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February 29, 2024 at 10:05 AM
What You Need to Know
- Seamlessly integrating innovative solutions without prohibitive costs is critical in staying competitive.
- The approach is emerging as a new way to enable advisors to “add on” as they please.
- Firms using such a platform may find it easier to retain talent and gather assets.
In an era of continued growth and competition among RIAs and advisors, the rise of subscription-based platforms presents an opportunity for advisors who want to better serve their clients yet not get taken advantage of from a pricing standpoint.
These flat-fee platforms, often offered through RIA aggregators, are redefining how advisory services are delivered, offering benefits that can better meet the needs of both advisors and their clients in an ever-changing industry.
For example, subscription-based fees are emerging as a new way to enable advisors to “add on” as they please, depending on what their needs may be as they grow their client base and expand the financial planning and investment services they can provide.
Like a subscription to a streaming service, using an RIA aggregator or platform that offers a flat-fee structure can allow independent advisors to access “one-stop shop” benefits such as back-office services, high-end technology and extensive support, regardless of an advisor’s production level or assets under management.
I outline these in more detail below to help advisors understand how switching to a subscription-based fee model might be helpful for their practices:
Going Independent
For advisors contemplating the leap toward independence, subscription-based platforms can be an attractive option. The flexibility to tailor services to specific needs, without the fear of exponential cost increases, shows the model’s appeal.
Flat-fee services are attractive for advisors looking for independence, yet still feel supported with the resources and technology of an RIA aggregator or platform.
So how does the flat-fee model work? As the volume of services provided goes up depending on the advisor’s demand, what they’re charged goes up, but not astronomically, so it doesn’t turn into an unnecessary gouge of a never-ending percentage.
Not all providers of these subscription-based services are alike, so when an advisor is considering using a specific platform or provider, they need to assess different offerings. We’re now seeing subscription-based RIA services offer surveillance, messaging, data aggregation and access to a tech stack.
Fractional services and shared resource platforms, which multiple unaffiliated advisors can use without competing against each other necessarily, let advisors choose what they want to do and how much they want to pay.
