Fees & Commissions

16 Mar Some early revelations from the Pricing Research…

Posted at 20:09h in Articles, Business Coaching, Fees & Commissions, Profit by Sue Viskovic

Every few years, we do a research study to put together our Adviser Pricing Models Research Report. We’re currently in the middle of the data collection right now, and thought we might reveal a couple of the findings that we’ve discovered. Of course, when we re-cut the data after closing off submissions, the numbers will change somewhat, but so far, we’ve been fascinated to see that:

16 Dec LIF is the least of your problems

Posted at 13:44h in All Posts, Articles, Business Coaching, Business Plan, Change, Fees & Commissions, Insurance by Sue Viskovic

Many advisers are concerned that the Life Insurance Framework will damage their business by reducing their income and driving up the cost of life insurance. I wrote this article for specialist risk advisers in Risk Info Magazine, sharing my belief that while it is important to...

02 Nov The dangers of a Cost to Serve analysis

Posted at 14:40h in All Posts, Business Coaching, Fees & Commissions, Insurance, PDM, Profit by Sue Viskovic

I wrote an article recently for Risk Adviser magazine, that I have recreated here for our subscribers. There are some significant changes afoot to the last bastion of advice commissions, and we’re getting a little concerned that advisers are being lulled into a false sense of preparedness by well-meaning, albeit inexperienced supporters. I’ve been very vocal in sharing our view that this does not mean the end for insurance advice, and that we may see an even stronger demand for professional risk advice, but I’ve also not sugar-coated it. Any adviser who currently receives up-front or hybrid commissions, be they risk-focused or provide risk in a broader proposition will find it challenging to make the changes necessary in their business. It will, however, be well worth it - as our experience shows us that the type of thought process and change required will have a dramatic impact on a range of areas of their business, not the least of which, their bottom line. Here is what was published in Risk Adviser…..

02 Nov Some handy tools to help start preparing for the future of risk advice

Posted at 13:49h in All Posts, Business Management, Fees & Commissions, Insurance, Profit by Sue Viskovic

We've been busy these past few months, starting to work with advisers on how to handle the proposed Life Insurance Framework when it gets implemented. Two weeks after receiving confirmation that the new government is supporting the industry-proposed new Frameworks, I thought it might be helpful to share a few free resources we've developed.

04 Feb What’s the future of risk commissions?

Posted at 16:18h in All Posts, Client Service, Fees & Commissions, HR, Insurance by Angela Barclay

The structure of risk commissions in Australia is set to change. As it stands right now, commissions for risk advice are a legitimate form of remuneration for advisers (except in certain circumstances). However, the writing is firmly on the wall that the commission model as we know it will change. The question is not if – but when.

29 Jan Good advice takes time, but value is measured in other ways

Posted at 09:09h in All Posts, Fees & Commissions by Sue Viskovic

In this excerpt from my book Pricing Advice, published in Professional Planner, I share some insights into how to present fees to your clients and gain confidence in charging explicit fees for your services. You can read the article here:

05 Dec Pricing insurance advice post-FoFA

Posted at 11:34h in All Posts, Fees & Commissions by Sue Viskovic

For advisers providing advice on insurance, it has traditionally been difficult to price that advice. While commissions largely remain post-FoFA, they are banned on some types of personal insurance. In my revised edition of Pricing Advice, I have devoted a much larger chapter to this area. An excerpt from this chapter has run in this month's edition of RiskInfo, which you can read here, and it is also reproduced below...

30 Oct When is the right time to quote my fee?

Posted at 12:40h in All Posts, Client Service, Fees & Commissions by Sue Viskovic

One question we're often asked by advisers, is "when is the right time to quote my fee?". It's one thing to determine how much to charge, it’s also incredibly important to know how and when to position it with your clients. The following is an excerpt from the revised edition of my book, Pricing advice:

19 Jun Why you should not post out all your Fee Disclosure Statements on July 1 (and what to do instead)

Posted at 14:14h in All Posts, Business Management, Client Service, Fees & Commissions, Sales & Marketing by Sue Viskovic

Most Australian advisers are currently absorbed in altering their business practices to comply with the new FoFA Legislation, and a particularly large issue is deciding on when and how to deliver their Fee Disclosure Statements (we now have a three-letter F word … the FDS!). We have heard of a number of advisers who are planning to post out all of their FDS's on the 1st of July, indeed some licensees are even suggesting this is a good option. It may have been suggested in the ASIC regulatory guide, but we think this is a dangerous strategy, and there are far better options that are still compliant with both the wording and the intent of the legislation.

11 Jun How to ensure your clients will keep paying you for your ongoing services

Posted at 22:20h in All Posts, Client Service, Fees & Commissions by Angela Barclay

When an advice business ceases to receive trail commissions it does not mean that they must stop receiving recurring income, and start relying on constantly winning new clients on a transactional basis. One of the most valuable components of advice businesses is the fact that they can generate recurring income from long-term relationships with their clients. It’s just that in a fee-based business, this recurring revenue may not be as ‘passive’ as it was in a commission-based business.