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When barriers kill growth

Who owns digital growth?

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The Goal-Based Platform for Digital Wealth Management

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by 3rd-eyes analytics
| 17/10/2025 15:00:00

In my last article, I argued that growth only happens when client needs are truly placed at the centre. For decades, growth in wealth management has relied on the skills and networks of client advisers. That worked — until it did not, as I outlined in my first piece on the Struggle for Organic Growth.

But as client expectations shift, digitalisation accelerates, and a new generation enters the market, relying solely on human relationships is no longer enough. That reminds me of a recent discussion with a well-known private bank. When I asked how they generate new leads digitally, the executive smiled: "We do not. Our clients come through relationships." Well, here is the thing:

Inaction comes at a price

Traditional acquisition models are expensive. The estimated client acquisition cost in wealth management sits at around 250–300 basis points per client. Properly executed digital strategies can bring that down to roughly 80 bps, according to McKinsey.

That is not just a cost advantage — it is a structural threat to the old model. Because the next generation does not walk into branches anymore; they start their buying journey online. And for those who still think this does not apply to their business model:

  • Swissquote: 350k+ Swiss private clients, acquired digitally.
  • Revolut: 65m+ clients worldwide, 1m+ in Switzerland alone, and that is even without a local banking license

These players did not wait. They built digital sales engines that work. They are winning market share — first with simpler services like execution-only, but steadily expanding into higher-value offerings. You see the same trend among smaller challengers like VIAC or finpension, expanding out of their niches into more comprehensive propositions. And while they may not yet go after the top end of private banking, let’s be honest:

Every wealth manager has a sweet spot — clients who do not need complex advice but still pay significant fees. Those clients often have the highest net margins. And they are the ones at risk.

So it is surprising to see how many established firms still have low maturity in lead generation and conversion, while new entrants are already cherry-picking the most profitable segments.

Why digital lead generation still fails

Even firms with a high digital maturity often stumble at the first step — generating and converting leads.

We have all seen it: the longer a prospect interacts with you, the higher the likelihood they will convert — awareness, consideration, conversion. Simple in theory, hard in practice. Because most firms make the same mistake from the start.

Asking for too much data too soon

The first major obstacle is simple — we ask for too much, too early.

Look at the car industry. They have nailed this. You can configure your car, explore options, see prices, and only later decide whether to move forward. Some brands even let you save your configuration with a code rather than your email — they would not have done this if conversion rates had not gone up. Giving access via code avoids losing leads just because they were not ready to share an email.

Wealth management can learn from this. Tools like pension or retirement calculators work well to attract and engage prospects. But if you ask for too much personal data, most prospects will drop off — and go elsewhere.

Friction everywhere

Here is the irony: most digital tools in wealth management are designed to attract clients, yet they end up having the opposite effect. The issue is friction: too many steps, too many clicks, too many mandatory input fields.

In a world where attention spans last seconds, the average prospect has little patience. Every extra field, every additional second, increases the chance they will drop off.

That is why simplicity is so powerful. Take our own pension gap calculator as an example. It is designed to be:

  • Simple – no financial jargon, just clear and intuitive steps.
  • Holistic – it captures the full financial picture, not just isolated pension pillars.
  • Fast – in 60 seconds, you are done and get a personal, actionable result.

No sign-up walls. Minimal data collection and input fields. Just value, right away. And a chance to request a free consultation. This kind of low-friction, high-value experience is what modern prospects expect. It builds trust before the first conversation — and it turns digital traffic into meaningful leads.

But even when digital experiences get simpler, another bottleneck remains.

The incentive problem

The real obstacle to digital growth in wealth management is not technology — it is incentives.

Most firms still do not reward lead generation. They only reward client acquisition. In other words, no one gets credit for creating opportunities, only for closing them. Advisers are paid when a client signs, not when a qualified lead is generated.

"But who owns digital lead generation? Does your marketing responsible have digital lead generation targets?"

In many cases, marketing focuses on awareness, not conversion. Management focuses on cost control, not revenue design, as outlined in the article Untapped Opportunities. Everyone optimises for their own KPIs — and digital growth stalls in the gaps between departments.

The good news? That gap is also the opportunity. The firms that redesign incentives around the entire client acquisition journey — from first click to signed client — will be the ones that unlock scalable, digital growth.

Design the incentives, align ownership. To make growth a choice, not a hope.

Read the original article here.