During debates of what technology like AI and machine learning cannot replace, human elements like creativity and interactions are often on the list. Yet, the recent bloom of AI-generated illustrations shows that might not be entirely true. While these tools will unlikely replace painters entirely, it surely is a new way for those who do not have the skills to draw, or afford to hire a professional, to produce their own image. The growth of tech-enabled advisers is on a similar trajectory. Financial planning is not being completely replaced by algorithms, but advice is more accessible than before. These tools are being used to support traditional forms of advice and financial planning, or to help customers make their own decisions without advice. Will this be the future of customer engagement and what is still missing? What is the right balance to strike? These questions will be a couple of key elements that our breakout session at the annual conference will cover.
Data
Availability and accuracy of data is a prerequisite of any meaningful advice. Due to the age of the products, pension data have been notoriously analogue and difficult for customers to digest. Pensions Dashboards will provide a once-in-a-generation opportunity to digitise data in the market and making them available to advisers and fintech companies who did not have access to them before. It is expected that data insights will be a core competition area once the dashboards market is available, and the industry will need to be mindful of responding to changing customer needs and the wave of disruptors. In this session we will explore how potential providers are planning to embrace the opportunities and challenges, and lessons from other data initiatives.
Engagement
Any new services will need to be supported by effective promotion for them to actually be used. Engagement, both online and offline, is a key element to success. People’s engagement with pensions is low at the moment, and digital engagement is not common. With other priorities in life, pensions are often at the bottom of the to-do list. When they move home, only 4% of customers would notify their pension providers of the address change if unprompted. £19.4 billion of pensions are estimated to be unclaimed due to loss of contact.
For the first time, the industry has joined up and created a three-season ‘Pension Attention’ campaign. The first season’s theme is to drive people to reconnect with their pensions. During this session, we will reflect on the campaign and lessons learnt in engaging people on pensions through social media and digital channels.
Trust
Repeated use of technology will depend on both a reliable service and on customers’ trust. A huge question is whether dashboards, automated advisers or other engagement tools will be able to gain the right level of trust. We know that there will need to be a balance of human and digital support in the customer journey to do so, but what is the golden ratio? This session will explore these questions, with a focus on advice.