The ten best adviser websites

TOP MARKS

Nicola Brittain
clock • 8 min read

Websites are one way advisory firms can demystify financial services for their clients, but who's doing it best? Here Nicola Brittain counts down the ten best adviser websites...

3 Yellowtail Financial Planning

www.yellowtail.co.uk
Total score: 45 points

yellowtail

You can't beat a good client testimonial (assuming visitors believe them, of course), and Yellowtail has some good ones. It also has one particularly eye-catching offer: a 'no quibble money back guarantee' if, at any point, clients are unhappy with the advice they have received.

Do you feature? We count down the ten best adviser websites

The Yellowtail site went live in June this year after going through several iterations. Managing director Dennis Hall received help from web designer Gareth Thompson (third mention in a row) and a graphic designer who helped him come up with the neutral colour scheme.

It has a simple but dynamic design, with an articles section on the home page (all written in-house) changing regularly.

The site doesn't simply list the services it offers - it makes the clients think about the service they may want or need. For example, click on the 'financial planning' tab and you get a piece on what the musical West Side Story can teach us about the importance of planning for retirement.

Additional articles such as ‘Banks don't want our money - why?' and ‘What is rebalancing?' feature on the home page, while there is also a section featuring book reviews, blogs, insight and spotlight.

Hall said: "We wanted to come up with a concept that was completely different. The site needed to be approachable without scary numbers or too much technical detail. It was important for us to make the site dynamic too."

2 Bloomsbury Financial Planning

www.bloomsburywealth.co.uk
Total score: 46 points

bloomsbury

This colourful site is clean and easy to navigate. Pictures are those of families on holiday or spending quality time together. The wording is non-corporate, with tabs reading ‘you', ‘us' ‘together', ‘latest viewpoint' and ‘get in touch'.

It was designed by a Vietnam-based company called Brand Creativity and went live in December 2010. A new iteration of the site will launch in September, alongside a mobile app, videos, stop motion animation and more thought leadership pieces.

Partner Jason Butler said: "The site was designed with emotion and femininity in mind. People want freedom, confidence and peace of mind with regard to their financial affairs, not products, and we have tried to reflect that."

Content currently includes a blog and several white papers including an estate planning guide, with an ‘inside track' section for clients featuring more original content.

1 The Beaufort Group

www.thebeaufortgroup.co.uk
Total score: 47 points

beaufort

There simply isn't another site (that we looked at, at least) like it. You can go up and down, left and right. This is, ultimately, the most tablet and smartphone-friendly adviser website we've seen.

The website, launched only a month ago or so, was designed by Jersey-based Crowd Media. It benefits (as mentioned) from vertical and horizontal navigation and is divided into columns with drop-down and retractable menus. The site's content was all created and written in-house. Even the photos were taken by staff (and still look good!).

It makes much of the company ethos and, as group chief executive Alan Easter said, "People won't buy what we sell, they will buy what we stand for; expertise, professionalism and a set of beliefs. Clients with the same moral compass as our own will be attracted to the company."

Navigation of the site is extremely easy. In terms of additional content, the group produces a weekly newsletter, Windy. It is also currently working on developing ‘how to' animations that will appear on the site. Congratulations Beaufort.

How we did it

First off, we asked for recommendations. Which adviser websites did advisers themselves, designers and marketeers like best? This gave us a starting point. We then looked at all the websites listed on Unbiased.co.uk's Bluebook and added a few of our personal favourites. We trawled through (we think) at least 50 websites in total and awarded points based on the following criteria. The winner collected the most points, simple as that...

Strong message: Is it clear what the company does - and what services it offers - from the website homepage? 0-10 points

Navigation: Is the site easy to navigate? 0-10

Charges: Though we're not suggesting firms should list charges on their website, in the interests of transparency firms may be awarded an extra mark for a well-explained charging structure Max. 5 points

Look and ‘feel': Is the website attractive to look at and read? 0-10

Content: Extra marks are awarded for educational articles published on the website for the benefit of existing or new clients. Max. 5 points

Contact details: Is it easy to determine who to contact for more information? 0-10

20 other sites that caught our eye

www.woodruff-fp.co.uk/
www.aspireonline.co.uk/
www.pharon.co.uk/
www.mulberryifa.com/
www.lowes.co.uk
www.meaningfulmoney.co.uk
www.commonsensemoney.co.uk
http://www.boulterbowen.co.uk/
http://www.investorprofile.co.uk/
www.santorini-fp.co.uk
http://basiandbasi.co.uk/
www.principalifas.co.uk
http://www.cooperparrywealth.com/
http://carringtoninvestments.co.uk/
http://theauroragroup.org/
http://dragonflyplanning.com/index.html
http://fortitudefp.co.uk/
http://lexingtonwealth.co.uk/
www.cockburnlucas.co.uk
http://www.hl.co.uk/

More on Adviser tips

Spouses using different advisers can often cause difficulties

Spouses using different advisers can often cause difficulties

Looking at industry thoughts on the back of last week’s PA Asks poll

Hope Coumbe
clock 25 March 2024 • 1 min read
Editor's View: A very busy week and a very clear warning

Editor's View: A very busy week and a very clear warning

The editor's Friday Night Takeaway from 22 March

Hope Coumbe
clock 22 March 2024 • 2 min read
Editor's View: Will it be smooth sailing ahead for True Potential?

Editor's View: Will it be smooth sailing ahead for True Potential?

The editor's Friday Night Takeaway from 15 March

Hope Coumbe
clock 15 March 2024 • 1 min read

In-depth

March 2024: Month in review with deputy editor Jenna Brown

March 2024: Month in review with deputy editor Jenna Brown

Take a look at some of the news and feature highlights of the last month

Jenna Brown
clock 28 March 2024 • 5 min read
Will IFA-owned platforms take over the financial advice sector?

Will IFA-owned platforms take over the financial advice sector?

PA talks to industry experts on the future of adviser-owned platforms

Sahar Nazir
clock 27 March 2024 • 9 min read
PA Awards 2024: Winners' photo gallery from the night!

PA Awards 2024: Winners' photo gallery from the night!

The industry's best were celebrated in London last Wednesday

Professional Adviser
clock 26 March 2024 • 1 min read