For Financial Services, High Touch Matters

TORONTO, JANUARY 9, 2001 - Despite the ever growing amount of financial information available to consumers from a variety of sources, including the Internet and self-help books, Canadians put financial advisors at the top of their list, according to findings from Canadians and Financial Advice, a newly released study looking at, among other things, the impact of the Internet on the financial services industry.

Indeed, 60 per cent of Canadians surveyed by market research company Ipsos-Reid rated financial advisors an "important" source of information, citing investment professionals well ahead of ten other sources, including books on investing, family, friends and the Internet.

Some 32 per cent said they valued material sent from a financial advisor. Twenty per cent said the Internet was a significant source of financial information --roughly the same level as friends and books.

Some 42 per cent of respondents had used the services of a professional financial advisor in the previous 12 months, while 58 per cent had not. Canadians in Ontario, Alberta and British Columbia used advisors more than consumers in other provinces. In general, Canadians with higher incomes and/or who had a higher level of education were more likely to deal with a financial advisor.

When asked to describe their satisfaction with the value they receive, 65 per cent of those using an advisor said they were satisfied. Thirteen per cent gave advisors a low satisfaction rating. The most satisfied respondents were those over age 55.

"Most Canadians are quite satisfied with the value they receive from their advisors," said David Saffran, an Ipsos-Reid Senior Vice President and leader of the company's financial services practice. "So much so that it is not surprising consumers will turn to advisors well ahead of other information sources."

As for the impact of the Internet on financial services delivery, just 11 per cent of those surveyed said they expected to use a professional financial advisor less often in the future because of the Internet. Thirteen per cent said they would make use of a "virtual" professional advisor over the Internet, if the service was provided by a reputable financial institution.

"When it comes to advice about money, the Internet is not going to be, or is not yet, a substitute for relationships with professional advisors. Even though there are more people than ever using the Internet, the human touch provided by investment professionals remains critically important to Canadians," noted Saffran.

"At the moment, the Internet is more about collecting and comparing financial information than substituting for professional advisors."

Still, Saffran said, there's no denying the growing importance of the Internet both as an investment tool and channel, with an estimated 70 per cent of all Canadians already online. When Internet users were surveyed about their past month's activities, 40 per cent reported using the Internet to track how their investments were doing. Overall, 61 per cent of Canadians surveyed by Ipsos-Reid deem the Internet a "reliable" source of financial information.

About this research
Ipsos-Reid conducted two separate surveys on this topic. The first was a study among 2,593 Canadian adults conducted in October and November of 2000. The second was a telephone poll of 1,502 adult Canadians conducted in November of 2000. The results from the first of these two surveys are considered accurate within 1.9 percentage points, 19 times out of 20, while the second is accurate to within 2.5 percentage points, nineteen times out of twenty.

About Ipsos-Reid
Established in 1979, Ipsos-Reid is Canada's leading market research and public opinion company. Its is best known for the Angus Reid Express Poll, the most widely quoted source of public opinion in the country. Founded by Dr. Angus Reid, Ipsos-Reid has conducted extensive market and social research in 80 countries and in 40 languages, and serves clients around the world through more than 300 professionals and 1,000 data collection staff in 11 offices. The company is a member of the Paris-based Ipsos Group, ranked among the top ten research companies in the world. Visit www.ipsos-reid.com

For more information on this news release, please contact:

Ray Kong
Ipsos-Reid
(416) 324-2106