New Zealand technology company SuiteBox has launched its new cloud-‐based videoconferencing and live document collaboration app into the Australian financial services market, due to increasing adviser demand for a more effective way to deliver services to clients in real time.
SuiteBox, which recently received a significant R&D grant from the New Zealand Government’s Callaghan Innovation, is a videoconferencing and recording solution with the ability for advisers to share documents on-‐screen and immediately gain electronic signatures.
The solution, which allows you to video-‐enable your business processes, is designed to seamlessly integrate with CRM and financial planning software like Salesforce, SugarCRM, Xplan and Coin, allows advisers and their clients to accelerate the advice process by collectively reviewing, amending and signing off on advice documents; superannuation, investment and insurance applications; and records of advice.
Administration and paperwork is dramatically reduced which can save significant time and money, and reduce the number of incorrect application forms.
Ian Black, SuiteBox commercial director said the company had identified financial services as a primary focus even though the SuiteBox application is a generic product with the power to deliver benefits to organisations in any industry.
“Converging demographic, economic and regulatory forces continue to place increasing pressure on financial advisers to be more efficient, productive and compliant, and to stay in regular contact with clients,” he said.
“Demographic changes underway will see a wave of baby boomers retire over the next few years. That will not only affect practice revenues but also how meetings and client reviews are conducted as retirees travel more often, move away and ultimately, become less mobile.
“An enormous intergenerational wealth transfer is simultaneously occurring as the parents of baby boomers and the baby boomers pass down an inheritance to their children. That will inevitably lead more young people to seek advice however Gen Y and Millennials will expect technology to play a key role in the delivery of advice and the overall experience.”
The SuiteBox technology, which was piloted by a several companies across different industries including real estate agency Sotheby’s and Auckland University, is intuitive, fast and extremely easy to use.
Advisers can establish a virtual room for each client and meet when convenient to provide advice. Clients join a meeting room with one click and can choose if they want to use the video features. With the seamless ability to collaborate on documents or any digital content, record meetings and store footage directly onto a CRM or financial planning system for retrieval, advisers can accelerate the process of gathering information, giving advice or signing documentation on screen all through a beautiful user interface.
Mr Black said video calling was becoming an essential tool in business with early adopters of videotelephony citing significant cost savings, serving customers more conveniently and effectively and being able to collapse and accelerate the sales cycle.
He said unified communications would play a key role in the evolution of the advice proposition with the needs of investors and advisers rapidly evolving.
“Physical meetings are still important, especially early in the advice relationship, but once a relationship has started and trust is established, it’s pretty sticky,” Mr Black said.
“SuiteBox is designed to make doing business easier and more convenient for everyone. In a world where everyone is busy and time poor, SuiteBox can solve the problem of distance, time and accessibility in a scalable, convenient and cost effective way.”
Source: SuiteBox
