Our guide to making eCommerce work for your firm

Paul Pettitt, managing director of Origo, explains the basics of electronic servicing.

A vast amount of money has been invested in eCommerce in recent years; a trend that is set to continue apace in the financial services industry. With the RDR fast approaching and the current financial climate in recovery, eCommerce can help advisers better demonstrate their value while driving down business processing costs.

It is more important than ever for adviser firms to make better use of the increasingly wide-ranging eServices available. It is not surprising advisers may be confused thanks to the increasing array of eServices on offer through various back office systems, wrap platforms and product provider extranets.

As well as servicing functions that cover core processes such as quotes, new business submission & tracking, commission/remuneration and valuations, there are online tools that claim to help towards RDR preparations, those that compare and contrast different platforms and their offerings, and those that aim to help model future businesses.

Technology and eServices have a clear role to play and the benefits are often heralded, but there are processes and sometimes pain associated with making that commitment to change. To help adviser firms through some of the initial steps, we review the basic, yet imperative, processes that form the foundations of successful electronic servicing and the benefits it can bring.

Registration

Like it or not, when it comes to online services, we have all grown accustomed to the obligatory registration form – a process that usually means our details are stored and our dealings made secure. The ease of the registration process in itself can determine whether or not an eService will be used and it has often been cited, in Origo’s research as a ‘barrier to adoption’.

As the industry’s eCommerce standards and services body, Origo is committed to making these preliminary encounters with technology easier and more efficient for all the parties involved, starting with Terms of Business.

Terms of Business

In order to trade with a product provider, a Terms of Business must be agreed. This process can take a variety of forms, and quite literally, take a variety of forms. Some providers will want a signed paper agreement, some might ask you to complete a form online, followed-up by a telephone call. Some providers will want basic information and some will want more extensive information. But, until you have an agency code, you cannot transact via paper, phone or online with a provider.

Sitting behind the trading transactions, your agency code enables providers’ systems to do a number of things namely to recognise which client policies belong to you and also calculate and pay remuneration. This is crucial for processing of electronic remuneration information, and automated remuneration reconciliation – all ultimately working to reduce rekeying and compliance costs.

As well as being crucial to new business applications, your agency code also plays a vital role in other eServices such as online valuations. Requesting a valuation through your back office system with just a click of a button, means there is an automated security check to be done, and one of those checks includes ‘agency codes’ to ensure appropriate access to your customers’ data.