of our professionals are fully-regulated, highly-qualified, and independent of product providers so they are free to offer clear, objective advice.   

Unbiased. Find trusted advice, tailored to you