Financial Mail - Investors Monthly
PEOPLE’S CHOICE AWARDS
Client satisfaction levels are high across the industry
DWT SECURITIES IS THE WINNER of the 2018 People’s Choice award.
This award is coveted, as it is based purely on client opinions. This year 6,380 participated in an online survey of clients, ensuring a high degree of credibility to the People’s Choice scores as well as to the scores of numerous other categories in which their opinions are incorporated. It was an extremely tight race, with every one of the top 10 brokers getting impressively high ratings from their clients. DWT Securities pipped Unum Capital by 0.22 points.
DWT Securities is primarily a derivatives-driven broker that caters for active day traders. Client comments were overwhelmingly positive. Many clients remarked about the excellent support service, which they say cannot be found at any other broker in SA.
One client said: “In my 25 years in the JSE [I have found that] the best broker service is from DWT. To get such service is exceptional. From opening an account to platform help and everything else is just amazing.”
We base the scores on two questions that relate to what we believe is integral to assessing client satisfaction levels: we asked clients to rank overall quality of service and to say how likely they are to recommend their broker to friends and family.
Clearly SA’s retail stockbrokers are excellent at keeping their clients happy. Fewer than two points separate first place from 10th, reflecting the fiercely competitive nature of the industry.
What’s notable in this year’s rankings is that the boutique-type firms dominate – PSG is the only big player that caters for the full client spectrum in the top 10.
This possibly attests to the smaller firms being quicker to adapt to market conditions, but also reflects their ability to have more direct, meaningful relationships with clients.
Overall, industry service levels are highly regarded by clients, and they appreciate it when their brokers improve their offerings: 47% say they’ve noticed an improvement in the past 12 months. And clients are proving to be loyal: 37% have been with their broker for more than five years.
The broker-client relationship is also a personal one: 44% chose their broker through recommendations by family and friends.
Clients are typically white (62%), male (82%), have a professional qualification and are high-income earners: 34% earn up to R40,000 a month, 26% earn between R40,000 and R70,000 and 17% earn between R70,000 and R100,000. At the very top end, 23% earn more than R100,000.